Contemporary Christianity exists to help Christians and churches in Northern Ireland effectively serve Christ in our changing world. Profound changes in culture have swept through Europe in recent years. Christians, like most of the general population, have been bewildered by the pace of change and have found themselves struggling to live authentically in a post-Christian society. Contemporary Christianity is the successor to Evangelical Contribution on Northern Ireland (ECONI, 1988 – 2005) and the Centre for Contemporary Christianity in Ireland (2005-2010). ECONI emerged against the background of our community division and political violence in Northern Ireland, when a group of evangelical Christians argued for a new response. Their conviction was that faithful witness must take seriously the biblical command to make peace and do justice. Where loyalty to political and cultural identities had obscured loyalty to Jesus Christ, Christians needed to rediscover what it meant to live for God and his glory alone. We have always sought to look honestly at our own community, leading us to ask tough questions and acknowledge sectarian attitudes and practices. But while the challenges of building a peaceful and inclusive society locally remain, the bigger challenge now facing us is the reality of wider change in society.
