Churches throughout Britain and Ireland are asked to look harder at how they communicate the Christian message in a changing world in a new report published 8 October. Presence and Prophecy: a heart for mission in theological education is the work of the ecumenical Mission Theological Advisory Group (MTAG) chaired by the Rt Revd Michael Nazir-Ali, Anglican Bishop of Rochester. It says that re-examining the way lay people, ordinands and clergy are taught is vital if the Gospel is to connect with everyday life.

"Christianity is not 'vanquished' or irrelevant", says the Bishop of Rochester. Presence and Prophecy shows that "we can use everything that we learn to help others recognise that Christianity is a living faith." It is "capable of challenging us to think about our faith and also about how we lead our lives in today's world."

The Revd Marjory MacLean, Acting Principal Clerk of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, said that her Church is already taking bold steps to make sure that it can connect with "a 24 hour a day, 7 day a week world." Citing a new congregation in Aberdeen that meets in a primary school she said, "Presence and Prophecy can underline our message and help those who want to make it work."

Presence and Prophecy, which comes with a Study Guide and some Christian reflections on modern culture, Transparencies, is jointly published by the Archbishops' Council of the Church of England and by Churches Together in Britain and Ireland (CTBI), the official ecumenical coordinating body for the main denominations.

The Roman Catholic Archbishop of Birmingham, the Most Revd Vincent Nichols, has also welcomed Presence and Prophecy. He describes it as "weighty" and "insightful."