Born in the heart of English Protestantism, and the object of suspicion and hostility from Catholics for decades, Alpha is now well on the way to being embraced by the global Church

Since its launch, Alpha has evolved from “supper party evangelism” in the Kensington suburbs into a global brand of Christian outreach, contextualised into multiple cultures and languages across the planet. By the start of 2008 – 15 years after its global launch – it had reached more than 10 million people worldwide.

But its presiding genius, Nicky Gumbel, had a dream for Alpha to reach 100 million “at the very minimum” within the following decade. That would require a new strategy. It had already navigated nimbly between different denominations. But now it needed closer partnerships – particularly with the Catholic Church, the largest Christian denomination, with more than one billion members. This would not happen by accident.