THE Church of England ordered a radical change yesterday in the way its services are planned and organised, recognising that, for many, Sunday os no longer the best day to hold services.

The General Synod, meeting in Westminster, endorsed a report which advocated “café congregations”, cell churches and other new forms of church worship be set up on different days of the week.

Clergy synod members described how they had been forced to organise midweek services already because Christians either did not want or were unable to get to church on Sundays. The Church must recognise that society was now “second or even third-generation pagan once again” and that the emergence of consumerism coincided with the “demise of Christendom”, the synod was told.

The synod was debating Mission-Shaped Church, a report by a working group headed by the Bishop of Maidstone, the Right Rev Graham Cray. The report, published at a time when the number of adult Sunday worshippers has fallen to 835,000, recommends a change of culture so that Christians and spiritual “seekers” are encouraged to meet in pubs, youth clubs or community centres to talk about God.In some places, it says, that is already happening.

“This is a response to the sense that Sunday is no longer a church day for our society, but rather a family day, or DIY day, or sports club day or whatever people choose to do. Some people may be keen to meet with other Christians regularly, but it is no longer feasible for them to do that regularly on a Sunday.”

Ideas being considered include base ecclesial communities, a form of worship imported from Latin America, “café churches”, “cell churches” and “seeker services”.

Under-used churches could sell off parts of the nave or crypt to coffee shops such as Starbucks or bars such as All Bar One to raise funds. Even nightclubs have not been ruled out under additional plans to change Church law.

The new “mission-shaped church” would be funded by £5 million cuts in the hierarchy of suffragan and diocesan bishops and £500,000 cuts in cathedral funding plus a further £3.5 million from the Church Commissioners. The cuts to bishops and cathedrals will be debated today.

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, said the Church was at a time of decision and now had the opportunity to grow up and become a “more adult church”.

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