Doubting your faith is natural at some point in your life, according to a vicar who is launching a special course for Lent.

The Rev Jon Evens at St John’s Church said that struggling with your faith happens to most people, including ministers.

He is launching a five- week course at his church in St John’s Road, Seven Kings, as well as two other churches, discussing doubt and how to cope with it starting next month.

Reality

Rev Evens said: “Doubt happens to all of us at some stage in our lives and as a Christian minister I’m certainly not excepted from that reality.

“But you can go back to experiences that you have had as a Christian when you have felt the presence of God in a profound way.”

Each session includes listening to a speech by a prominent Christian followed by group discussions.

Rev Evens said: “Lent is a time when people go deeper into their faiths and you can think about what you can do for God by getting together with different people and exploring your belief.

“You get a range of different ideas and not everyone agrees so the discussions are interesting.”

The course will look at whether it is acceptable for you to doubt your faith, evidence of God’s love and discussing death.

Rev Evens said that the course often built friendships between the congregations of the different churches.

“It’s not always easy to hold on to your faith and we should be honest about that. The course will be saying that’s something that you can live with and work through. It happened to all of us.”

He said people have different experiences of God and for some it may be more thinking about whether living as a Christian improves your day to day life and how you cope with difficulties.