Alpha in France


In 1996, Frenchman Marc de Leyritz - who was working as a senior banker in the City of London - and his wife Florence were invited by a friend to attend an Alpha course at Holy Trinity Brompton. Although they were already both practising Catholics, they were intrigued by the sound of the course and decided to go along.

‘At the end of the course I thought, “We have discovered this very simple tool,

Alpha, for announcing the Gospel. I have seen the lives of people around me in the group changing dramatically – finding joy, finding faith and peace. We must help get this known in France.”'

At the end of 1998, there were a few Alpha courses running in France - but all, except one, in Protestant churches. We knew that it was essential to get the course running in Catholic churches or it would never help revive the church in France as we had seen it reviving the church in England.

With over 80 per cent of the population Catholic, France is a predominantly Catholic country. However, less than 10 per cent of French Catholics were going to church on Sunday. The number of priests had dropped from 60,000 after the war to only 22,000, with many of them aged over 65.

We met with various French Catholic leaders who were immediately interested in Alpha. This resulted in a first Alpha conference held in the interdiocesan spiritual centre of Notre Dame du Ch?ne, near Tours, and attended by 150 people. Then followed a conference for 250 priests in Paray-le-Monial, a renowned pilgrimage city in Burgundy, and, by mid-1999, 30 courses were launched in Catholic parishes.

In September 1999, the National Bishops Conference of France appointed a committee of three bishops to present a report on Alpha to the General Assembly of Lourdes. A test period then began - 30 courses were launched in several dioceses.

At the request of the bishops, a retranslation in French of the book Alpha Questions of Life was undertaken. A new edition of the book was prepared, in particular so as to incorporate several suggestions discussed between the bishops and Nicky Gumbel. Following this new edition, a green light was given for the use of Alpha in Catholic parishes in France and courses started to develop.

Now Alpha is used in most dioceses in France - two-thirds of the dioceses in France run the course. It has found its place as one of the most useful tools for a parish to evangelise.’

View Alpha France's website: www.coursalphafrance.org