Rev Nicky Gumbel, the pioneer of the global Alpha evangelism course and former vicar of Holy Trinity Brompton (HTB), is standing for election to the Church of England's General Synod.
The 71-year-old is one of 37 clergy candidates seeking 14 places representing the Diocese of London in the House of Clergy. Those elected will serve a five-year term on the Church of England's national governing body, which is made up of the House of Bishops, the House of Laity and the House of Clergy.
The General Synod, commonly referred to as the denomination's parliament, makes and approves Church of England legislation, agrees forms of worship, debates national and international issues and approves the annual budget. Clergy and lay members are elected, while bishops have seats through their offices.
If elected, it would be Gumbel's first time as a member of General Synod.
He has, however, been involved in some of the issues debated by the Church's national governing body before. In 2023, he was one of 27 evangelical leaders who wrote to Church of England bishops arguing that the decision to authorise prayers of blessing for same-sex couples should be made by General Synod rather than by the House of Bishops alone. The signatories included leaders of New Wine, Forward in Faith and representatives of the Evangelical and Catholic groups on Synod.
At the time, Gumbel was described as president of the Church Revitalisation Trust and part of the HTB network. Another prominent HTB figure, Sarah Jackson, was already serving as the network's representative on General Synod.
Writing in his election manifesto, Gumbel says he believes the Church has spent too much time looking inwards rather than focusing on evangelisation. He says he believes vocations have fallen "partly as a result of the internal squabbles that have dominated the agenda for the last eight years".
He says he is concerned that the Church of England has not experienced the growth he had hoped for, having been a vicar for 40 years.
"We have not seen the growth that we longed for," he wrote. "I must take responsibility for my part in that failure."
For him, the arrival of a new Archbishop of Canterbury and a new Synod represents "a new season".
His manifesto calls for "the entire focus of the next five years" to be the "evangelisation of the nation, revitalisation of the Church and transformation of society".
Gumbel proposes increasing the number of people entering ordained ministry, including through the Caleb Ordination Stream and the Elizabeth Pathway. He sets a target of 1,000 new Calebs a year for five years.
He also proposes an ordained focal minister in every parish and an expansion of the Peter Stream, an initiative associated with the Bishop of Lancaster, Rt Revd Jill Duff.
Another proposal is that church buildings, church halls and vicarages should not be sold except to another part of the Christian Church.
Gumbel says the Church of England has about 12,500 parishes covering more than 99% of England and argues that this network should be retained as a means of reaching people who are interested in Christianity.
Clergy in the Diocese of London are voting for the House of Clergy candidates. Alongside Gumbel, the candidates include Rev Sarah Jackson, Rev Charlie Skrine, Rev Jason Roach and Rev Marcus Walker, known for his Save the Parish campaign.
Voting opened this week and closes on 13 October, with the results due by 19 October.