In place of the tub-thumping and missionary zeal of past campaigns, the new posters simply remind people of the presence of the Church in their communities and of the practical role that it continues to play in society. One poster says: "The Church. Provider of judo lessons, antique sales, playgroups, ballet lessons, school discos, flower-arranging classes, theatre clubs and, oh yes, church." Another states: "Church. It isn't as churchy as you think."

Others include: "More dances are held in church halls than in dance halls" and "You have to be a pretty good bloke to let 40 screaming kids and a bouncy castle in your house". The public are also invited to see the Church as offering spiritual reflection. One poster asks: "Why go to India to find yourself? You might be round the corner." All the posters end with the line "Church. Part of modern life".

The adverts are in the form of posters and have been sent to all bishops electronically so that they can distribute them within their parishes. They have been produced by Fallon, an advertising agency, which also made a series of commercials for Skoda cars in 2000 - confronting the old joke that the petrol in the tank was worth more than the car. The advertisements were based around the theme: "A car that good can't be a Skoda."

Andy McLeod, Fallon's creative director, said that there was little doubt that the agency's softly-softly approach would be more effective than the more aggressive tone seen in some previous church campaigns. "A poster is never going to convert people. We were not looking for an epiphany here. But what we think we can do is to remind people that the Church plays an important role in their lives, by providing basic services such as playgroups," he said.

The advertising campaign was originally commissioned for a television series on Five called Don't Get Me Started, to see if the agency could come up with a campaign that could drive up church attendance levels. Various clergy members liked it so much that the agency said they could use the posters free if they liked. The Right Rev David James, the Bishop of Bradford, said that the sentiment behind the campaign was "spot on". While church attendance on a Sunday may be low in many areas, attendance of church-based youth groups, computer clubs and playgroups on weekdays is often extremely high, he said.

The Rev Nicholas Papadopulos, senior chaplain to the Bishop of Salisbury, said that the rationale behind the campaign was compelling.

"There have been plenty of 'finding God' posters around for many years. Dropping hints, encouraging the 'rumour of God', making the case that Church is neither wildly esoteric nor embarrassingly trendy, is much closer to the mark," he said.

The Right Rev Dr John Saxbee, the Bishop of Lincoln, said that the aggressive tactics tried in previous campaigns risked alienating people. "The Church needs to learn from experts in this field as well as being able to make its own contribution," he said.

END