THE Rev Dr Gareth Evans is hosting weekly discussions groups at a coffee shop in Darlington.

His aim is to stimulate debate about religion in a relaxed atmosphere with people who could be intimidated by a church setting.

Dr Evans' group meets every Thursday at 5.30pm on the sofas upstairs at Starbucks in the town centre.

He said: "This is something I have wanted to do for a while. It is relaxed in Starbucks, this is for people who think 'I would like a religious discussion in a neutral venue as it would frighten the life out of me to go into a church'. I also wanted to bring a discussion about Christianity into a public space, like Paul did in the Acts of the Apostles.

"Christianity is for the market place and for the coffee shop. I hope that offering this discussion session opens Christianity up to a younger audience, I want to reach as many people as possible."

He added: "It's much nicer being here in Starbucks than in a church hall. It's new idea holding it here, I think it's a first for Darlington."

Dr Evans has been a minister at the Baptist Tabernacle in Darlington for 18 months since moving from Swansea with his wife, Jan.

He said: "I am a missionary minister and I believe in communication. If people have got questions, then it's nice to try to find answers over a coffee and a friendly chat.

"There has been a lot of debate sparked recently by books like The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins and God's Undertaker: Has Science Buried God by John Lennox.

"They way the discussions will go will depend on who turns up. I might plan to talk about science and faith but someone else might want to discuss faith wars.

"We are living in times where many people would say that the church is declining. Part of my task is to convince people that maybe Christianity is worth another look."

A spokeswoman for Starbucks said the company strived to find ways that it could positively contribute to the communities in which it operated.