Viewing all items in Resource Category: Looking at your Church

An innovative church project, funded by the Church in Wales, has sparked extraordinary growth in youth ministry. It is engaging with more than 160 children across three coastal parishes. Just a year ago, only two children were involved. The Faith Alive project, from Bro Dwylan Ministry Area in the Diocese of Bangor, has combined regular family-friendly...

A C of E scheme that helps young people to explore their vocation has been described as a ‘great hope’ for the future. The Ministry Experience Scheme (MES) is aimed at young adults aged between 18 and 30 years old. Over 900 young people from all backgrounds and traditions have explored God’s call on their...

Peterborough Cathedral, one of the great Norman cathedrals of Europe, is facing financial collapse. The 1400-year-old cathedral is facing a perfect storm of rising National Insurance costs, rising fuel bills, cost-of-living crisis, and decline in giving to the cathedral. The dean, the Very Revd Christopher Dalliston, needs to raise £300,000 by the end of March....

 Below please find some ideas to think about…. We have drafted a rough article for you to amend to fit your own circumstances. This coming week (Thursday 6th – Sunday 9h March), 28,000 of the country’s top show dogs will be brushed and polished and on their way to the NEC in Birmingham.  There they...

Rome bracing to welcome 60 million visitors this year C of E is “glad to play its part” in the rural economy C of E facing an ‘existential crisis’ Should the Churches agree on a common date for Easter? Tearfund in action in the Middle East Love the children The new trend of clapping in...

If you like peace and quiet, it is best to avoid Rome this year. For 2025 is a Jubilee Year for the city, and tens of millions of visitors worldwide are expected to converge on Rome. In all, a staggering 60 million are expected. As Pope Francis has recently explained: “Once again, Rome will welcome...

So says the Bishop of St Albans, Dr Alan Smith. He was speaking in a recent House of Lords debate. He said that local churches are “at the heart of many of our rural communities across the country, wanting to contribute to their flourishing and thriving.” Dr Smith, declaring his interest “as president of the...

The C of E is facing “one of the biggest existential crises … since the Reformation,” following the Makin review of abuse perpetrated by John Smyth. That is the view of the Bishop of Rochester, Dr Jonathan Gibbs. He was speaking recently after his diocesan synod had voted in favour of a motion that expressed...

That is the question for the leaders of the Roman Catholic and the Eastern Orthodox Churches, as this year (2025) marks the 1700th anniversary of the First Ecumenical Council of Nicaea. Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople believes that 2025 is a ‘golden opportunity’ for Catholic and Orthodox believers to finally agree on a joint date for...

As conflict in the Middle East continues, millions of people across Gaza, Lebanon and the wider region are still in urgent need of food, shelter and medical care. One British Christian charity in the region is Tearfund, working through a variety of local churches and partners. In Gaza, Tearfund International Health Partners provide medicine and healthcare....

The original St Valentine gave love in the form of compassion for some needy children. That sort of love is still needed today, as UNICEF says that about 1 billion children worldwide are currently facing ‘multidimensional poverty.’  That means they lack necessities like food, water, shelter, education and health care. No one can get their...

Some people are beginning to clap in church, if they are pleased with something. For tired vicars and timid curates, having a sermon greeted with warm clapping might be an encouragement, if also a complete surprise. But the applauding of sermons, or applause at the end of services, also reveals a dark side: churchgoing has...