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The Bishop of Chelmsford, Dr Guli Francis-Dehqani, has paid tribute to the composer Sir John Rutter who has been knighted in the recent King’s Birthday Honours List. Bishop Guli said: “Warmest congratulations to John Rutter on being awarded a knighthood in The King’s Birthday Honours. His enormous contribution to sacred choral music as a composer,...

Have you ever got into trouble while abroad? The story is told of a group of tourists who went to a Mediterranean country and wanted to see the sites of an old city. Four members of the group got so engrossed in taking pictures of each other by a castle that they ignored the summons...

Archbishop Stephen Cottrell has recently become a patron for the new organisation, Gypsy, Roma and Traveller Friendly Churches. He said: “I’m delighted to continue encouraging churches to offer support for Gypsies, Travellers and Roma.” Archbishop Stephen introduced the 2019 General Synod debate ‘Centuries of Marginalisation and Visions of Hope’ which called for the Church to...

After the Bible, John Bunyan’s wonderful Christian allegory, the Pilgrim’s Progress, is one of the most celebrated and widely-read books in the English language.  It has been translated into more than one hundred languages around the world and keeps its place as a Christian classic. Names of people and places from its pages have been...

Three hundred years ago, on 25th August 1724, George Stubbs was born in Liverpool. Best known for his paintings of horses, he lived mainly in the north of England at first, but eventually his success enabled him to move to Marylebone in London, where he remained for the rest of his life. Fascinated by anatomy,...

As summer will soon turn to the cool of autumn, the Warm Welcome Campaign has recently announced that it is beginning a ‘new chapter’. It explains: “What started as a crisis response to keep people warm through the winter has blossomed into a movement to reconnect individuals and communities across the country all year round.”...

Communities of Hope In Step with God God Dreams Living His Story Together – Being a Community of Missionary Disciples ‘Tis Mercy All – The power of mercy in a polarised world The Quiet Path – Contemplative practices for daily life But Is It Real? – Answering 10 Common Objections to The Christian Faith Finding...

Your morning cup of coffee not only perks you up, it also helps your gut bacteria to flourish. This is because coffee contains several compounds that act as a prebiotic, which means they provide your gut bacteria with nutrients. These are some of the findings of a growing number of studies into the effects of...

At the age of 48 the Cambridge Professor John Polkinghorne decided he’d done his bit for physics and that it was time for a different sort of adventure. Resigning his academic position, he trained for ordination in the Church of England. In an interview 40 years later he said, “It’s one thing to go to...

The German theologian, Karl Barth, is reputed to have said, “Whether the angels play only Bach in praising God, I am not quite sure; I am sure, however, that en famille they play Mozart.” It is a lovely image of angels in the heavenly courts above, mirroring the human enjoyment of music making here on...

31st August is the feast of St Aidan, who brought Christianity to northern England.  He is a strong contender for the title of the first English bishop. Not that honours meant a great deal to this austere but captivating character. In 635 he came to Northumbria at the invitation of the local ruler, Oswald.  Oswald...

Editor:   We thank Phil Mason’s Christians Crackers (3) for the following stories… Game rules During the local football game, the coach asked one of his young players: “Do you understand what cooperation is?” The little boy nodded yes. “Do you understand that what matters is winning together as a team?” The little boy nodded yes....