Viewing all items in Resource Category: Editorial

Over the last few months we’ve been looking at churchyards, grave memorials and the lychgate where the coffin may be rested on its entry. This month we are going inside the church building to find a somewhat different and only really found in older churches that have survived re-ordering and renovations: the Easter Sepulchre. A...

General Synod has issued a call to reaffirm support for Ukraine, as the Archbishop of Canterbury said he could not be “neutral” in the face of the aggression of Vladimir Putin. Archbishop Justin Welby, who visited Ukraine ahead of the second anniversary of the Russian full-scale invasion, said the country is “paying for our security...

General Synod has voted in favour of a motion asking the Archbishops’ Council to explore a Code of Conduct for Parochial Church Council (PCC) members and lay volunteers. The motion, brought by the Diocese of Chelmsford, sought to address an imbalance of accountability in relationships where lay volunteers currently face no significant consequences for persistent...

The House of Bishops has recently made the following statement: “With the onset of Israel’s ground offensive into Rafah, we call for an immediate ceasefire. The relentless bombardment of Gaza and its huge cost in civilian lives and civilian infrastructure must stop. The manner in which this war is being prosecuted cannot be morally justified....

I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; for kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. (1 Timothy 2:2) It is not often you get Moses and the local...

The setting for these books is Israel’s entry into the promised land after 40 years of wanderings in the wilderness. Deuteronomy gives us Moses’ addresses on the plains of Moab, as the Israelites prepare to enter Canaan. The book of Joshua recounts the crossing of the Jordan and the victories that give the people control...

The English have a patron saint who isn’t English, about whom next to nothing is known for sure, and who, just possibly, may not have existed at all. But that didn’t stop St George being patriotically invoked in many battles, notably at Agincourt and in the Crusades, and of course it is his cross that...

The Saint of an English Army before he was Patron Saint of England, St George may have been a soldier, but he was no Englishman. Some stories say that he was an officer in the Roman army under Diocletian, who refused to abandon his faith during the Terror, and was martyred at Lydda in Palestine...

Attendance at Church of England cathedrals has continued to bounce back following the pandemic, according to the latest statistics. Figures show that adult usual Sunday attendance rose 60% between 2021 and 2022 for the 42 Church of England mainland Cathedrals to 12,300 adults. A total of 28,200 people including children attended services every week, according...

** With the Easter season in mind… Of all the things that will surprise us in the Resurrection morning, this I believe, will surprise us most: that we did not love Christ more before we died. – J C Ryle The Resurrection is the central theme in every Christian sermon reported in the Acts. The...

It was: 300 years ago, on 7th April 1724 that the German composer Johann Sebastian Bach’s St John Passion was performed for the first time, at a church in Leipzig. Also 300 years ago, on 22nd April 1724 that Immanuel Kant, the German philosopher was born. One of the leading philosophers during the Age of...

Fluoride is to be added to more of our drinking water, to help improve the nation’s teeth. It is part of the new NHS Dental Recovery Plan, the biggest expansion of the health measure since the 1980s. At present, only five water companies add fluoride to water in the UK. They are mainly in the...