Viewing all items in Resource Category: Editorial

It is easy to understand the popularity of Mary Magdalene over the centuries: she is the patron saint both of repentant sinners and of the contemplative life. Jesus drove seven demons from Mary, who came from near Tiberius in Galilee.  She became His follower to the bitter end.  She followed Him to Jerusalem and was...

The gospels have a number of stories about things lost and found. The lost sheep, the prodigal son, and one of my favourites – the lost coin. I wonder if Our Lord had someone in mind when He told that parable? Perhaps He had seen a lady searching high and low, turning the house upside...

Fake news is not new. Perhaps one old example is the assertion that Mary Magdalene was a prostitute. Back in the 6th Century, Pope Gregory is said to have confused her with two other women in the Bible. Medieval Bible scholars also attempted to name an unidentified sinful woman who had washed and anointed the...

We see them, off and on, all summer: cricket bats. But did you ever wonder how they are made? The timber comes from mature willow trees, each of which should give about 30 bats. It is first cut into rounds, and clefts are split out. Each cleft is then rough sawn, and waxed at the...

The Bishop of London, Sarah Mullally, the Church of England’s lead bishop for health and social care, has recently responded to the Government impact assessments on the bill to introduce assisted suicide in England and Wales. The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), together with the Ministry of Justice, had published a main assessment...

All in the month of July The ‘father’ of modern British policing The great flood of China The July 2005 bombings of London Don’t Step on a Bee Day – 10th July The danger of electric cars< Murder World is more violent than ever Rise in older shoplifters ** Editor:  We continue our column that...

More than 11,000 people have so far participated in the consultations for the next Archbishop of Canterbury. It was carried out online, by post and in person between February and March this year. The public consultation was a unique opportunity to influence the future of leadership within the Church, helping to discern the gifts, skills...

 It was: 250 years ago, on 1st July 1775 that the British Parliament brought in the New England Restraining Act. This forbade its North American colonies from trading with anyone other than Britain, Ireland, and the British West Indies. The colonies were also forbidden to fish in the Atlantic without permission. 175 years ago, on...

James and his brother John were sons of Zebedee and fishermen from Galilee – the ‘sons of thunder’, as the gospel writers describe their impetuous characters and fiery tempers. James stands out on three accounts: he was one of the three disciples who witnessed the Transfiguration of Christ.  Jesus took him, along with Peter and...

Students have been sharing their experiences of what first drew them to become Christians, and go on to speak about a “noticeable” increase in faith among Generation Z, in a recent national online service. The students, Tegan and Gus, had began their journey to faith because of a simple invitation from friends to attend a...

 The Bishop to the Armed Forces issued a challenge at the recent national online service for VE Day. Bishop Hugh Nelson said that the act of remembering was far from “a matter of nostalgia,” but instead a living reminder of our duty to one another. Bishop Hugh’s message came during a service recorded in St...

The persecution of Christians takes many forms. It crops up in many places and is perpetrated by people of various religions—and no religion. Why? The night before he was crucified Jesus answers that question. While teaching his disciples he says: ‘If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you....