Viewing all items in Resource Category: Editorial

‘Thy Kingdom Come’ – global prayer movement marks ten years Abortion law changes: Bishops take part in House of Lords debate Russian clerics want more Ukrainian land, and praise the Ayatollah World Council of Churches condemns Russia’s mass abduction of Ukrainian children Vatican says people with Down syndrome are of ‘equal dignity’ Bible Society says...

On that long ago first morning of Pentecost, Jerusalem was crowded with thousands of visitors, for it was one of the most popular feast-days in the Jewish calendar – the Feast of Firstfruits, looking forward to the wheat harvest. In one small room of that great city, a small group of people who had followed...

No quibble guarantee Small plates are better Don’t drive when sad Beware bread for ducks National Smile Month – 11th May – 11th June  Looking for old metal – and at least getting exercise You and a goldfish’s attention span ** Editor:  David Pickup, a solicitor, considers credit and debit cards… No quibble guarantee Not...

John and Charles Wesley were the founders of Methodism. Two of 19 children born to Samuel and Susannah Wesley of Epworth Rectory in Lincolnshire in 1703 and 1707, their father was the local rector, while their mother was a spiritual inspiration to her many children. Both John and Charles went to Christ Church, Oxford (1720...

The celebration of Pentecost this month could be described as a birthday party for the church, when we remember the gift of the Holy Spirit to the first disciples (Acts 2:1-13). What are we celebrating? God’s Promise: The disciples obeyed Jesus’ instructions as they gathered in the Upper Room: ‘Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait...

The Church calendar celebrates the lives of John and Charles Wesley.  John’s great gift to the Christian cause was the little matter of founding the world-wide movement known as Methodism. His brother Charles had an equally profound impact through his hymns. He wrote over 6,000, most of which aren’t sung nowadays, but among the ones...

This year the global prayer movement Thy Kingdom Come (TKC) will take place from Thursday 14th to Sunday 24thMay. Spanning the 11 days between Ascension and Pentecost, the initiative encourages Christians to pray for five people whom they know (friends, families, neighbours) to come to faith. This year is a special one for Thy Kingdom...

How a dying bishop said farewell to his diocese Helping people caught in crisis in the Middle East Not forgetting Ukraine… Christian Aid Week 10th to 16th May Archbishop of Canterbury to visit West Africa The Nation’s favourite churches, and favourite stained-glass window ** Editor:  How would you feel if your doctor told you that...

Some 175 years ago, from 1st May to 15th October 1851, the Great Exhibition was held in The Crystal Palace, Hyde Park. More than 10,000 exhibitors attended what is regarded as the first World’s Fair. Prince Albert was an enthusiastic promoter of the exhibition, which was described by some as a reaction to the successful...

The Venerable Bede was an outstanding scholar who accomplished several ‘firsts’. He was the first historian to date events from the birth of Christ. He was the first person to write scholarly works in the English language. And, of course, his world-famous, magisterial Ecclesiastical History of the English People, completed in 731, is still in...

Eleven bishops joined a recent late night sitting in the House of Lords to debate proposed changes to the law on abortion. A clause in the Crime and Policing Bill, inserted in the House of Commons last year, will disapply the existing criminal law for women who access an abortion outside the legal limits. This...

One hundred years ago, from 4th to 12th May 1926, there was a General Strike in the UK. It was called by the Trades Union Congress (TUC) in support of 1.2 million coal miners. The strike lasted nine days, but had little effect in the long term. The aim was to force the Conservative government, led by...