Viewing all items in Resource Category: Editorial

It was: 1400 years ago, on 16th July 622 that the Islamic calendar began. Muhammad and his followers migrated from Mecca to Medina to escape religious persecution (an event known as the Hegira) and established the first Muslim community. The year in which the Hijrah took place is also identified as the epoch of the Lunar Hijri...

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...

Those careless words Day surgery Good grief? Watch less TV, and live longer Next time you take a selfie, don’t worry about your nose Worried more about money  ** Editor:  David Pickup, a solicitor, considers dangerous things to say. Those careless words With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we...

Sea Sunday From the Vicar:  Sea Sunday Christian Basics: No 7: What Does the Holy Spirit Do? (Pt 2) Locked in a shipping container Reflected Faith Series: the grandeur of God Showers of blessing A sermon in sand ** Editor: by Canon Paul Hardingham Sea Sunday Over many years the 2nd Sunday of July has...

Patriarch Krill of Moscow recently again defended the Russian war on Ukraine. He said it was wrong to call it an invasion. “Russia has never attacked anyone,” he told the congregation of the Cathedral of the Archangel, in the Kremlin. “It’s amazing that such a great and powerful country has only ever defended its borders....

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...

Look around your home.  How much of the contents in your cupboards, wardrobe, rooms, and even garage came to you over the seas, via the great merchant ships? What would your home be like without them? Yet when did you last give a thought to the people who bring them to you? It is a...

Over many years the 2nd Sunday of July has been kept as Sea Sunday, with a special focus on prayer for all seafarers. The Mission to Seafarers supports the work of sailors facing difficult waters, piracy, and separation from loved ones for long periods at sea. However, we can also experience storms in our own...

With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness. …My brothers and sisters, this should not be. (James 3:9-10) Wise words from St James. He knew that it is easy to say the wrong thing and do a lot of damage....

Over many years the 2nd Sunday of July has been kept as Sea Sunday, with a special focus on prayer for all seafarers. The Mission to Seafarers supports the work of sailors facing difficult waters, piracy, and separation from loved ones for long periods at sea. However, we can also experience storms in our own...

The next Bishop of Bath and Wells, Dr Michael Beasley, has said that the CofE learned valuable lessons during the pandemic. “There’s been a huge amount that we’ve seen in our response to an emergency. It shows we have a flexibility and a resilience and an ability to respond to situations that we might not...

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...