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This month at Ascension Day, we remember Jesus ascending to ‘God’s right hand’ (1 Peter 3:22). It’s a somewhat neglected Christian festival, taking place on a Thursday, 40 days after Easter. However, this phrase is used in three different contexts in the New Testament. Sitting at God’s right hand Jesus occupies a position of power...

If you value cathedrals, please visit them!  This will assist their recovery in the aftermath of Covid-19. The Dean of Leicester, David Monteith, who Chairs the Church of England’s College of Cathedral Deans, has responded to recent data showing an expected fall in visitors and on-site worshippers during Covid-19. “The simple message for everyone is...

Many of our older people are lonely.  They lost touch with their families during the pandemic, and it seems that they have still not caught up again. A recent survey by Age UK found that as many as 27 percent of people aged 60 and over admit that they speak less to their families now,...

Sixty years ago, on 25th May 1962, the new Coventry Cathedral was consecrated. The previous one had been destroyed by German bombing during World War Two. The Queen had laid the foundation stone in 1956, and she was present for the consecration. On the night of 14th November 1940, the old Cathedral – together with...

Augustine, a 6th century Italian prior, holds a unique place in British history. He became the ‘apostle to the English,’ although it was with great reluctance. In 596 Augustine was chosen by Pope Gregory to head a mission of monks whom he wanted to send to evangelise the Anglo-Saxons. Augustine was not a bold man,...

Thousands of people across the country are buying in light brown and white wool just now, in order to knit up a corgi in honour of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee. It is a fun way in which anyone with knitting needles can get involved in the coming celebrations. If you google ‘knitting patterns for corgis’,...

Mothers are getting older. More than half of women in the UK are now still childless by the age of 30, according to recent official figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). The data provides a picture of changes in our national fertility. The vice-president of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists says:...

The Bible is a popular book, with five billion copies sold worldwide every year, as well as a uniquely precious book. At her coronation the Queen was given a Bible, ‘the most precious thing this world affords’. The Bible isn’t simply one book, but a library of 66 books, composed by some 44 writers over...

Haryana has become the 10th state in India to pass an anti-conversion law limiting the freedom of Christians to share their faith and the right of Hindus to convert freely. A similar Bill is poised for final approval in another state, Karnataka. As religious nationalism has taken hold across India, there has been a marked...

Did you know that nearly one half of the NHS budget is spent on diseases that could have been prevented? And that Britain’s overall health budget is now bigger than the GDP of Greece? So says the Health Secretary, Sajid Javid, who has recently warned that the NHS cannot continue spending “vast sums” on lifestyle...

40 days after Easter comes Ascension Day. These are the 40 days during which the Risen Christ appeared again and again to His disciples, following His death and resurrection. (Matthew 28; Mark 16; Luke 24; and John 20.) The Gospels give us little of Christ’s teachings and deeds during those 40 days. Jesus was seen...

So says the Royal Horticultural Society, as it recently began a campaign to encourage us to see the gastropods in our gardens in a better light. The RHS says that the species play a key role in garden ecosystems, and thus are in need of ‘positive PR’. It seems that only nine of the 44...