Viewing all items in Resource Category: Editorial

Ever wonder why Jesus was born when He was?  The Bible tells us that “when the time had fully come, God sent forth His Son…” The Jewish people had been waiting for their Messiah for centuries.  Why did God send Him precisely when He did? Many biblical scholars believe that the ‘time had fully come’...

Did you know that mince pies have been traditional English Christmas fare since the Middle Ages, when meat was a key ingredient?  The addition of spices, suet and alcohol to meat came about because it was an alternative to salting and smoking in order to preserve the food. Mince pies used to be a different...

Did you know that it is a family in Wiltshire, the Parkers, who claim to own the world’s oldest artificial Christmas tree?  It was bought in 1886, and is still put up every year.

Did you know that the word ‘mistletoe’ means dung on a tree?  The Anglo-Saxons thought that mistletoe grew in trees where birds had left their droppings.  Mistel means dung, and tan means twig.

All in the month of December Jane Austen – still loved 250 years later The many journeys of the Stone of Scone 65 years of Coronation Street All about Christmas trees Fun Facts about Christmas trees The dictators of Russia and China woud like to live forever A Quiz on the year 2025 Quiz 2025...

Shortly after the announcement of her nomination as the next Archbishop of Canterbury, Bishop Sarah Mullally delivered an address at Canterbury Cathedral, reflecting on her calling, the challenges facing the Church, and her hopes for its future. Rooted in her early vocation as a nurse and shaped by her ministry in London, she spoke of...

Christmas Unwrapped! From the Vicar Micah’s Message – look forward to the child born in Bethlehem The Nicene Creed: Trinitarian Faith What’s the Big Idea? An Introduction to Philippians Enough?  Reflecting Faith: Listening to the Gospel And there were shepherds… ** Editor:  Canon Paul Hardingham considers the Christmas story. Christmas Unwrapped! All of us have...

“A cold coming they had of it at this time of the year, just the worst time of the year to take a journey, and specially a long journey, in.  The way’s deep, the weather sharp, the days short, the sun farthest off, in solstitio brumali, the very dead of winter.” It was 1622, and...

 Lightning and hail, snow and clouds, stormy winds that do his bidding…(Psalm 148:8) We are promised a hard Winter this year. The abundance of nuts and berries is supposed to be a sign of bad weather. Whether that is true or not is another question. Supposing we do get ice, snow and more frost. Early one cold...

Ever wonder where many of our Christmas traditions come from?   A surprising amount of our modern Christmas celebrations can be traced back to the well-loved story of ‘A Christmas Carol’, by Charles Dickens. When you read ‘A Christmas Carol’, you discover almost a template of the ‘ideal Christmas’ which we still hold dear today.  Dickens...

Plan your budget – don’t let Christmas ‘fever’ make you reckless. Be careful you don’t go over any overdraft with your bank – the penalties are expensive! Also, really and truly, beware using credit cards if you can’t pay them off quickly Practical details: Make sure you have in a good stock of coal and...

It was: 250 years ago, on 16th Dec 1775 that Jane Austen, novelist (Sense and Sensibility, Pride and Prejudice, Mansfield Park, Emma, Northanger Abbey, Persuasion) was born. Over 30 million copies of her books have been sold, 7,000 of them in her lifetime. 175 years ago, on 4th Dec 1850 that William Sturgeon, physicist, electrical...