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It is still hard to comprehend history’s evidence that 5million-plus Jews were systematically assassinated by last century’s Nazi regime.  It is a never-to-be-forgotten evil. A hundred years ago there was another genocide which people don’t talk about today.  During World War 1, Christian Armenians were driven out of Turkey, subjected to death marches, deprived of...

“It’s no good, it’s no good!” says the buyer – then goes off and boasts about the purchase. Gold there is, and rubies in abundance, but lips that speak knowledge are a rare jewel.  (Proverbs 20:14-15)  People in Bible times loved to shop, just as we do today.  People bought and sold and haggled for...

One hundred years ago, on 5th January 1919, the German Workers’ Party was founded by Anton Drexler. In February the following year it was renamed the National Socialist German Workers’ Party – better known as the Nazis. Drexler was a Munich locksmith who was opposed to the armistice of November 1918 and followed the outlook...

Half a million more people were diagnosed with depression in England in 2017 than in 2018.  Clinical depression now accounts for nearly one in ten conditions seen by family doctors. NHS Digital’s latest data reveals that prescriptions for antidepressants have soared in recent years.  Nearly 4.6million of us were diagnosed with depression in 2017/18, as...

On 6th January we celebrate Epiphany – the visit of the Wise Men to the baby Jesus.  But who were these Wise Men?  No one knows for sure.  Matthew calls them ‘Magi’, and that was the name of an ancient caste of a priestly kind from Persia.  It wasn’t until the third century that they...

Sister Mary Teresa – the future Mother Teresa – arrived in Calcutta 90 years ago this month, on 6th January 1929, to begin working with the poor and the sick. Born Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu in Skopje, Macedonia, in 1910, she was of Albanian heritage but had moved to Ireland in 1928 to join the Sisters...

Wisdom Prayer for wisdom and light The New Year 2019 The Dream and the Angel Those Potholes of January A prayer for the New Year ** Wisdom (Mt 2: 1-12) They were so wise. From star-sighting joy to truth- incarnate worship, they were so wise.   Wise to leave home – and Herod, to search,...

It was 50 years ago this month, on 30th January 1969, that the Beatles gave their last public performance – on the roof of Apple Studios in London. It was their first truly live show since their final tour ended on 29th August 1966, at Candlestick Park in San Francisco. They had become less popular...

Magi from the East – it isn’t a lot to go on.  The Magi had originally been a religious caste among the Persians.  Their devotion to astrology, divination and the interpretation of dreams led to an extension in the meaning of the word, and by the first century the Magi in Matthew’s gospel could have...

(Mt 2: 1-12) They were so wise. From star-sighting joy to truth- incarnate worship, they were so wise.   Wise to leave home – and Herod, to search, to trust, to follow the star-light to find the light of the star, of the sun, of the moon, of the whole world, in the child, with...

Do you have asthma?  Then beware of air pollution.  It may cause one in three cases of asthma hospitalisation worldwide. So concludes a recent major study at The George Washington University in Washington DC.  Doctors found that nine to 23million annual asthma A&E visits worldwide may have been triggered by ozone, a pollutant generated when...

Father of all, You gave Jesus to be the light of the whole world. Help us to receive His light and to reflect it. Help us not to limit the extent of your love by the restrictions of our own understanding. Give us wisdom to look upwards and outwards and to allow your Holy Spirit...