Viewing all items in Resource Category: Editorial
- A group of bishops have joined with MPs and peers from a range of parties in a joint letter to the Prime Minster, calling for the “immediate complete removal” of the two-child limit on benefits. The Bishop of Leicester, Martyn Snow, the Church of England’s lead bishop for child poverty issues, together with the Bishop...‘An urgent crisis requiring urgent action’ – bishops join MPs in call to scrap two-child limit
- Older people with depression can see a bigger improvement in their mental health if they start going to church than if they engage in charity work or sport. Research from the London School of Economics found that joining a religious organisation is the best way of combatting depression. It may be both that having a...Elderly and depressed this winter? Go to church
- How many are sold each year? According to recent figures, about five million real Christmas trees are sold in the UK each year. How old are they? Your typical Christmas tree of six to seven feet is between ten and 12 years old. How are they grown? Seed is collected from trees either in the...All about Christmas trees
- Crisis in Gaza With much of Gaza in ruins, a number of Christian charities are running appeals this Christmas. These include: Church of England: The Diocese in Europe’s Bishop’s Advent Appeal. The Bishop in Europe, the Rt Revd Robert Innes, writes: “The headlines may be fading, but the suffering in Gaza is far from over....Christmas Appeals for those in crisis: Gaza, Sudan, Ukraine
- This letter was written to Christians in the Macedonian city of Philippi when Paul was in prison, probably in Rome (60-62 AD). His primary purpose in writing was to thank them for the gift they had sent him upon learning of his imprisonment. However, he also uses the letter as an opportunity to report on...What’s the Big Idea? – An Introduction to the Books of the New Testament: Philippians
- CAP (Christians Against Poverty) has launched its 2025 Christmas Appeal, to provide emergency aid and support to UK families in financial hardship this winter. The appeal aims to raise funds to provide essential assistance such as: emergency food parcels, fuel top-ups, free professional debt advice, and Christmas hampers or gifts, given in partnership with local churches and...Help a family in poverty this year
- Even before the time of Christ, evergreen trees were seen in winter as a symbol of fertility. It was the 16th century monk, Martin Luther, who is credited with the idea of having lights on Christmas trees. He added candles to his tree, to look like stars in a forest. Windsor Castle got its first...10 Fun Facts about Christmas trees
- O Come Emmanuel – Reflections on the Advent Antiphons Women of the Nativity – an Advent and Christmas Journey in Nine Stories All You Want for Christmas Are you ready for Christmas? The Four Emotions of Christmas The Grumpy Owl and the Joy of Christmas The Lion Handbook to the Bible – 6th edition Giving...Reviews (all) for December 2025
- If you want your tree to last as long as possible this year, the following should help: Cut off about half an inch from the bottom of the trunk. This opens the pores of the tree. Then place it outside in a cool shaded place, standing in water until required. Once you have brought it...How to care for your real Christmas tree
- Have you ever stopped to consider that the very first martyr of the Christian Church (Stephen died c 35 AD) was a deacon? (But no, he wasn’t worked to death by his church.) It was Stephen, one of the first seven deacons of the Christian Church. He’d been appointed by the apostles to look after...26th December – St Stephen, the first martyr
- Churches bring people together in a world that can become ‘too easily’ polarised, the Archbishop of York has told a major conference highlighting the value of church buildings. Archbishop Stephen spoke of the contribution that churches make to social cohesion, and called on the Government to make the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme –...Churches are building ‘coalitions of goodwill’- Archbishop of York
- At the opening of Bach’s Cantata No, 82 a solo bass voice begins to sing the aria ‘Ich habe genug’- (I have enough) – a paraphrase of Simeon’s Song ‘Now Lord, lettest thou thy servant depart in peace… for mine eyes have seen thy salvation.’. Simeon – the bass voice – realises that he is...This Christmas, do you have enough?