Viewing all items in Resource Category: Editorial

There is a tradition, which dates from the Middle Ages, of putting silver coins into Christmas puddings. The first coins used were a silver farthing or penny. After World War One, it became a threepenny bit and then a sixpence. Finding one was supposed to bring you good fortune, but probably it was more likely...

The status of hedgehogs in western Europe has recently been downgraded to “near threatened”, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List. If European numbers decline any farther, hedgehogs will be listed as being at risk of extinction. Numbers have shrunk in more than half the countries where hedgehogs live –...

The Archbishop of Canterbury recently made a ‘personal statement’, with regard to the historic slave trade.  “I have recently discovered that my biological father, the late Sir Anthony Montague Browne, had an ancestral connection to the enslavement of people in Jamaica and Tobago. His great, great grandfather was Sir James Fergusson, an owner of enslaved...

Since the beginning of the Living in Love and Faith process, people across the Church of England have been studying, praying and sharing together about sexuality, identity, relationships and marriage. That process has revealed profound differences in theological conviction and biblical interpretation. But that does not change the fact that every group and every Christian...

Matthew 1:18            Joseph’s dilemma This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about. His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit….” It is not clear at what point Mary told Joseph the news of her pregnancy,...

You will probably spend about £600 during this festive period – what with Christmas gifts, food, decorations, socialising and travel. Over half your budget will go on gifts for others, followed by food and drink (18%), travel (6%), gifts for yourself (4%) and decorations (2%). About a third of us will still be shopping during...

A charity based in the UK is sending emergency vets to care for donkeys in Gaza. Safe Haven for Donkeys was set up about 20 years ago to treat working donkeys across Israel and the Palestinian Territories. But the charity says that its mobile first aid team is even more necessary now, because with fuel...

As you prepare for Christmas this year, spare a thought – and a prayer – for our teachers.  Their job is even more demanding at this time of year, as school Christmas activities are added to an already over-crowded school curriculum. Also, recent figures from the Department for Education show that, for whatever reason, our...

Imagine something unlikely! There is one television programme the whole family enjoy, but everyone watches it differently. So – you are resting upstairs and watching it on the portable set in the bedroom. Your partner is still at work and watching it on a laptop in the office. Your son is at university and watching...

The Church Commissioners for England has published its 2023 Stewardship Report, outlining the key steps taken to deliver on its responsible investment strategy focused on ‘Respect for People and Respect for the Planet’. In 2023, the Church Commissioners restricted several oil and gas companies from investment as part of the climate change motion passed by...

Everyday Christmas Prayer for December 2024 Christmas Trees Nolite Timere The Christmas Kitchen Welcome ** Everyday Christmas (Mal 4:2, Mt 1:23) Light a candle, Look into the light, Pray. Light and life to all He brings, Risen with healing in His wings As the flame rises, Smooth, bright, Know the comfort of Christ In the...

Christmas shopping this year will be done by two sorts of shopper: those who intend to pay – and those who don’t. And the ‘those who don’t’ category is now so huge that stores across the country have been reporting on average two thefts each and every minute. According to the Office for National Statistics...