‘Churches preaching the Bible are the ones that thrive’

Apr 14, 2019 by

‘Churches preaching the Bible are the ones that thrive’

from The Christian Institute: Churches preaching the Bible as the word of God “are the ones that are growing” in the UK, a Church of England minister has said.Revd Robin Weekes – of Emmanuel church in Wimbledon – made the comments in a stern riposte to comments from a former Bishop of Edinburgh.Richard Holloway wrote in the Spectator magazine that Jesus was merely a “spiritual and prophetic genius” and the New Testament just an “untidy bundle of writings”. ‘Settle’ Holloway, who led the...

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Renaissance in Choral Evensong prompts new Oxford research

Mar 27, 2019 by

Renaissance in Choral Evensong prompts new Oxford research

from Association of English Cathedrals: Cathedrals are experiencing a boom time for their services of Choral Evensong and a research degree is underway at Oxford to shed fresh light on the reasons why. A large scale online survey has just been launched as part of this new academic study to understand the current renaissance of Choral Evensong in the Church of England. Today, 18,000 adults a week attend ordinary weekday cathedral services– that’s an increase in 35 per cent since 2007 – and the...

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10 Catholic Churches Attacked in France in One Week

Mar 22, 2019 by

10 Catholic Churches Attacked in France in One Week

by Deacon Greg Kandra: At least 10 incidents of vandalism and desecration of Catholic churches have been reported across the Channel since the beginning of February. French Roman-Catholic newspaper La Croix International reported how the attacks on churches took place across France. Senseless acts included the desecration of altars, the defacing of Christ on the cross and in an extreme case, human excrement being spread across the walls of a holy place of worship. According to the outlet, one...

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UK: Without local Stewardship Trusts ReNew won’t be renewing

Mar 6, 2019 by

UK: Without local Stewardship Trusts ReNew won’t be renewing

by Julian Mann, Virtueonline: In January Rod Thomas, the Bishop of Maidstone, and Johnny Juckes, the President of Oak Hill College in north London, ran an event for people thinking of getting ordained in the Church of England. Given the constituency that gravitates towards Oak Hill as its theological college of choice, one imagines that the clientele at this event was mainly drawn from conservative evangelical churches in England. So, what would life be like for a young man now in his 20s, who...

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Better Bishops

Mar 5, 2019 by

Better Bishops

by Mark Burkill, Church Society: An extract from Mark Burkill’s Reform booklet, which outlines the biblical principles of episcopacy, its historical development and ends with some challenges for the contemporary church. How episcopal ministry should be reformed today A vision for the reform of the ministry of bishops in the present time can be articulated if we are willing to bear in mind basic biblical principles about episcopal ministry, alongside the way its ancient practice was...

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Church of England to hold first service in Farsi after a huge rise in converts

Mar 3, 2019 by

Church of England to hold first service in Farsi after a huge rise in converts

by Izzy Lyons, Telegraph: When the Bishop of Loughborough was 13-years-old, her brother was murdered for being a Christian. Born and raised in Iran, she was forced to flee her homeland in 1980 on the grounds of religious persecution – a story that is all too familiar for many Iranian Christians. Now, as the ordained Bishop of Loughborough, the Rt Revd Guli Francis-Dehqani is leading the Church of England’s growing community of Iranians who have found a home in the Anglican church. This...

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