Viewing all items in Resource Category: Editorial

When did you last see a bobby on the beat?  A recent national survey found that nearly half of us have not seen a uniformed police officer in our area in the past year. The finding comes as police chiefs say they are struggling with cuts in funding. The inspectorate has previously raised concerns over...

Here’s an excellent reason to get regular exercise:  women who are fit at 50 are five times less likely to get dementia. A Swedish study found that middle age is the key time for people to take steps to promote their brain health.  And boosting your exercise does not have to mean major exertion –...

Girl Guides are to learn how to look after money, after the introduction of a new ‘saver’ badge.  Girlguiding UK has created the badge with the aim of improving financial literacy among teenagers. The girls, aged 10 to 14, must prove that they can manage cash efficiently, budget effectively and put aside money for the...

This summer we’ve been celebrating the 70th anniversary of  the National Health Service. I can recall, years ago, my GP pointing out that it was the National Health Service, not the National Illness Service. This was when our local practice changed its name from ‘Medical Centre’ to ‘Health Centre’.  It seems a pedantic point, but in...

St Ceolfrith is a good patron saint for anyone who has studied hard for their profession, is strong in the face of tragedy, and who can also offer some homely care to others in need. This well-loved abbot of Wearmouth and Jarrow came from a noble Northumbrian family, and was ordained at Ripon when he...

When Jesus fed the 5,000, He did not produce the food from thin air.  Instead, He asked the disciples how many loaves of bread they already had (Mark 6:38). When they produced the five loaves and two fish, it seemed laughable.  Everyone knew that wasn’t enough.  No one thought that what they had was, in...

Very few people stand out as being incredibly good, but Vincent de Paul was one of them.  His life touched thousands of people, who were helped and inspired by his love and kindness. Vincent de Paul was born in 1581 to a Gascon peasant family at Ranquine. Educated by the Franciscans and then at Toulouse...

Girls are talking to their fathers more.  Recent figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show that last year 45 per cent of girls aged 10 to 15 talked to their fathers about things that mattered to them more than once a week.  That compared with 35 per cent in 2009. Experts believe that...

What really gets a woman remembered?  Loved? Respected? Lioba the abbess of Bischofsheim is the patron saint for any woman who wants to make the most of her life. Lioba was born in Wessex early in the 8th century.  Her family was noble, her mother was a relative of the monk Boniface (the Billy Graham...

The hot heckler Baby on way Good husband Hear our prayer? Alternative prayer Don’t sleep angry How to get to heaven Hearing is not believing Old leaf? Deliver us… Some musings on daily life ** The hot heckler Tony Benn, who used a hearing aid, recalled a meeting in a church hall on a terribly...

Michael is an archangel, whose name means ‘who is like unto God?’  He makes various appearances throughout the Bible, from the book of Daniel to the Book of Revelation.  In Daniel, he is ‘one of the princes’ of the heavenly host, and the special guardian of Israel.  In Revelation, he is the principal fighter of...

One of those surveys which some newspapers love to publish claimed recently that a large number of British people believe in angels – almost as many, in fact, as claimed to believe in God. They didn’t tell us what people meant by ‘angels’. I suspect quite a few were thinking of young children who die,...