Viewing all items in Resource Category: Editorial

June, of course is the month of the summer solstice, the month of the Sun.  Sol + stice come from two Latin words meaning ‘sun’ and ‘to stand still’.  As the days lengthen, the sun rises higher and higher until it seems to stand still in the sky.   The Summer Solstice results in the longest...

He had no home, The birds of the air had nests But He had nowhere to lay His head. He lived as a poor man Supported by friends, But fed the thousands with fish and bread.   He preached three years Persecuted by Pharisees Who thought He came to destroy the Law, But the people...

More than 250 people were killed following Easter service bomb attacks against churches in Sri Lanka. “The scale of the horror takes our breath away,” says Release International. “But terrorism can never overcome the central truth of the Gospel – Christ is risen. Please pray for our brothers and sisters in Sri Lanka and wherever...

Alban was the very first Christian martyr in Britain – or at least the first we know of. A ‘martyr’ is someone who has died for the faith – the word literally means ‘witness’. He was probably killed during the persecution under the emperor Diocletian in the early years of the fourth century, in the...

Civil weddings have increasingly outnumbered religious weddings every year since 1992. The most recent data (from 2016) has shown that for the first time, less than a quarter of all marriages were religious ceremonies. As one family law solicitor explained: “If individuals don’t go to church for most of their lives, they wonder whether it’s...

On June 22nd the Church remembers St Alban, who was put to death on that day in 250AD, on the site of the town in Hertfordshire that now bears his name and has a splendid cathedral which houses his shrine. Christianity was struggling to survive in third century Britain under Roman rule. In the middle...

– ageing in perspective By Harriet and Donald Mowat, BRF, £8.99 What has been the purpose of our lives?  As Christians, ageing gives us the opportunity to deepen and even transform our spiritual understanding. The Freedom of Years helps those who want to undertake the journey by examining the ageing task, the inevitable changes and...

I saw the summer flowers on a bright and sunny day, I heard the sound of birdsong as they fluttered on their way I thought all this was science, only nature’s rules at play – And that was such a shame. I saw the stars of winter shining in a velvet sky I knew creation’s...

Here are some tips which may prove useful. What is the source?  Have a good look at the website where you found it, including the About Us section.  Is it really a news site? Are other stories from this site believable?  Can you find this story and the other stories on the site anywhere else?...

St Alban should be the patron saint of anyone who impulsively offers to help a stranger in need… and finds their own life turned upside down as a result. The story goes that Alban was a Roman citizen quietly living in England in the third century.  Then, miles away in Rome, the emperor, Diocletian ordered...

– couples, conflict and the capacity for change By Natalie Collins, SPCK, £10.39 All of us will have had experience of supporting a friend or family member through the turmoil of a bad relationship.  But could some of the more difficult times of argument and conflict be more than they appear? Is there something more...

John the Baptist is famous for baptising Jesus, and for losing his head to a woman. He was born to Zechariah, a Temple priest, and Elizabeth, who was a cousin of Mary, the mother of Jesus.  John was born when his mother was advanced in years, and after the foretelling of his birth and the...