Viewing all items in Resource Category: Looking at your Church

A retreat house on the Holy Island of Lindisfarne is in big trouble. It is very wet! After years of winter wind, gales, and endless rain, the property is suffering extensive damp. Many thousands of people will know Marygate House, which has served visitors to the island since 1970. It is now run by a...

Christian leaders killed or disappeared in occupied Ukraine Sudan – one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises Chaplains keep faith in football When there is bullying in church This is a rubbish campaign Make a joyful noise to the Lord – become a bell-ringer Social Trends in 2024 that churches might do well to remember...

Into the third year of Russia’s occupation of parts of Ukraine, Christian leaders are still being killed, tortured and disappeared. And in Russia, priests who oppose Putin’s invasion continue to be imprisoned or silenced. “As President Putin begins his fifth term our partners describe growing pressure on the Church,” says Paul Robinson, CEO of UK-based...

World Vision is appealing for support for its work in Sudan.  Since the war broke out last Spring between the Sudan Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces, over nine million people have had to flee their homes. Now John Makoni, National Director of World Vision Sudan, warns: “Sudan is currently quite possibly the worst...

Chaplains are playing a vital role in the Premier League and other leagues across the UK. Currently 11 English Premier League clubs and 55 Football League clubs have chaplains, with some clubs having more than one. There are also chaplains throughout the National League and in lower league clubs. The growth in women’s football has...

If you have ever seen churchwardens on a formal occasion, you will have noticed they carry wooden wands, sometimes called staves or prodders. These are upright poles surmounted by a bishop’s mitre, or a royal crown, made of brass or silver. They date from the time when one churchwarden represented the Church and the other the...

Our world has an urgent rubbish problem. But Christians are uniting to take global action. So says the charity Tearfund, as it launches a campaign to highlight the threat of the growing mountains of plastic pollution. “Two billion people have no safe way to dispose of rubbish, and it’s people in poverty who are suffering...

If you love the sound of church bells, and have at least some ‘sense of timing’, why not consider becoming a bell-ringer? Church bells are incredibly heavy – ranging from six hundredweight to more than 28 hundredweight per bell – but anyone is strong enough to ring them.  Ringers range from schoolchildren to teenagers, from...

What are some of the societal trends likely to happen this summer? Should we bear them in mind when planning our own church outreach programme? Eventbrite has highlighted some trends for those in their 20s and 30s. These could provide ideas for how we might also engage with our community. 1) The importance of self-care....

DailyHope is on the line – again! Time to pray for your church wardens Christian Aid Week – 12th – 18th May THY KINGDOM COME – 9th to 19th May 2024 Prayer for Schools Fortnight – 6th to 20th May The rewilding plan turning churchyards into ‘living sanctuaries’ ** Editor:  By the Revd Peter Crumpler,...

A free telephone line that provides spiritual support for older people has been relaunched. The DailyHope telephone line serves many people in later life unable to participate in person with church life in the community, either in the long term, or temporarily due to sickness or medical treatment. It was launched during the Covid pandemic....

O Eternal God… enlighten with Thy Grace the Wardens of this church, and so rule their minds and guide their counsels, that in all things they may seek Thy Holy Will… Amen. O Lord, …we beseech Thee to bless all who, …give themselves to the service of their fellow worshipers. Endue them with wisdom, patience...