East meets West – a reflective faith journey from China to London

Jenny Clarke writes: I was brought up as an atheist.  I remember that at the age of 10, I made a vow to devote my life to communism, and I received a red scarf, which signifies my status as a member of the Young Pioneers of China.  In a way, this ceremony is very similar to a standard confirmation service in my church.  We had 12 children from the local parish school confirmed on 12th May 2024, but I hardly saw them afterwards in the church on Sundays.  This is not a criticism.  Turning up to Sunday mass week by week requires sacrifice.  Those youngsters will have had to miss football clubs, Sunday TV, weekends away or other fun.  Sometimes, I struggle to go to mass, so I shouldn’t offer to take the speck out of others' eyes before taking out the beams of my own. ... CLICK ON PICTURE TO CONTINUE

2024-10-18T13:18:12+00:00By |Tags: |

Democracy a Fragile Flower?

The Editor, The Rev'd Dr. Nicholas Henderson writes in his Editorial: At the heart of any democratic system of government must lie the ability for the ‘will of the people’ to express their preferences in an orderly and fair election. This in turn should be followed by a smooth and peaceful transition of power from one leadership group to another. That’s the minimalist principle which vests state power in the people. However, it’s not always as easy as that and despite this being a year of elections in a host of countries we seem to be drifting towards elective autocracy ...

Rough sleeping in an election year

The Editor, The Rev'd Dr. Nicholas Henderson writes: Sleeping rough in our cities has become commonplace and is on the increase. For those unfortunates spending the night in little more than cardboard boxes or makeshift tents, it’s no joke to be on the cold streets at night and physically and mentally dangerous. Tragically, now included in this category, we must add over a million people displaced from their homes in Gaza. These can also join the list of those bombed out of everyday existence in Ukraine. ...

Woke Wars

The Editor, The Rev'd Dr. Nicholas Henderson writes in his Editorial: The etymology of the adjective ‘woke’ is interesting, not least as the word seems central to the so-called culture wars currently ranging in the United States and in many other countries, including the United Kingdom. ...

Expect the unexpected

In his New Year Editorial the Rev'd Dr.Nicholas Henderson writes: Bethlehem closed down for Christmas, Ukraine brings the season forward from 7th January to 25th December and hardly anything left standing in Gaza. Political will to resolve what is becoming a very uncertain New Year appears to be weakening. ...

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