US commission critiques UK religious freedom
Emily Pollok
Date posted: 26 Aug 2026
The UK has “heavy-handed” policies affecting religious freedom, a US report claims.
The criticism comes from the Religious Liberty Commission, established by President Donald Trump last May, which has published a draft report, highlighting Britain and several other countries.
politics & policy
‘Why do the nations rage?’
Krish Kandiah
Date posted: 31 Jan 2026
On 3 January, as part of what was described as his New Year’s resolution to pursue world peace, President Donald Trump, from his luxury Mar-a-Lago resort, oversaw the invasion of Venezuela and the extradition of its president, Nicolás Maduro, to the United States on charges of drug trafficking.
This alarming event does not stand alone. It comes amid a steady accumulation of brazen assertions of power by leaders from multiple continents, each one adding to the sense of global instability. While many nations express ongoing concern about the number of migrants crossing their borders, a far more pressing anxiety is emerging – the prospect of aggressors doing the same. As the world watches on in growing unease, I am reminded of the psalmist’s question: “Why do the nations rage?”
Franklin Graham UK tour prompts support – and caveats
Milla Ling-Davies
Date posted: 26 May 2025
American missionary Franklin Graham, son of renowned evangelist Billy Graham, is bringing his evangelistic tour to the ExCel venue London this June – despite recently provoking concern among some UK evangelicals.
The event comes as part of Graham’s God Loves You Tour, which aims to partner with local churches to share “the simple message of God’s love”. The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA) are hoping to draw thousands to the venue, as they did when it was last held there in 2023.
Is the UK church ready for Trump 2.0?
Ben Chang
Date posted: 20 Jan 2025
Today sees the inauguration of Donald Trump as the 47th President of the United States.
Over on this side of the pond, polling consistently confirms that most of the British public have a pretty dim view of Trump. At best, he is seen as a ridiculous clown who cannot string a sentence together. At worst, he is viewed as a wannabe autocrat who idolises Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping. However, he won a resounding victory in the Presidential election and his party gained control of both the House and Senate.
Scottish seaside church plant takes off
Fellowship of Independent Evangelical Churches (FIEC)
Date posted: 1 Sep 2020
In 2014, Graham and Tineke Wintour moved to Balmedie, some eight miles north of Aberdeen in Scotland.
Balmedie is a seaside village, home to 2,500 people, and is well-known for the local golf course which is owned by US President Donald Trump.
SURRENDER OF THE FAITH?
en staff
Date posted: 1 Feb 2020
On 17 December the deeply controversial appointment of Stephen Cottrell as Archbishop of York was announced.
Carefully selected quotes from his speech to the press1 present a picture of an evangelical whose focus is on Christ. ‘What binds us together is … our faith in Jesus Christ. It’s our baptism and belonging to each other which is what really matters.’ However these quotes are removed from their context, and the context provides an entirely different view of the incoming Archbishop.
Barnabas Fund
responds
EN
Date posted: 1 Jul 2018
Barnabas Fund, a UK based organisation that reports on Christian persecution
around the world, issued a statement on 12
June in response to the meeting between
Presidents Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un held in Singapore.
‘President Trump hailed
the
summit as
‘great progress’ towards the stated US aims of
nuclear disarmament. South Korean President
Moon Jae-in said the news [of a] commitment
to denuclearisation ‘came like a miracle’.
Hear ye!
David Baker
Date posted: 1 Mar 2017
And lo, in those days, the bishops of the
Church of England
spake unto
their
denomination saying: ‘There shalt be no
change in our doctrine of marriage; there
shalt be no blessing of same sex marriages;
we shalt henceforth ask all ordinands (not
just the gay ones) questions about their
morality; and there shalt be, within that
framework, maximum liberty, once we have
worked out what that means.’
And behold, some of the party known as
the evangelicals rejoiceth, saying:
‘This be
alright, then, and much better than we had
feared.’ But others of the evangelicals sayeth:
‘This is more unto us such as a curate’s egg,
being pleasing in part greatly, but in other
parts, it stinketh.’ And yet other evangelicals
declareth: ‘The bishops faileth to teach clearly, and, verily, we trusteth not their trajectory.’
Challenging boundaries
Susie Leafe
Date posted: 1 Feb 2016
Boundaries are a big deal. Donald Trump
has proposed a
‘Great Wall of America’
between the US and Mexico.
In Europe the functioning, or otherwise, of
the ‘Schengen Area’ is the greatest challenge
that the EU has faced in a while and, of
course, we all anticipate that 2016 will bring
a referendum on our membership of the
European Union, which again will be largely
focussed on the merits and demerits of freedom of movement of capital, people, goods
and services across borders. We could go on.