Pray for Scotland
John Brand
Date posted: 1 May 2016
Dear Friends,
Please could I use your letter section to rally
Christians throughout the UK to be much in
prayer for Scotland in these days. The nation
that used to be known as the ‘land of the book’,
i.e. the Bible, is now in peril of judgment.
news in brief
Corbyn supports Sunday
Jeremy Corbyn, the newly elected Labour leader, announced his support for the campaign opposed to the change in Sunday trading laws at a Labour Party church service in late September.
Writing about the issue, Mr Corbyn wrote: ‘My ideal Sunday is a day of reflection and rest – everybody deserves that!’ The newly elected leader said he wanted to have conversations with Christian groups about common campaign areas.
When is failure faithful?
Dr Mike Ovey
Date posted: 1 Nov 2015
Dr. Mike Ovey asks if current evangelicals are in denial about some important matters
A week ago I was at a major Church of England jamboree as a friend was installed in a new and more senior post.
Transgenderism & compassion
Peter Ould
Date posted: 1 Aug 2015
Peter Ould explores the confusing issue of gender dysphoria which has hit the headlines recently
In recent weeks the issue of transgenderism has been in the news.
news in brief
CAR: reconciling?
A week-long attempt to reconcile warring elements in the Central African Republic began in early May, in Bangui, the capital.
The 600 delegates have agreed to release between 6,000 and 10,000 child soldiers and to stop underage recruitment. The vice-president of the Evangelical Alliance in Central Africa said that the church had spared no effort to prevent the warring parties from creating a complete sectarian conflict.
Jamaica: silent protest
Christian Concern / The Gleaner
Date posted: 1 Jun 2015
In early April, a small group of Jamaicans
held a silent protest as others welcomed
President Barack Obama to the island, concerned at what they perceive as an advancing
of immoral ideologies by the US president.
All the members wore black t-shirts, with
varying messages. Some had the names of
US citizens who were either fired from their
jobs or otherwise
reprimanded
for
statements made against members of the lesbian,
gay, bisexual and transgender community.
Durham: Ofsted didn’t interview
The Northern Echo / en
Date posted: 1 Jun 2015
In cases including that of the Christian school which the government closed, Ofsted admitted in early May that it did not interview any pupils or parents over claims its inspectors asked children inappropriate questions about sex. This was despite the head of Ofsted claiming investigations had taken place.
The Christian Institute (CI) established this, using a Freedom of Information request, that Ofsted did not interview the pupils, parents or staff behind the complaints. Simon Calvert, the CI’s deputy director, said: ‘It defies belief that anyone could think such an inquiry could take place without speaking to those who complained, the children, parents and teachers – but this is exactly what happened.
Ofsted report defies logic
en staff
Date posted: 1 Mar 2015
Ofsted has been described as being ‘at war’ with the Government regarding the evaluation of ‘British values’ as further school reports in the North East of England in mid-January saw a top school placed into Special Measures and another told to close.
Grindon Hall, a Christian school in Sunderland with some of the best exam results in its area, was given the worst possible grading by Ofsted in a report blasted as ‘defying logic’. The report stated that its performance is inadequate and a draft version of it also included a paragraph attacking the school’s Christian ethos. This paragraph was removed by Ofsted in the report it eventually released.
news in brief
Plymouth prayerless
Local Labour leaders in Plymouth have
removed prayers from the beginning of
council meetings, as ‘part of the process of
modernisation’.
Prayers will be 15 minutes before the
meeting officially starts at 2 o’clock. A local
Conservative councillor strongly criticised
the move, slamming ‘the thoughtless rush
for change’.