Church marks double century by changing name
en staff
Date posted: 25 Jan 2026
A London church is marking its double century by changing its name to mark both its spiritual status and location.
St John’s Wood Road Baptist Church was founded 200 years ago as Mount Zion Baptist Chapel. But now it will be known as Lord’s Baptist Church – signifying not only that it belongs to Christ but also that it is near Lord’s Cricket Ground.
Evangelicals look to Synod elections
en staff
Date posted: 24 Jan 2026
Evangelicals in the Church of England are gearing up for crucial elections to General Synod later this year.
CofE bishops recently confirmed they will not be proposing “stand-alone” blessing services for same-sex couples at the upcoming February gathering of the Synod, the denomination’s ruling body. They will also not be suggesting lifting the ban on clergy in same-sex civil marriages at that time.
More assisted suicide concerns
Nicola Laver
Date posted: 24 Jan 2026
Peers have been considering an amendment that would move assisted dying from a panel-based system to a court-based system, as originally proposed.
And during the fifth day of debate on the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill, Lord McCrea, an Evangelical Christian, highlighted the fundamental issue: “No one can state categorically that a person has only six months to live.”
Bible sales are up & ESV is best-selling
Emily Pollok
Date posted: 24 Jan 2026
Crossway’s ESV was the best-selling translation of the Bible in the UK last year, according to Christian publisher SPCK Group.
And Bible sales are up overall, reaching the highest level recorded, research shows.
Makin: 'Case closed' on two evangelicals
en staff
Date posted: 23 Jan 2026
Two evangelicals have been told their cases are closed in relation to the Makin Report.
Makin's review looked into horrific abuse carried out by the late QC John Smyth, and examined questions of who knew about it at different times, and what action they did or did not take.
Banned church wins battle to be at new students’ fair
Lydia Houghton
Date posted: 23 Jan 2026
A Greenwich church, with help from The Christian Institute, has successfully defended its right to book a stall at a university freshers’ fair in response to a ban on religious groups.
While attempting to reserve a spot at Goldsmiths University freshers’ fair, Grace Church Greenwich was told by Native.fm – the organisation to which the university had outsourced the booking process – that “due to a recent update in our company policy, we are no longer able to facilitate bookings for religious groups at these events.”
Children being ‘used as guinea pigs’ in puberty blockers experiment
Emily Pollok
Date posted: 23 Jan 2026
Health Secretary Wes Streeting is allowing a trial of puberty blockers for children to go ahead despite confessing to being “uncomfortable” about the risks involved and receiving strong and widespread opposition.
The Pathways trial, recommended by the Cass Review (which examined NHS gender identity services for children and young people) was set to start in January. Concerns regarding the impact of the drugs include issues related to brain development, fertility, and bone density, as well as the subject of whether young children are capable of giving consent.
Nurse who refused to call biological male 'she' gets job back
Nicola Laver
Date posted: 21 Jan 2026
An NHS trust has reinstated nurse Jennifer Melle and abandoned disciplinary action against her for an alleged data breach.
Melle, a Christian nurse, had earlier been disciplined by Epsom and St Helier Hospitals NHS Trust for "misgendering" a biological male and convicted paedophile.
TikToker documents atheist friend's faith exploration
Emily Pollok
Date posted: 19 Jan 2026
Can you go from atheist to Christian in 12 weeks? This is the question that Christian influencer Jay Painter and his atheist friend Lewis are exploring together and sharing with the world via Painter’s social media platform.
Painter, who creates Christian content for his following of more than 30,000 across TikTok and Instagram, came up with the idea for the video series after his church encouraged the congregation to invite someone to the Alpha course it was running.
Circumcision could be child abuse, says new guidance
Emily Pollok
Date posted: 18 Jan 2026
The practice of circumcision could be considered a form of child abuse in some cases according to revised guidance for prosecutors.
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has drafted a document on “honour-based abuse, forced marriages, and harmful practices” that includes circumcision in a list of practices with potentially criminal implications like breast flattening or virginity testing, The Guardian reports.
Irish church faces calls to scrap NDAs
Nicola Laver
Date posted: 17 Jan 2026
The Presbyterian Church in Ireland (PCI), which is under police investigation for safeguarding failings over several years, has denied using non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) in the case of whistle-blowers or safeguarding matters.
However, it has set up a task group to look at its use of such agreements. It has also established a new Safeguarding Department with external oversight; and committed to a full, independent external review of safeguarding within the denomination “at an appropriate time.”
NHS trust 'violated dignity' of Darlington nurses
Lydia Houghton
Date posted: 16 Jan 2026
A group of Darlington nurses had their dignity "violated" by an NHS trust, a tribunal said today.
Newcastle Employment Tribunal said that "complaints of indirect sex discrimination" against County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust "are well founded and succeed" after the nurses were required to share a female-only changing room with a biological male who identifies as a woman.
TV jibe spurs call to revisit Scotland’s Christian past
John Brand / en staff
Date posted: 16 Jan 2026
A Christian historian is urging Scots to rediscover their nation’s heritage of faith – thanks to a comedian who mocked believers on television.
Paul James-Griffiths is a historian who is the founder and Director of Christian Heritage, Edinburgh, and Soul of Scotland Tours. Together, these provide exhibitions, videos and walking tours.
Charity urges Christians to consider fostering
Lydia Houghton
Date posted: 13 Jan 2026
Christian charity Home for Good and Safe Families (created in 2024 after being two separate organisations) is urging Christians to prayerfully consider fostering following the Children’s Commissioner for England’s latest report exposing the ongoing use of illegal and unsuitable accommodation for children in care.
Sam Lomas, head of advocacy for the charity, said: "This report makes it clear that change will not come through policy alone. It will come through people stepping forward to offer homes with care and commitment."
Spring Harvest co-founder, Peter Meadows, dies at 84
Lydia Houghton
Date posted: 12 Jan 2026
Peter Meadows, who helped establish Christian festival Spring Harvest, has died at the age of 84.
Writing on Facebook, Spring Harvest said: "Pete was a pioneer, and a faithful servant of Jesus. We give thanks to God for his life, his faith, and the extraordinary legacy he leaves behind, a legacy that has shaped individuals, churches, and generations."
Non-stop prayer planned for UK & Ireland
Lydia Houghton
Date posted: 7 Jan 2026
Thirty-two days of continuous prayer, interceding for the UK and Ireland, are planned to take place over the next month, organised by the National Day of Prayer & Worship (NDOPW).
The initiative involves an online prayer vigil which began at midnight on Sunday 4 January and will end at midnight on Thursday 5 February, with the goal being that "unceasing prayer will rise day and night across the nation."
Bristol CU awarded ‘society of month’
Thomas McBride
Date posted: 4 Jan 2026
Members of the Christian Union at the University of Bristol met hundreds of students this November as they welcomed them to their events week.
The impact of their “Hope in Chaos” evangelistic week was felt across the city and led to the Students’ Union awarding the CU “society of the month” alongside a glowing review on their website (Group of the Month, December 2025 @ Bristol SU), saying the CU had “gone the extra mile” in welcoming students.
‘Emerging young leaders' meet in Keswick
Lydia Houghton
Date posted: 1 Jan 2026
A group of 15 “emerging young leaders” gathered at the Pencil Factory in Keswick, in the heart of the Lake District, to think about Christian leadership and learn how to understand and teach the Bible.
The Emerging Young Leaders programme is designed for 16-18-year-olds and run by Keswick Ministries. The organisation’s Kids and Youth Ministry Lead, Ben Pearson, told en: “There is something powerful about seeing young people commit to following Christ with an enthusiasm to open God’s word together, encourage one another, and think about how to serve God’s Kingdom.”
