This week, a mother was convicted of forgery after she submitted a fake tenancy agreement in order to secure a place at a high performing school for her daughter. She was fined £500 and sentenced to 100 hours of community service. Many parents might have sympathy for her. The magistrate in the case, Michael Peacock, sounded… Continue reading Fighting dirty in the battle for school places
‘The Book of Forgiving’ by Desmond & Mpho Tutu [Review]
"Forgiveness is not easy, but it is the path to healing. It was not easy for Nelson Mandela to spend twenty-seven years in prison, but when people say to me what a waste it was, I say no, it was not a waste. It took twenty-seven years for him to be transformed from an angry, unforgiving… Continue reading ‘The Book of Forgiving’ by Desmond & Mpho Tutu [Review]
Loch Mess: the Caledonian Crisis, 2034 – a blog post from the future
Yesterday saw a marked escalation of the conflict between England and Scotland. In a statement released by Downing Street, Prime Minister Euan Blair confirmed the significant expansion of English military action: “I have ordered reinforcements to bolster the British troops placed along the Scottish border. Operation Hadrian has being stepped up to maintain the integrity… Continue reading Loch Mess: the Caledonian Crisis, 2034 – a blog post from the future
The dis-integration of Christian social action
In the last 15 years there has been huge growth in social action projects established by churches. The rise of Food Banks has probably been the most high profile example but there has also been a massive increase in Church-run Night Shelters and debt advice services. These newer initiatives have joined well-established projects which have… Continue reading The dis-integration of Christian social action
Pray in the tension
Photo by Tima Miroshnichenko on Pexels.com Today Many of us live A nation of strangers Aliens in cities, Trapped in societies Of rapid, social change. Constantly We face new problems With no clear answers. It's not happened To us before. Nobody’s behaved like that before. We’ve got no tailor-made pattern. It’s an itsy-bitsy life.… Continue reading Pray in the tension
How should our faith affect the way we live?
This morning I listened to a short reflection* about how small actions can make a big difference. The example used was how significant it was for Desmond Tutu when as a young boy he saw a white priest doff his hat in courtesy to his mother who was a domestic worker. Growing up under apartheid in South Africa… Continue reading How should our faith affect the way we live?
Jonah and Islamic State – by Matt Valler
The extremist Muslim terrorist organisation Islamic State (formerly ISIS) recently captured Nineveh in northern Iraq. The atrocities they have since committed there led me to revisit this ancient story... The word of Yahweh came to Jonah the Jew. "Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it because the stench of its wickedness… Continue reading Jonah and Islamic State – by Matt Valler
‘The Human Propensity to F*** things Up’
“One of the major obstacles to communicating what belief feels like is that I’m not working with a blank slate. Our culture is smudged over with half-legible religious scribblings. The vocabulary that used to describe religious emotions hasn’t gone away…instead, it’s still in circulation, but re-purposed, with new meanings generated by new usages... Case in… Continue reading ‘The Human Propensity to F*** things Up’
From the DRC to London: helping Theodore realise his hope of education – by Rachel Henry
Theodore*, 18, comes from the North East of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). He was brought up in a region where there are regular attacks on civilians by armed groups. When he was a child, his family fled an attack on their village and settled in a camp for internally displaced people on the outskirts… Continue reading From the DRC to London: helping Theodore realise his hope of education – by Rachel Henry
Cranmer and the toxic nature of anonymous blogging
For those of you who don’t know, Cranmer is the name of a blog which comments on religious and political issues. He describes himself as “Bishop of the Blogosphere, Pastor of the World Wide Web and Chaplain to the Digital Archdiocese”. Cranmer has won a large following by expressing right-wing, traditionalist perspectives on both religion and… Continue reading Cranmer and the toxic nature of anonymous blogging
