News
Round Up Lambeth
Cross for Brother Roger of Taize The
Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, has awarded
a Lambeth Cross to Brother Roger of Taize for exceptional
services to the causes of Christian unity. Brother
Roger founded the Taize community in 1949 with seven
brothers, committing themselves to a life of celibacy,
the common life, simplicity and reconciliation. Now
over 50 years later there are over 100 brothers made up
of Catholics, Anglicans and various Protestant traditions
from over 25 countries. The community has spread to other
parts of the world, with small groups living in poor
areas of Regardless
of location the community's life is always based on
prayer three times a day. Since 1958 the community
has welcomed young adults in increasing numbers to Taize,
drawing up to 6,000 each week in summer months. Diocese
Calls for Fairtrade The
Diocese of Sheffield is to be a Fairtrade Diocese. The
Bishop of Sheffield, Rt Revd Jack Nicholls, has backed a
call from across the Diocese to do everything it can to
ensure that trade works for the benefit of poor countries
rather than to their disadvantage. The Diocesan
Synod has recently backed the move. Parishes
that make a Fairtrade commitment will be sent a
certificate to help them to publicise Fairtrade. If
over one third of parishes sign up to the Fairtrade
pledge, then the Diocese will receive a Fairtrade Diocese
certificate. Iraqi
Christians face escalating violence: urgent appeal for
prayer and action The
Christian community in northern International
media reported the first incident, when explosions
occurred at five churches in The
church leaders serving the Christian community of
Karakush, The
second letter to church leaders, received in early
November, announced the militants' intention of killing
one person in every Christian family, as a punishment for
the women not covering their heads and not going to
university. This follows up pressure and threats from
Islamic extremists against all women in Leaflets
are being distributed with the message: "Christians
go; leave Prayer
Items *
In this
grave situation, the Christians in *
Please
also write to your MP asking them to raise the suffering
of Christians in The
Barnabas Fund provides financial assistance and prayer
information about suffering Christians in the Muslim
world, and can be found at www.barnabasfund.org. Statistic
of the Month: Millions in church for Christmas! Christingle
services, Carol services, Midnight services drew draw
many millions of people to church this past Christmas,
both in the UK and throughout the world. For many,
however, this was their only church service in 2004! The
Church of England is the only denomination which
specially collects church attendance at Christmas time,
and over the last two years they have found 2.6 million
people in church on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. Add
in a similar number in Catholic churches and 4.3 million
for all the other denominations put together, and you get
a total of 9½ million in church this Christmas –
that is 16% of the population, more than double the usual
percentage. What a huge opportunity to tell people
what Christmas really means! Supplied
by Dr Peter Brierley, Executive Director, Christian
Research Bishop
calls for safe places for child prostitutes A
national network of emergency accommodation is needed to
help protect children from falling into prostitution,
says the Bishop of Leicester, The Rt Revd Tim Stevens. Bishop
Tim is urging the Church to reach out to the estimated 5,000
children and young people trapped in prostitution in
Britain to ensure they are protected and supported, not
punished. Guidance
issued by the Department of Health says that young people
involved in prostitution should be treated as the victims
of abuse. But children who persistently return to
prostitution - particularly 16-17 year-olds - can still
be cautioned or prosecuted because of a loophole. Bishop
Tim warns that a lack of safe places for children who run
away from home is putting them at greater risk of sexual
exploitation. He says: “These are young people who
are trapped in a web of fear and deceit and desperately
need our support to help them escape. They need somewhere
safe to go and someone they can turn to for support. “By
putting them at the forefront of our consciousness, the
Church can bring hope and justice to some of most
troubled and rejected children in society.” Bishop
Tim is continuing to urge churches throughout the country
to support The Children’s Society’s Big Safe
& Sound Sign Up petition. Launched across Twenty-four
bishops are backing the campaign by encouraging people to
sign the petition in their local church. The
petition calls on the Government to set up a network of
safe emergency accommodation for young runways. Research
shows that around 15 per cent of runaways are thrown out
of home by parents or carers and one in seven children
will suffer physical or sexual abuse on the streets. In
total, 80,000 people are in involved in prostitution in
the Bishop
Tim’s call to action comes as The Children’s
Society responds to the Government’s consultation on
prostitution ‘Paying the Price’. In its
response, the charity says that without a national
network of safe emergency accommodation, many teenagers
will remain in prostitution or be locked up in secure
units. Paying
the Price is part of the Government’s biggest
overhaul of prostitution laws for 50 years and will look
at three key areas: prevention, protection and support
and justice. Evangelical
The
Evangelical Alliance says in all the furore over regional
casinos, the impact of large casinos may be overlooked.
If the current legislation goes through, there will still
be a proliferation of large casinos, many in town
centres, notwithstanding recent Government concessions.
These will soak up demand from the regional casinos, also
known as 'mega' casinos, unless the large casinos are
reigned in at the same time. The Nevertheless,
the Evangelical Alliance keenly welcomes the Government's
decision that proposals to introduce up to 40 'mega
casinos' across Mega
or regional casinos have a minimum of 40 gaming tables
and a maximum of 1250 gaming machines which can have
unlimited cash prizes. Large casinos can have no less
than 150 machines. Prince
pays tribute to Church of England's role in voluntary
work HRH
the Prince of Wales has paid tribute to the extensive
involvement of the Church of England in voluntary work. "I'm
reasonably confident in saying that the C of E is
probably the biggest participant in the charitable and
voluntary sector in the “Its
27,000 licensed ministers provide constant assistance and
comfort in distress and to the least fortunate in society.
Almost 5,000 schools receive support from the church and
at the other end of the spectrum, nearly half of the
country's listed buildings are maintained by the Church
of England, so I can only take my hat off to the church
for all the remarkable things that she does." National
Framework for Religious Education Religious
Education in all schools has been given a strong boost by
the launch of the new National Framework which has been
welcomed by the Church of England. Representatives of the
Church of England, alongside those of other churches and
faiths, were engaged in its development. RE has been
increasingly recognised in recent years as a vital and
popular part of the school curriculum. Canon
John Hall, the Church of England's chief education
officer, said, "The new Framework emphasises the
right of pupils and students at school to high quality,
informative and challenging RE from the age of 3 to 19.
It recognises the predominant place of Christianity,
which is to be taught throughout each stage of the
curriculum from foundation to post-16, but will also
enable every pupil to understand and respect the other
great faith traditions found in More
information at: http://cofe.anglican.org/news/pr4404.html New
smacking controls won’t help most vulnerable The
Christian charity CARE has expressed concern about the
ramifications of new legislation on smacking. The
changes, which come as part of the Children Bill, will
mean that the defence of ‘reasonable chastisement’
will no longer operate in the same way and that only
light smacks will remain legal. The
House of Commons rejected a total ban, which was tabled
by David Hinchcliffe MP, by 424 votes to 75. However,
they retained the so-called ‘Lester amendment’,
which introduced a partial ban and was supported by the
Government, by 284 to 208 votes. During
the debate, the Minister for Children Margaret Hodge said:
“A total ban on smacking could criminalise most
parents. That is surely not what we are about. Let us
focus on the more important job of safeguarding and
protecting children who are in real danger of harm and
abuse. Let us support parents in the most difficult and
important job of bringing up their children.” Responding
to the votes, Head of Public Policy at CARE, Roger Smith
said: “The
Government should be congratulated on trying to adopt a
common sense approach to this issue but there are still
questions to be answered. … heavy state
intervention, especially in fragile families, can be the
worst outcome for all. The new legislation could result
in the attention of the police and statutory services
being drawn from cases of genuine need and the need to
protect the most vulnerable children.’ CARE
argues that physical discipline of children in the form
of smacking and within the context of a loving family
environment constitutes a small but nevertheless
important part of the role of parents in raising their
children. Used in the context of loving parent-child
relationships, smacking can help children understand and
develop boundaries of behaviour, especially in situations
where they or others may be in danger. Online
Makeover The
Church of England website has had a facelift. Gone is the
text-based approach of the 1990s-built version, replaced
by an open design using more images and, improved
navigation around the site - including a search facility.
Sponsored by Ecclesiastical Insurance, http://www.cofe.anglican.org
also has a detailed site map index, an enhanced news
service, easier access to downloadable resources and a
comprehensive links page. In
Review The
first edition of In Review, a newsletter from the
National Church Institutions of the Church of England,
will be published in early December with the Church Times
and Church of England Newspaper. Its
aim is to provide news about the activities of the
Archbishops' Council, Church Commissioners, the Church of
England Pensions Board and other bodies who serve the
Church at national level. In
Review will also be published on the Church of England
website, http://www.cofe.anglican.org/ where articles can
be 'cut and pasted' for use in parish magazines and other
publications. Youth
Council meets The
Church of England Youth Council has held its first
meeting. The weekend event was attended by members from
across the country who discussed a range of subjects.
Members received a welcoming message from the Archbishop
of Canterbury. CEYC is a platform for young people in the
Church of England. More information at http://www.ceyc.org/ Church
warns on human genetics The
Church of England has warned that human genetics should
be developed for the purpose of therapy only, and not for
the enhancement of the foetus, in a submission by the
Church's More
information at http://www.cofe.anglican.org/news/pr4904.html
Learning
about rural life and ministry Want
to learn more about rural life and ministry? A range of
courses are on offer to help people in the church develop
their knowledge - from workshops over several days to
studying for a post-graduate qualification. For more
information see http://www.arthurrankcentre.org.uk or
contact Jill Hopkinson, National Rural Officer on
024 7685 3073 email: katrinas@rase.org.uk Saintly
lives Saints
on Earth, published by Church House Publishing, is a new
compendium of people commemorated in the Church of
England's calendar of Holy Days in Common Worship. There
is also an accompanying CD-Rom. Saints on Earth is priced
at £20.00 and is available from all Christian bookshops
and Church House Bookshop, Lent
resource The
Archbishop of York Dr David Hope introduces a five-part
Lent study course featuring John Bell, Nicky Gumbel, Jane
Williams, and the Abbot of Ampleforth. The audio tape/CD-based
course focuses on relationships and has been produced by
York Courses. More information: http://www.yorkcourses.co.uk/ or
01904-481677 |