| News Round Up Church
welcomes Government's Licensing Bill amendment The
Church of England has warmly welcomed the Government's
tabled amendment to the Licensing Bill which ensures that
places of worship will be exempt from the requirements
for public entertainment licensing. At the same time the
Government proposes to exempt Church and Village Halls
from a need to pay licensing fees. The
Bishop of London, the Rt Revd & Rt Hon Richard
Chartres, spoke in the Second Reading debate in the House
of Lords against the Bill's proposals to licence musical
and dramatic events held in churches and other places of
worship, and moved an amendment in Committee seeking
exemption from licensing. The Bishop said later: "I
am glad that the contribution made by the churches and
other places of worship to the cultural and community
life of this country has been recognised. This Government
amendment will remove the danger that a new layer of
regulation and expense would fall on the huge number of
volunteers involved in community activities in our
churches." Many
churches and cathedrals had expressed considerable
concern that the original proposals would have inhibited
the ability of congregations to hold worthwhile events.
This risked reducing the contribution of many communities
to the cultural life of the country because of the extra
costs and administration involved in holding events under
the provisions of the Bill as drafted. There are 42
cathedrals and some 16,000 parish churches belonging to
the Church of England. The majority of them put on
regular musical and dramatic events. At one and the same
time these enhance the Church's community focus, extend
the Church's outreach and generate vital revenue towards
the running and repair costs of the building. The
Government amendment, if passed, will mean that the
provision of any entertainment or entertainment
facilities (a) for the purposes of, or for purposes
incidental to, a religious meeting or service or (b) at a
place of public religious worship, are exempt from the
need for regulation under the entertainment provisions. The
Church of England is responsible for the largest number
of listed buildings in the nation. Congregations are
responsible for maintaining their own buildings and in so
doing, they contribute to the maintenance of the nations
built heritage. While
licensing regulations will cover events in Church and
Village Halls, they will be exempted from fees. Tweenagers
slipping out the door Churches
need to appoint children's workers - and fast - if 10 to
14 year-olds are to continue church involvement. Thus
warns Christian Research, which has found that three
quarters of this age-group is lost in the transition from
Sunday school to adult church-attendance. Also, a quarter
of this age group who call themselves Christian never go
to church.
How
to be really happy If
you want to be happy, go to church. A survey recently
conducted by the Cabinet Office found that religious
people are "happier than average", and going to
church regularly contributes to your general happiness. The
survey also cites research from the United States, which
found that attending church every fortnight "can
have the happiness-equivalent of a doubling of money
income". The
survey also found that married people are happier than
those who are unmarried. "Studies suggest marriage
is equivalent to an increase in income of £72,000 per
annum," it says. No wonder then, that divorce,
widowhood and separation "all reduce life
satisfaction". Other
factors also contribute to happiness, according to the
results of the survey: gardening, exercise and a high
income. Women generally reported more satisfaction with
their lives than men did. Younger women said that
physical attractiveness was an important factor; for men,
it was being tall. People
who are active in their community are happier than those
who are not: "there is a large association between
social engagement and reported happiness" said the
report. Where
children get ideas about Jesus from Children
get far more of their ideas about Jesus from the RE
lesson at school than from their places of worship on a
Sunday. This
is one finding of a recent survey by researchers based at
Exeter University of more than 500 year-8 pupils aged 12
- 13 years old. Almost 90 percent of the children said
that RE lessons were their main source, while 50 per cent
mentioned place of worship, family, the Bible or Qur'an,
and school assemblies. Certainly
Jesus was generally viewed as a positive figure. Nearly
90 per cent of pupils said that Jesus tried to help
people, and 83 per cent said that he helped people
believe in God. More than 70 per cent described Jesus as
a healer, a special person, and a great teacher. More
than 75 per cent thought that he loved everyone equally.
The report suggests that RE syllabuses needed "to
better reflect the importance of Jesus in those religions
that give respect or reverence to him." Warn
people about drink? The
Salvation Army and the Methodist Church are asking the UK
Government to introduce legislation that would require
the drinks industry to print cigarette-style health
warnings on all products and advertising, along with the
recommended weekly alcohol intake for men and women. In
their submission to the Government's consultation on a
National Alcohol Harm Reduction Strategy the Churches
have sought to encourage the Government in its role to
combat alcohol misuse and its consequences. The Churches
recommend that the drinks industry should take more
responsibility for the harm caused by alcohol by
contributing to the costs of prevention and treatment of
problem drinking. Churches
address child protection issues Child
protection policies within Black Majority Churches have
been tightened up since the death of Victoria Climbie -
so says the African and Caribbean Evangelical Alliance
(ACEA) in response to Lord Laming's recent report which
highlighted serious flaws in the UK's childcare system. Many
denominations and churches have taken measures to ensure
they are safe places for children and young people. Later
this year ACEA will spearhead a disclosure campaign to
encourage member churches to carry out checks on those
wishing to work with younger age groups. Membership
of ACEA, which represents more than 1,200 Black Majority
Churches across the UK, will also be conditional on
churches having a child protection policy in place - or
being able to demonstrate their intention to initiate
procedures within a year. "Many
churches have had to redefine their priorities and there
have been some harsh lessons to learn," said ACEA
general director, Mark Sturge. "But together we are
doing all we can to ensure such a tragedy is not
repeated. Churches must be safe havens for young people
and, as such, we are helping to put mechanisms in place
which address some previous shortcomings." To
assist in this process, ACEA is now registered with the
Criminal Records Bureau and will be supporting churches
which are unable to process checks themselves. Mr
Sturge gave evidence, and made submissions on behalf of
ACEA's members, at the official inquiry into the
eight-year-old's death at the hands of her great aunt,
Marie-Therese Kouao and her boyfriend, Carl Manning. |