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News
A-level Religious Studies entries top increase table again Refund on the VAT costs World first for mission calling card Number of lone parents to triple WORLD MENTAL HEALTH DAY Christians called to extend hand of friendship Vital aid reaches thousands in Niger
A-level Religious Studies entries top increase table again
The A-level subject with the largest rise in entries this year - 16.9% - is Religious Studies, according to the 2005 A level entry and results data, published by the Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ). The Revd John Gay, Religious Education Consultant to the Archbishops' Council's Education Division, said: “This is splendid news. Not only are A levels up by 16.9%, but AS numbers have also increased by 5.2% to 21,121. These figures reflect a growing recognition among young people that an understanding of the religious and spiritual dimension of life is interesting, challenging and increasingly relevant in today's global society.”
Refund on the VAT costs incurred in the construction, renovation and maintenance of memorials
As proposed in the Budget earlier this year, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Gordon Brown, has launched a new scheme for UK charities which will refund the VAT costs (the full 17.5%) incurred in the construction, renovation and maintenance of memorials.
The new scheme applies to statues, monuments and similar constructions, and will work alongside the existing VAT zero rate for memorial buildings. It will be administered by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport alongside the existing VAT refund scheme for listed places of worship, which was announced in Budget 2004. The memorials concerned must:
o be solely for the purposes of commemorating people, events or animals; o bear a commemorative inscription; and o meet a public access test of a minimum of 30 hours a week.
The Government has also confirmed that, in order to achieve permanent VAT relief on memorials (as well as listed places of worship), it is seeking agreement at EU level to allow a reduced VAT rate to be charged for their construction, repair and maintenance.
World first for mission calling card
The world's first pre-paid calling service designed for seafarers and offering voicemail has been launched by The Mission to Seafarers and the US company SeaDigital Communications. The mission agency and the US company which specialises in maritime and ship communications, have together developed a complete communication service for seafarers.
“It's not just a telephone card,” said (Mr) Ken Cornforth, the Mission's North Tees chaplain, who has worked with SeaDigital on the card. “For the first time, seafarers can use a card anywhere in the world which also allows them to leave a message for their family or friends. Their relatives and friends can leave messages for the seafarers to pick up wherever in the world they may be.”
Statistic of the Month
Number of lone parents to triple
The most recent figures from the Government's General Household Survey show that the proportion of lone-parent families is set to rise from 12% of all families in 1986 to 33%, almost three times as many, by 2011. That's a huge increase over just 25 years.
Other figures show that most lone parents become such because the husband or male partner leaves. 93% of lone parents are so because of a split with their partner, and just 9% occur when the two people concerned were never living together.
The proportion of lone parents attending church is much less than in the population as a whole (1.8% to 8.0%) but this still equates to 80,000 lone parents in our churches. Hopefully they are finding love, affection and appreciation there.
WORLD MENTAL HEALTH DAY
When is it? Monday, October 10th What is it? It is a day to highlight the worldwide problem of mental illness.
Why does it matter? Mental ill health is a major global concern. According to the World Health Organisation it is projected to reach 15% or the global burden of disease by the year 2020, by which time depression will disable many more people than AIDS, traffic accidents, heart diseases and war combined.
Too often, people who are mentally ill are shunned by others who are afraid of them, or isolated from the community for their own protection. Even now, some mentally ill people, in countries such as India and Ghana, may be kept in chains and denied their basic human rights. Throughout the centuries, people have been feared and mocked, or even regarded as evil spirits. Such was the attitude when Jesus was on earth. He recognised their isolation, spoke to them without fear, and was able to calm their troubled spirits. We pray for that same healing influence now, on all who suffer from sickness of the mind and for those who have become victims of mentally disturbed people.
How BasicNeeds is helping the mentally ill in developing countries.
The charity BasicNeeds works specifically with mentally ill people in developing countries, where there is a clear link between poverty and mental illness. The first essential is for people to be seen by a mental health professional, ensuring that they get the right medication – an opportunity that many have never had before, because they live in isolated areas and are too poor to travel. BasicNeeds and its local partners organise rural health clinics, where mentally ill people can be diagnosed and treated locally by visiting psychiatrists.
BasicNeeds also helps provide employment opportunities, so that once stabilised, mentally ill people can contribute to the family income, for instance through horticultural projects, and begin to overcome the stigma that their illness attracts. Many others, once treated, are able to return to their former jobs. This has a knock-on benefit for carers, many of whom are children, and for other family members.
Please remember in your prayers mentally ill people worldwide and those who are working to help them.
(Further information on the work of BasicNeeds from Jane Cox, BasicNeeds, 158A Parade, Leamington Spa, Warks. CV32 4AE. Tel: 01926 330101. jane.cox@basicneeds.org.uk www.basicneeds.org.uk
Christians called to extend hand of friendship after rise in religious hate crimes
The Evangelical Alliance has called on Christians to make positive steps to reach out to Muslim and other faith communities in the wake of figures that show a six-fold increase in religious hate crimes in London since the bombings last summer.
Joel Edwards, General Director of the Evangelical Alliance, said, "Christian communities throughout Britain should show the love of God by extending the hand of friendship to those affected by the actions of extremists and suffering violence and intimidation as a result.
“We need to care beyond our creed and serve without compromising our faith. Secondly, hard though it is to face the fact that there are terrorists in our midst, our Christian faith requires us to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us and I would emphasise this command at the present time."
The Evangelical Alliance does remain concerned however, that the Government may use the current climate as an excuse for rushing through the racial and religious hatred legislation. It remains firm in its conviction that such legislation could exacerbate religious tension and increase community division.
Vital aid reaches thousands in Niger
International aid and development agency World Vision, in partnership with the World Food Programme has provided vital food supplies to thousands of starving people in the worst hit regions of Niger.
The relief charity has supplied cereal, beans and oil to nearly three thousand people from five villages around the Maradi region and will be distributing provisions for up to 165,000 people in the Maradi and Zinder regions for the next two months.
World Vision, which has been working in Niger since 1996, is also working long-term with local communities to address the root causes of Niger's crisis through the provision of clean water, healthcare, nutrition, diversified agriculture, and education.
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