Modern Slavery Bill – a glimmer of hope for the victims of child abuse
Another day and the revelations of lives wrecked by sexual exploitation continue to grow. A few hundred more unnamed individuals are added to the list – victims let down by…
Happy Parent B's Day
Our Parent A, which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.. This is sure to catch on. With a slight touch of family-downgrading, parent-commingling and gender-neutralising, the Book of Common Prayer and the Authorised Version of the Holy Bible…
Queen's chaplain agnostic on "good or evil" violence in the Qur'an
Apparently, young people are turning to Jihad because school's a drudge and mainstream religion is not sufficiently 'exciting'. That's the general headline summary of a speech given by Justin…
Welby: equality as a government aim is "doomed to totalitarianism"
Justin Welby often gets it in the neck from Tories who are quick to spy Marxism under every mitre, but this Archbishop is rather more nuanced than that. In…
The £3.5 billion gift from the churches to our communities
This Friday will see Jake Berry MP's private member's Local Government (Religious etc. Observances) Bill go to Committee stage in the House of Lords. Assuming this goes through (and the…
#PastoralLetter (3): a plea for religious liberty in an era of secularity
Having responded to the Preface of the Pastoral Letter from the House of Bishops “to the people and parishes of the Church of England for the General Election 2015″;…
Let’s stop reviling Islam with ‘Islamism’, and call the cult what it really is
Rather like the Naming of Cats, the classifying of Islamic sects is a difficult matter, and it’s certainly not just one of your Eid-Al-Fitr games. As we’ve witnessed the…
Welby: "The best decision anyone can ever make is to be a follower of Jesus Christ"
Back in January, Tim Montgomerie, writing in the Times, vented his frustration with the Archbishop of Canterbury: I remain hopeful that Justin Welby, a "graduate" of HTB and its famous…
If we can 'pardon' past convictions for gross indecency, why not heresy?
The Royal Pardon is usually reserved for those who, having once been convicted of a criminal act, are subsequently discovered to have been innocent of the offence and so…
Giles Fraser: Would Jesus vote? Yes, but absolutely not Conservative
Anyone who thinks that Christianity and politics should never mix must be highly irritated at the moment. A week doesn't seem to go by without some form of conference, event or…
Announcing @HolyVote – it's time to reclaim our religious liberty
Apparently, the 2010 General election was the first internet election. And if not that one, it is this one. And if not this one, then it is still to…
#PastoralLetter (2): Visions, dreams and nebulous notions of detachment
Having responded to the Preface of the Pastoral Letter from the House of Bishops "to the people and parishes of the Church of England for the General Election 2015",…
Prophet, Islamist, cartoon or bear: which Mohammed most offends?
Apparently we now know the identity of the Islamist butcher known as 'Jihadi John', who has an undoubted penchant for making snuff movies involving the decapitation of charitable and…
'Those Who Show Up' – every church leader should read this book
Last week's Faith in Politics report by the Evangelical Alliance gave an interesting if somewhat predictable snapshot of Evangelical Christians' views on politics and their likely voting intentions. The…
BBC spins disaffected Muslims to deflect from emerging Islamists
The BBC published the results of a ComRes poll yesterday, which they spun in their own inimitable multiculturally-sunny and cloudless way. 'Most British Muslims "oppose Muhammad cartoons reprisals"', they…
Christians are united in the ecumenism of blood
'Follow Me' by Wael Mories. “In this moment of prayer for unity, I would also like to remember our martyrs, the martyrs of today,” said Pope Francis, as he…
Without Christian vision the future of politics looks bleak
A couple of days ago my NASUWT magazine dropped through the letterbox and, as always, it makes for pretty depressing reading. If the contents are to be believed, most…
If babies may be aborted on the grounds of their sex, why not sexuality?
"Thank heaven for little girls," sang Maurice Chevalier in the 1958 film Gigi. The reason? Well, mainly because they i) "get bigger every day"; and ii) "grow up in…
Climate change is not simply an issue of ecology, but also of injustice
This is a guest post by Joe Ware - Christian Aid's Church and Campaigns Journalist. _______________________ This week we witnessed a minor political miracle. Less than three months from what…
#PastoralLetter (1): The patronising episcopal 'should'
There are only two possible outcomes at the next General Election: either David Cameron will be Prime Minister, or Ed Miliband. Nigel Farage will not be Prime Minister; nor…