Communal worship banned in England
From 5th November, it will be illegal to gather for communal worship in England. The Government has decreed that church buildings may open for private prayer, but not for praying…
Church of England
Call for Evidence: How should the Government engage with faith groups?
The Prime Minister has appointed Colin Bloom (who may be known to some) as the Faith Engagement Advisor at the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. He is charged with leading a review into how the Government might best…
Wales lockdown isn’t only absurd; it denies freedom of religion
Tomorrow is your birthday. You've received a card from your Mum every single year of your life, without fail, even when you were abroad, and even when she was very…
UK Internal Market Bill: the Archbishops are confused, poorly advised, and wrong
The Archbishops of the United Kingdom have written a joint letter fairly and equally to all tabloids and broadsheets decrying the moral state of the nation and calling for repentance…
The Church of England – a safer space for abusers than for the abused
The long awaited IICSA report into 70 years of sexual abuse, cover-up and neglect of victims in the Church of England has finally been published. It has been followed by…
The curious case of Kristie Higgs: where is the Church of England?
Kristie Higgs is deemed to be a danger to children. So dangerous, in fact, that more than a year ago she was sacked for gross misconduct by the school where…
Vicar: ‘If you don’t worship in the CofE (or only come at Christmas), don’t complain about what we do’
The Rev'd Miranda Threlfall-Holmes had a premonition that her tweet would be unpopular, but still she shared her ecclesiology with the world: "People are only allowed to complain about the…
Covid-centralising Archbishop excoriates Government – for Covid centralising
The Archbishop of Canterbury has excoriated the Government's 'Rule of Six', the latest anti-Covid-19 policy which restricts almost the whole of society to gatherings of no more than six. Writing…
Church of England clears Martyn Percy of all safeguarding allegations
The Dean of Christ Church Oxford, The Very Rev'd Professor Martyn Percy, has been cleared of any wrongdoing in the discharge of his safeguarding responsibilities in respect of his various…
Law Commission ‘consultation’ on weddings is just another secularist push
This isn't a government consultation, though it has the authoritative whiff of one, and many people will doubtless mistakenly believe it to be one, but it is definitely not one:…
Diversity is deeper than BAME and LGBT: it is social, political, intellectual and philosophical
Lord Hall, the outgoing Director General of the BBC, has demanded that the Corporation improve the diversity of its staff to better reflect those who pay its TV licence. "You…
As a child drowns in the Channel, the Bishop of Dover demands action
"What are we waiting for?" asked the Rt Rev'd Rose Hudson-Wilkin, Bishop of Dover. "Our children are being washed up on our beaches," she lamented, after the body of a…
Transgender aged seven; puberty blockers aged 11; detrans aged 18
There is an evil here which needs to be addressed. O, some will hurl 'transphobe', others 'bigot', and still others 'homophobe' or 'hater', but it still needs to be addressed,…
Lead Safeguarding Bishop to critics: “You don’t understand”
Considering the experiences they have been through, and the historically indifferent responses of the Church of England to their suffering, many of those who survived sexual abuse are surprisingly positive…
Calls for Charity Commission to intervene in CofE safeguarding saga
"After many attempts to secure reform of the National Safeguarding Team and the secretive Core Groups of the Church of England, we reluctantly reach the conclusion that there is no…
Sheffield Cathedral sacks choir – because God told them to
The Dean and Chapter if Sheffield Cathedral have sacked their choir, and this has caused a bit of a stir in the media and consternation on Twitter. They explain: For…
Martyn Percy is challenging an entire cultural mindset of establishment privilege
Reflecting upon the developing Dean Martyn Percy story, I called to mind the famous observation by Abraham Lincoln upon the institution of slavery which was defended at the time by…
Archbishops go on consecration strike – they will make no more bishops
Something peculiar happened in the Church of England last week. We are, of course, very used to peculiar things happening in the Church of England, but this was so peculiar…
General Synod: social and political diversity among Bishops
Quite a few interesting questions have been tabled for the imminent virtual General Synod of the Church of England, ranging from Bishops' Twitter usage (Qs 69-70) to Safeguarding abusage (Qs…
Christ Church vs Martyn Percy: a conspiracy of lawyers, divine PR, and the purgatory of CofE Safeguarding
The story of injustice being inflicted by the Church of England upon Prof Martyn Percy, Dean of Christ Church, Oxford, has been grinding on now for over three months, and…