Pope Francis: God willed the Reformation and the Church of England
Pope Francis went to Abu Dhabi this week to meet the Grand Imam of al-Azhar, which is good and pleasant. No doubt the Supreme Pontiff of the Roman Catholic Church…
Freedom of Belief
Mounstephen calls for sanctions on countries which persecute Christians
The Bishop of Truro Philip Mounstephen has finally published his independent report on persecuted Christians across the world, and it doesn't disappoint. The review was commissioned by Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt last December, and launched in January, and the intervening…
Religious persecution: Houses of Parliament to be floodlit red on 22nd November
22nd November is Red Wednesday. The Palace of Westminster will be bathed in red, along with Westminster Abbey, Westminster Cathedral, Lambeth Palace, and many churches and cathedrals across the United…
Forget Brexit academics – how many of them are Conservatives?
Government Whip Chris Heaton-Harris has sent a letter to all university vice chancellors asking for the names of academics lecturing on European affairs, with particular reference to Brexit. He also…
The Home Office's shameful treatment of Christian asylum seekers
A few years ago we had a popular children’s song at my church that started like this: You won’t get to heaven on the back of a camel, And…
Dan Walker, creationism, and the witch-hunt against Bible-believing Christians
Dan Walker is the Bible-believing son of a Baptist minister. He is a TV and radio sports presenter who has just been appointed to front the BBC Breakfast programme…
Global persecution of Christians more extreme than ever
This week many in the church and a few in the media have their eyes on Justin Welby and the Primates meeting in Canterbury, waiting to see if the…
The National Secular Society's vacuous and arrogant stance against the Lord's Prayer
For decades the Church of England has gained a not entirely undeserved reputation for being a bit wet behind the ears and having all of the subversiveness of a…
Evangelism threatened by counter-extremism measures
The Evangelical Alliance has been surveying Evangelicals. 1,730 of them, to be precise. And it transpires that four out of five of them think government policies to tackle extremism…
House of Lords pleads for the freedom of religion and belief
With a Conservative majority government in place for the next five years we won’t need to worry about any potential reforms to House of Lords for the time being.…
No, Baroness Anelay. Freedom of belief is a fundamental right
Religio-political blogging is a pretty much a thankless task. You air your opinions in public in the hope that others will take note, listen and learn. If just a…
The Epistle of St Nigel: Ukip’s crass ‘Christian Manifesto’
Ukip have issued a 'Christian Manifesto'. They haven't issued a Muslim one, or a Hindu one, or a Sikh one, or a Buddhist one. Nor have they issued a…
LibDems 'do God' by opposing faith schools
It’s now coming up to three-and-a-half years since I put fingers to keyboard and began blogging on the relationship between Christianity and politics. Along the way it’s brought me into…
‘Gay cake’ case comes to court
This is a guest post by Peter Lynas – Director of the Northern Ireland Evangelical Alliance and a former barrister. Peter tweets at @peterlynas. _______________________ Today and tomorrow (26-27th March 2015), the…
Green Party: Christians welcome, but only if you ignore your faith
Last Sunday I was invited on to BBC Radio Suffolk to discuss a poll they had carried out asking General Election candidates in Suffolk to state their faith. The…
Equality legislation is breeding a class of intolerant whingers
I have a friend who is a teacher and works in a secondary school. The head, who is known to have little sympathy for those of a religious persuasion,…
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…
Universities to censor Zionists, Pro-Lifers and advocates of Holy Matrimony
Prevent Duty Home Office 17 December 2014 Protecting the UK against terrorism The Counter-Terrorism and Security Bill, which is currently before Parliament, seeks to place a duty on specified…
How much UK aid was given to Christian-persecuting countries in 2014?
The most authoritative report on the persecution of Christians around the world has now been released for 2015. The widely respected Open Doors World Watch List is the only annual global survey…
Douglas Alexander champions a Global Envoy for Religious Freedom
"Yet, at this time of great peril, I deeply regret that the British Government seems to be stepping back, rather than stepping up," writes Shadow Foreign Secretary Douglas Alexander…