New rural Scottish centre launched
Sarah Robinson
Date posted: 6 Dec 2024
The Free Church of Scotland has officially launched its new rural initiative, the Centre for Rural Ministry.
The Centre was initiated by Skye and Wester Ross presbytery but with a Scotland-wide remit to resource remote and rural Free Church congregations.
Christian therapist group ‘badly treated’
Nicola Laver
Date posted: 5 Dec 2024
The health super-regulator has admitted it badly treated a Christian therapist group that helps people with unwanted same-sex attraction.
In June 2024, the International Foundation for Therapeutic and Counselling Choice (IFTCC) applied for accreditation to the Professional Standards Authority for Health and Social Care (PSA). The IFTCC says it supports providers who ‘help those experiencing unwanted relational and sexual behaviours, attractions and patterns, or are confused with their gender or wish to de-transition’.
‘God speaks my language’
Nicola Laver
Date posted: 4 Dec 2024
‘God speaks my language’ – the theme and testimony of many at Grace Baptist Mission’s Annual Mission Day.
At Friends House on London’s Euston Road, many GBM missionaries shared stories on the last Saturday in October of how people all over the world are hearing God’s word in their own heart language – through preaching, teaching, Bible translation, personal evangelism, literature and radio programmes.
New resource launched to help churches address racism
Evangelical Alliance
Date posted: 3 Dec 2024
A new resource aiming to help churches tackle racism has been launched by the One People Commission and South Asian Forum.
Visions of Justice and Hope explores one of the most contested cultural questions of our time: What does it mean to be human and a Person of Colour?
Kemi Badenoch ‘understands Christian values’
Emily Pollok
Date posted: 2 Dec 2024
David Burrowes, former Tory MP and Co-Director of the Conservative Christian Fellowship, says new party leader Kemi Badenoch understands the importance of Christian values.
‘Kemi Badenoch has grown up in a Christian household and knows about the importance of Christian values as the foundation of family and community life,’ he said. ‘CCF looks forward to helping her renewal of Conservatism by listening to Britain’s faith communities about what the previous government got wrong and what we need to do to put it right.’
letter from Dublin
400 women gather for Irish convention
Lois McCrea
Date posted: 1 Dec 2024
Over 400 women gathered for the sold-out annual Dublin Women’s Convention in late October.
Now in its 14th year, the convention is organised by a committee of women from churches within the Dublin Gospel Partnership. Women from all across the Republic of Ireland attended the convention to hear Jen Wilkin, US author and Bible-teacher, deliver three sessions on the attributes of God under the theme of ‘Behold our God, Worshipping Rightly Through Reverence and Imitation’.
Assisted suicide vote – evangelical reactions
Milla Ling-Davies
Date posted: 29 Nov 2024
Evangelicals are processing the news that assisted suicide is a significant step closer to being legalised in the UK.
Following its second reading, MPs voted 330 to 275 today in favour of Kim Leadbeater’s bill –The draft Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill – to legalise assisted suicide for people who have six months left to live, and who have mental capacity to make the choice.
politics & policy
We need more love for our politicians
David Burrowes
Date posted: 29 Nov 2024
Politics at least for the last eight years has been a tale of the unexpected, but what has sadly but not surprisingly been consistent has been the low view the public have for politicians.
In the league table of who you trust, politicians are always in the relegation zone, and this is matched by the growing disinterest and disdain for politics. But Christians, we have to do better and be distinctive in our view of politics, particularly when our politicians let us down.
‘Amazing’ event in Northern Ireland
en staff
Date posted: 29 Nov 2024
This year’s Northern Ireland Ministry Assembly has been described as ‘amazing’ by organisers on X (formerly Twitter). Jonty Rhodes and Jonathan Landry Cruse spoke on Haggai and Malachi.
Aiming to help preachers
The event was held at Maze Presbyterian Church, Lisburn. The website states: ‘The aim of the Northern Ireland Ministry Assembly is to encourage and help preachers to give themselves to the indispensable work of presenting the Lord Jesus Christ to believers and unbelievers, to all ages, and to all kinds of people. We seek to encourage a commitment to expository preaching.’
Outrage at offensive Debenhams Christmas gifts
Milla Ling-Davies
Date posted: 27 Nov 2024
Department store chain Debenhams is under fire for selling offensive ‘gay in a manger’ Christmas jumpers online.
Multiple complaints were sent into Debenhams after shoppers discovered a purple jumper and a matching mug emblazoned with the slogan ‘gay in a manger’. While initially it was claimed on X (formerly Twitter) that their customer service teams may have been deleting these emails without reading them, the department store has now removed the product from their website – though has issued no apology.
Assisted suicide: Pressure mounts on MPs
Nicola Laver
Date posted: 25 Nov 2024
Pressure is mounting on parliamentarians to oppose the new assisted dying bill in England and Wales. The draft Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill introduced by Kim Leadbetter is to be debated on 29 November – with a free vote taking place on the same day.
A Labour minister has warned this will not give time for the 38-page document to be sufficiently scrutinised in Parliament. Treasury minister Darren Jones said, given this is a Private Member’s bill, it will not get ‘anywhere near the same level of scrutiny and debate as the bills put forward by the government – and legalising assisted dying is far from a straightforward issue’.
Unity in Christ: Confessional Baptist Churches Association day
In a demonstration of our commitment to national association, a multiplicity of people from each of the churches gathered from as far as Liverpool to the marshes of South Kent for our second annual Association Day at Living Hope Bible Church in Lydd.
The morning was inaugurated by Pastor Nathan Tarrant’s message on chapter three of the Confession, on God’s Decree, covering God’s sovereignty, divine concurrence with second causes, the origin of evil, and monergistic salvation. This was followed up by Oliver Allmand-Smith’s one hour tour de force on Associationalism, looking at five biblically necessary elements of association from the Confession, Scripture, and Baptist history.
Conversion therapy ban could criminalise parents, warn 140 medics and MPs
Nicola Laver
Date posted: 25 Nov 2024
Parents could be criminalised under Labour's proposed conversion therapy ban, the Prime Minister has been warned, in a letter signed by 140 medics, parliamentarians and other individuals.
The government recently reiterated its determination to introduce a full, trans-inclusive ban on conversion practices. It has said it will be a ‘key immediate’ priority.
Social media is, er, um, what was it?
Darren Moore
Date posted: 23 Nov 2024
Chelmsford Presbyterian Church recently hosted the ‘Behold’ Conference, with speaker Nate Morgan-Locke, the self-described ‘Reformed Mythologist’ from evangelistic organisation Speak Life.
The term ‘Reformed Mythologist’ means he teaches about the intersection between storytelling, theology and culture.
Sex 'only for heterosexual marriage,' says possible Welby successor
en staff
Date posted: 21 Nov 2024
The Church of England’s lead bishop for the controversial ‘Living in Love and Faith’ (LLF) sexuality discussions – tipped by some as the next Archbishop of Canterbury – says he continues to believe sex is only for heterosexual marriage.
Martyn Snow, Bishop of Leicester, who is being touted as a possible successor to Justin Welby, answered ‘yes’ when pressed on the point in an interview with en. And he said Church of England evangelicals in the Alliance (the umbrella group of orthodox believers in the denomination) should not yet despair about their wishes for alternative structural provision being met.
Only Christ truly transforms inmates, says prison governor as she steps down
Emily Pollok
Date posted: 21 Nov 2024
Coming to faith in Christ is the only thing that really transforms people in prison, says a Christian ex-jail governor.
Susie Richardson, Jersey’s prison governor for the past three years, stepped down from her post last month, closing the chapter on a 20-year career in the prison system.
FIEC: ‘Resolved afresh to look to Jesus and love like Him’
Joel Murray
Date posted: 21 Nov 2024
All of church leadership is shepherding, as men and women in the church lead, care for, and love God’s flock in all manner of ways.
That is why, at the start of November, Blackpool became home to more than 1,000 church leaders for three days of the 2024 FIEC Leaders’ Conference: looking to Jesus, the Good Shepherd, and considering what it means to love like Jesus.
After Smyth, after Makin – how does evangelical culture need to change?
Nicola Laver
Date posted: 21 Nov 2024
The Makin Review into the horrific abuse carried out by John Smyth was always going to send shockwaves through the Church of England – and the evangelical world both within that denomination and beyond it. Smyth – QC, church reader and sadist – abused at least 115 children and young men over a period spanning some 50 years. Some later attempted suicide.
The report does not hold back. The victims’ accounts are harrowing; the failures of successive CofE leaders – including many evangelicals – from the top down are exposed. Makin could not be clearer: conservative evangelical culture facilitated Smyth’s abuse. His brutal proclivities were an open secret among a faction within the church who could have acted – but didn’t. The institution, its beliefs and reputation, were more important than the individuals being abused.
