Comment > Opinion
Communion boycotts: prophetic or churlish?
A RECTOR in the diocese of Virginia, in the United States, the Revd Dr Cayce Ramey, has been causing a stir. Four years ago, he began a eucharistic “fast”, refusing to participate in holy communion, in an effort to draw…
Threats to the UK require strategic peacebuilding
TWO important government reviews were published in June: the Strategic Defence Review (SDR) and the National Security Strategy (NSS). Together, they make it clear that, in a context of far-reaching economic, political, and…
Residential training is still greatly needed
THERE were those in Roman times who thought that Christians practised cannibalism. It is easy to misjudge other groups about whom we know nothing. In the Church of England, not many people encounter the life and work of…
It is time to stop exploiting self-supporting ministers
SEVENTY years ago last Christmas, my newly married parents were evicted. Having suffered a miscarriage, my mum was pregnant again, and the Rector of Bridlington Priory, the un-eponymous Canon Lamb, decided that a growing…
Loss-and-damage fund is needed now to respond to climate disaster
ON WEDNESDAY, representatives of each of our faith communities will stand together in Westminster to say with a united voice to MPs that this is the moment for leadership that protects what matters most: our health, our…
Surrogacy serves the wealthy, not the poor
IN THE UK, women are free to give up nine months of their lives to carrying, gestating, and giving birth to a child that will never be theirs. For aspiring parents who cannot or will not conceive naturally, a surrogate can…
Iran’s choice: strategic patience or escalation?
THE world awaits the next steps in the war between Iran and Israel, after unprovoked Israel-US attacks, the first hits on Iran since 1980. An understanding of Iran’s religious and political history helps to shed light on how…
Strategy to tackle clergy shortage is needed
THE old saying “A parish can be no better than its priest” is open to doubt. What is not open to doubt is that the Church of England is facing something of a crisis in clergy numbers.In 2020, there were 591 ordinands,…
Neighbours, not foreigners
MARSHALL, his wife, and their three children are refugees. They sought asylum in the UK in 2020, and spent the next four years in asylum hotels. Today, they have been granted leave to remain, but their time in the asylum…
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