Displaying items by tag: United Kingdom

We are living in an age of unprecedented sexual revolution. Very quickly we have moved from acceptance and toleration of LGBT lifestyles to an active promotion of LGBT ideology by government agencies, schools, corporations, and even churches. Similarly, pornography has gone from being an underground sexual fetish to being publicised and even praised by mainstream media. But it remains an unseen and under-discussed root of the sexual revolution, damaging lives and relationships and creating addicts who feel trapped and unable to break free. There are porn addicts in most churches, if not in every church, as well as in schools, workplaces, and communities. At a conference on 29 - 30 January 2020, Christian Concern plan to discuss the roots of the sexual revolution and hear from speakers who have broken free from sex addictions or helped others to break free. If you wish to attend, or for more information, click the ‘More’ button. See also the next article, ‘Teenage morality’.

The relationships and sex education teaching in this country is lacking. The level of STDs amongst teenagers is at epidemic level, with the highest rate of infections amongst the 15-24 age group. We have the highest teenage pregnancy and abortion rates in western Europe, and a 4,500% increase in the number of children seeking gender reassignment treatment over the last few years. 80% are girls. Research published this year by YouGov states 16% of UK teenagers now identify as bisexual. In 2015 the number was 2%. Stonewall said it is great to see the increase in numbers since 2015, adding, ‘There’s still a lot to be done’. These statistics are the result of policies once designed to ‘protect’ children. Yet now, statements by the DfE and even its recently reissued FAQs show that the overriding aim is not protection, but the promotion and normalisation of LGBT behaviours and lifestyle choices.

Time to ‘leave our echo chambers’ and listen to others, said the Archbishops of Canterbury and York. ‘Stand up for the truth and challenge falsehoods when we hear them’. They are urging voters to ‘honour the gift of truth’ as they engage in political debate in the run-up to the general election. Their letter calls people to engage responsibly on social media and uphold the Christian values of truth, humility and love. ‘People who hold different political views are not our enemies,’ they say. The message also calls on Christians to reject the ‘language of prejudice’, particularly at a time when several groups - especially in Jewish and Muslim communities - feel threatened. Pray that debates will unite rather than divide, and bring us together to trust our institutions, politicians and our politics. See also the next article, on Anti-Semitism, politics and prayer.

Anti-Israel protesters in London have been screaming death threats at Jews in Arabic, and anti-Semitic activity is said to be active in the Labour Party. Jeremy Corbyn is being challenged in his own Islington North constituency by Yosef David, an Orthodox Jew, standing for the Brexit Party. Yosef works for a large Jewish charity and acknowledges that toppling Corbyn would be a miracle, but he is ‘highlighting the impact of the Labour anti-Semitism epidemic on the community. On 26 November Ephraim Mirvis, Britain’s most senior Jewish leader, accused Corbyn of allowing anti-Semitism to take root in the party, while Justin Welby agreed that British Jews felt much insecurity and fear, and added regretfully that the Church of England has had its own history of antisemitism. On the same day, hundreds of Christians aligned to Operation Breakthrough, Worldwide Mission Fellowship, and Prayer Warriors International spent time in prayer and repentance, focussing on the UK’s attitude towards Israel.

The Christmas Challenge is the UK's biggest online match funding campaign. Since 2008 it has helped raise over £98 million for thousands of charities. In 2018 it raised £13.3m for 589 participating charities. This year the challenge will be between 3 and 10 December. Every person who pledges a donation to one of the participating charities will have their gift matched by Christmas Challenge, so that every donation will make twice the impact on charities working to improve human rights, rescue animals, support the disabled, elderly and homeless, ending child slavery (International Justice Mission), caring for those in poverty (Salvation Army), and many more both at home and abroad.

Christian doctor David Mackereth, with over 26 years of experience, found that for upholding Biblical truth you can lose your job. A judge has ruled that his belief in Genesis 1:27 is ‘incompatible with human dignity’. The judge is saying that there is no protection in law for the Biblical belief that God made humans unchangeably male and female, putting Christian truth in the same category as racist and Neo-Nazi views. David held to what God says about men and women and his Christian views were not protected in a UK court of law. He lost his job for telling the truth, and now an Employment Tribunal has ruled against him. Christian Concern’s expert legal team has already started work to take this case to an appeal tribunal.

Recent incidents, being investigated by police, have caused concern among local residents that a Satanic-style cult could be to blame. A sheep was fatally stabbed and marked with pentagrams, while a heifer and two calves were found with stab wounds and were later treated by vets. Symbols, which included an inverted cross and the number 666, have also been sprayed onto the door of St Peter’s church. Rev David Bacon, the vicar at St Peter’s, has not seen anything like it in fifteen years. He said, ‘There’s been witchcraft round here for hundreds of years. The New Forest is well known for witchcraft and black magic happening, and this has obviously gone up a level.’

Three women a week are murdered by their current or ex-partner in the UK. One in five women has experienced sexual assault. There is a fashion today to reach for alternative facts when the truth is inconvenient. The truth is that violence against women still pervades society. With the emergence of social media, a vista of threatened violence has been unleashed online. Most of the harm against women has been effected in private, in the digital age cruelty is public and unashamed. Women are also bullied to frighten them away from public roles. The global White Ribbon campaign asks men not to commit violence against women. The Bishop of Tonbridge is calling on men to take a lead in ending violence towards women, and a series of events is taking place across the Diocese of Rochester to raise awareness of domestic abuse and highlight places of support for victims.

None of the possible outcomes of the election will bring immediate peace and tranquility in rural areas, where farmers and small businesses face continued uncertainty. Across the nation many are anxious and fearful, including candidates facing intimidation and death threats as well as anti-Semitism against the Jewish community. Pray that believers will search the scriptures, understand the times, and pray in accordance with God’s ways and will about these issues. Pray that Christians will shine as lights in the darkness and bring a message of trust against the fear and hope against despair. Pray for God’s mercy on our nation, which mostly does not acknowledge Him. Farmers also ask for urgent prayer for their industry: so much depends on our food production, and there is a serious disconnect between producer and consumer. Pray also about climate change, safety, mental health, and the need for a strong rural economy.

The Foreign Office has called on China to allow UN observers ‘immediate and unfettered’ access to China’s Xinjiang Uyghur autonomous region, after two leaks provided further evidence of mass arbitrary detentions. An estimated 1 to 3 million Muslim Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities are detained without charge in ‘political re-education’ camps. US media published 400+ pages of documents detailing widespread involvement of senior Chinese officials in these unprecedented mass detentions, where authorities use a scoring system to determine who can leave the camps. Also, the behaviour of relatives outside the camps can affect detainees’ chances of release. More documents were leaked by investigative journalists, similarly detailing mechanisms, guidelines and procedures behind the detentions in Xinjiang and the severity of conditions inside the camps. China claims that the camps are voluntary training centres to combat terrorism.