Super User
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur
Over 200 church leaders from a range of Welsh churches met recently in Newtown to collaborate on evangelising the nation. The gathering was hosted by Waleswide, a network of evangelical churches which works with leaders to see churches established especially where there is no evangelical church presence, and where churches need to be strengthened in their effectiveness. David Ollerton, Chairman of Waleswide said: 'The people who gathered all had a common cause to see Jesus honoured in Wales and for churches to reflect Him. The greatest challenge facing church leaders in Wales is to develop intentional Gospel communities, new churches, or within alreadyexisting ones, that are more interested in reaching out to people with few or no Christian links instead of maintaining existing structures.’ A poll of over 260 Welsh church leaders found that during the first decade of this millennium 5,728 people became Christians in their churches.
Pray: for God to empower His church in Wales (and throughout the UK) so that more people will hear and receive the Gospel message. (Ac.16:5)
The pastor of one of the largest churches in Britain has challenged Ken Livingstone over his claim that he will make London a ‘beacon of Islam’. Colin Dye, the senior pastor of Kensington Temple church, has written a letter to London mayoral candidate Ken Livingstone following his controversial comments on Islam last month. In a speech at the North London Central Mosque, Mr Livingstone told the audience that he was determined to ‘educate the mass of Londoners’ about Islam. ‘I want to spend the next four years making sure that every non-muslim in London knows and understands its words and message. That will help to cement our city as a beacon that demonstrates the meaning of the words of the Prophet’, he said. Running for mayor for the fourth time, Mr Livingstone spoke to assembled Muslims at the controversial mosque and described Mohammed’s words in his last sermon as ‘an agenda for all humanity.’ (See Prayer Alert 12-2012)
Pray: that Colin Dye’s letter will challenge Mr Livingstone’s ideas and remind him of our Christian roots. Mt.15:13)
A church in Aberdeen was blocked from holding a Sunday service in a hotel function room because of the church’s beliefs about sex and marriage. The Gilcomston Church has recently broken away from the Church of Scotland in opposition to the ordination of gay clergy. They had booked a function room at the Copthorne Hotel in Aberdeen to hold their first Sunday service as an independent church on 10 March. Hotel management broke off the agreement after it received complaints because of the church’s beliefs. Rev Smart said: ‘So much for the tolerant society. We were just going to have a church service.’ The Gilcomston Church has now come to an amicableagreement to lease its old church building, until they can find a permanent venue so it no longer needs to hire a hotel function room.
Pray: that secular political correctness will not stop Christians from worshipping in differing ways. (Jn.17:23)
More: http://www.christian.org.uk/news/church-hounded-from-hotel-over-its-traditional-beliefs/
Church and other faith leaders came together this week for a vigil to mark the close of '100 Days of Peace' in London.
The 12-hour vigil was held at St Martin in the Fields church and was attended by the Bishop of London, Dr Richard Chartres, and the Archbishop of Westminster Vincent Nichols. It also marked the start of the Olympic Truce 50 days before the start of the Games in London. The tradition of a truce before the Olympics goes back thousands of years to Ancient Greece when it guaranteed the safe passage of competitors and visitors to the competition. The vigil was organised by Westminster Justice and Peace, with St Martin in the Fields and the London Church Leaders' Group. Faith groups were invited to pray over 100 days for peace in the capital, and to build a peace legacy for London after the Olympic Truce ends on 28 October.
Pray: for the Olympic Truce to be respected by all and that it will have a lasting legacy beyond the 100 days. (Ecc.3:8)
More: http://www.christiantoday.co.uk/article/church.holds.vigil.for.olympic.truce/30076.htm
CSAN, the social action arm of the Catholic Church in England and Wales, has come out in opposition to the Prime Minister's plans to introduce more cuts to child and housing benefits. David Cameron announced on Monday that housing benefit would no longer be available for under-25s, while child benefit payments would be limited to families with no more than three children. CSAN said it was ‘extremely concerned’ by the proposals and their impact on families already affected by a cap on the size of their homes and an overall benefit cap. ‘Child benefit exists to provide for the basic needs of children; imposing limitations on the basis of family size will inevitably deprive children from larger families of essential support,’ it said. A spokesperson for Depaul UK, the largest national youth homelessness charity added: ‘80,000 young people become homeless every year. The majority of these become homeless because of family breakdown.’
Pray: that the authorities would consider the needs of all children and families and not cap benefits just to save money. (1Pet.5:2)
More: http://www.christiantoday.com/article/church.hits.out.at.proposed.welfare.cuts/30146.htm
The Church of Scotland has launched a radical new regeneration programme to boost some of the poorest parts of the country. The Chance to Thrive project will work with eight communities on development initiatives over the next five years. The Church says the onus of the project will be on the hopes of the people, rather than buildings. It wants to support local people in bringing about long-term change through their own ideas rather than ‘having ideas imposed from outside’. Communities will be supported by a panel of volunteers with relevant experience as entrepreneurs, community workers, business planners, artists and architects. It is hoped that the projects will lead to the development of major new and sustainable church-based community facilities. ‘Over the last decade the Church of Scotland has doubled its commitment to Scotland’s poorest neighbourhoods.’
Pray: that this move by the Church of Scotland would lead to long-term change to some of the neediest people. (Dt.15:11)
More: http://www.christiantoday.com/article/church.helping.scotlands.poorest.communities.thrive/28806.htm
Sentamu may not be welcomed or applauded for it, but the Archbishop of York said on Tuesday that the Church of England must continue to shape the debate on Britain’s moral order and proclaim the good news to the nation. In his presidential address to the General Synod in London, Dr Sentamu said the ‘urgent conviction’ of the Church’s calling to proclaim the Good News of the Kingdom of God must underpin its work. He admitted that there was a ‘pressing need’ to equip the Church ‘confidently to discharge that calling’ in the face of the economic uncertainty, high levels of unemployment, the widening gap between rich and poor. The Archbishop spoke of the need to ‘assert the value and importance of the contribution of trust in God to our national life. We must actively continue to seek to influence the terms of the national debate on key issues affecting our society,’ he said. Pray: that the Church would claim the moral ground and proclaim the good news. (Pr.2)
The Methodist Church has criticised the Government's ‘responsibility deal’ to tackle alcohol abuse, saying that it prioritises the drinks industry over the vulnerable. Rachel Lampard, Public Issues Team Leader for the Methodist Church, said:’ We are totally unconvinced that the Government’s proposed ‘responsibility deal’ on alcohol regulation will be effective in reducing the problem of harmful drinking.’ The deal covers voluntary agreements with the drinks industry on matters such as promotions and labelling. Six medical organisations, including the BMA and Alcohol Concern, have walked away from this deal on the grounds that it favours the drinks industry, and places no limits on pricing or advertising. ‘We have an opportunity to reverse the devastating effects of years of under-regulation of the drinks market. If the Government means to keep its promises around harm reduction, alcohol policy should be informed strongly by medical evidence and not sidelined by the pressures of the industry.’ Pray: that the needs of the consumer, especially the vulnerable will take priority over commercial profit. (Lk.21:34) More: http://www.methodist.org.uk/index.cfm?fuseaction=opentogod.newsDetail&newsid=494
Five denominations have formed a coalition to raise their shared concerns with the three main parties during conference season. The coalition is formed of senior leaders from the Baptist Union of Great Britain, the Methodist Church, the Quakers, the Salvation Army and the United Reformed Church. They hope to keep the Government’s Big Society initiative, affordable housing and poverty on the agenda when they attend the conferences of the Liberal Democrat, Labour and Conservative parties during September and October. These denominations are encouraging members of the public to attend the fringe events that they and Christian political fellowships are staging alongside each of the conferences. The Rev Martyn Atkins, General Secretary of the Methodist Conference said: ‘Some people believe that politicians don’t ‘do God’ and that the churches shouldn’t get involved in political life. Our delegation demonstrates that the churches value the vocation of those who work to improve our society through political life’. Pray: that our politicians will take into account our Christian values when planning change. (Ps.103:6) More: http://www.christiantoday.com/article/churches.form.coalition.at.party.conferences/26752.htm
Ministering to children’s spirituality is a core function for the Church rather than a luxury add-on, argues Dr Rebecca Nye in ‘Children's Spirituality’, a new book from the Church of England’s official publishers. Local churches have a crucial role in listening to children’s verbal and non-verbal expressions of spiritual searching and wonder, and must be careful in how they use ‘teaching’ methods to ensure they do not inadvertently stifle long-term spiritual development, she says. Alister McGrath, Head of the Centre for Theology, Religion and Culture at King's College, London, describes the book as ‘a powerful reaffirmation and exploration of the importance of childhood spirituality for the ministry and mission of the Church, which will be welcomed by all working in this field.’ Dr Nye argues that children’s capacity for exploring faith is significant and that churches should be more concerned with nurturing children’s ways of ‘being with and knowing God’, rather than the transmission of religious knowledge.
Pray: for churches to place children at the heart of their ministry nurturing their spiritual growth. (Ep.6:4)