"Members of the #BBC Board should not be political appointees, but should be appointed by a Select Committee or public body charged with ensuring that it represents the whole range of political opinions in the country, not just the current government."

Victoria Johnson reviews How Does God Act in the World? Science, miracle and mission (The Didsbury Lecture Series) by David Wilkinson 📚 #BookReview

📖 Philip Welsh reviews Finding the Wayfarer: Physical, spiritual and poetic survival by Emma Rose Barber #books #bookreviews

How do theological training institutions support ordinands who process information in less typical ways, and what is happening in the wider Church, asks Amelia Braddick ✍️ Read the full feature below 👇 #neurodiversity #neurodiverse #ordination #theologicalcollege #churchtimes

Playing the #piano is akin to having a second language in which to speak, think, and pray, writes Simon Parke #music

Latest #podcasts review: Azariah France-Williams on Journey Through Time, Telling Stories w/ Tom Thumb, @nomadpodcast.bsky.social, & The Profile 🎧

Take a look at our photo stories of the week 👇 📷 @archbishopofyork.org in the Hebron Hills #WestBank #Palestine 📷 #Remembrance #art installation 📷 Ground-breaking the world’s largest Christian monument

✉️ Read this week's Letters to the Editor ⬇️ This week’s topics include same-sex relationships, religious education, and the Quiet Revival

Clergy who want to do things differently can face resistance. What is the best way forward? Madeleine Davies investigates ✍️

A Christian vocation may mean a calling to the world of politics. Tim Wyatt talks to three #MPs whose faith is central to their work

Striking sayings or writings from the past week. Readers’ contributions welcome #quotes #quotesoftheweek

‘The Church of England has been served faithfully by gay clergy, not only for decades, but for centuries’

Emergency signal introduced at St Teresa de Ávila Episcopal Church, Illinois, which offers Spanish-language and bilingual church services each week

In this week's Notebook, Fergus Butler-Gallie ✍️ about his awe of church musicians, why he likes ‘I vow to thee, my country’, and a visit to Washington

Church #foodbanks in the United States are facing huge demand in the wake of the government shutdown caused by political disagreements over the federal budget. #trump #unitedstates #foodpoverty

A Christian vocation may mean a calling to the world of #politics. @tswyatt.bsky.social talks to three #MPs whose faith is central to their work #Labour #Conservatives #LiberalDemocrats

Beware of doctrinal development? Not if it is properly defined, argues Andrew Davison, Regius Professor of Divinity @ox.ac.uk, in this week's Analysis essay #doctrine #theology #FAOC

The #BBC needs to be free from political interference, says Paul Vallely

A court hearing about the ban on the administrative centre of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, which, Ukrainian authorities argue, remains tied to the Moscow Patriarchate, has been postponed once again #Ukraine #UkrainianOrthodoxChurch #MoscowPatriarchate

Teenage volunteers in #Hereford are being trained to give first aid and other help to people on weekend nights out who find themselves in need in the city.

"Christians will naturally argue that #Christmas has little to do with extravagant spending and material gifts. The pressures, however, are real and acutely felt" This week's Leader ⬇️

Twenty-three years since the closure of St Elisabeth’s, #Eastbourne, there are hopes that housing will be built on the site where the church was demolished in 2021.

The Church Army is to train its evangelists at the Community of the Resurrection, Mirfield, it was announced this week. #churcharmy #evangelism #mission

"The licence fee makes the #BBC vulnerable to political pressure in a peculiarly damaging way, not just from politicians." Read @seatrout.bsky.social's latest Viewpoint column 👇

Proposed changes to prison sentences are driven by politics and “pandering to public opinion”, and fail to look at the bigger, longer-term picture, the Bishop of Gloucester, the Rt Revd Rachel Treweek, has said #sentencingbill #houseoflords #bishopofgloucester #churchnews #churchtimes

Clergy who want to do things differently can face resistance. What is the best way forward? Madeleine Davies investigates #church #ministry

Rural and coastal communities continue to be disadvantaged by the Government’s use of urban-led funding formulas, research primarily funded by @diotruro.bsky.social warns #ruralpoverty #poverty #cornwall

The Church of England must move much faster in its efforts to overhaul #safeguarding, the Charity Commission reports. The current implementation of reform is being pursued with “insufficient urgency and pace”, it says. #charitycommission

A warning that the Prayers of Love and Faith (PLF) may have “a considerable unintended symbolic and theological impact” is among the cautionary notes sounded in a paper produced by the Faith and Order Commission #samesexblessing #samesexmarriage #churchofengland #bishops

Melancholy can be a source of wisdom, @malcolmguite.bsky.social reflects #poetscorner #poetry

As the Indian state of Bihar went to the ballot box on 6 and 11 November, its Christian population of about 129,000 — only 0.12 per cent of the population — faced growing fears. #india #BiharElection2025

A recent Supreme Court ruling in New Delhi has elicited responses of cautious optimism from the minority Christian community in India, who have long faced criminal cases under state-level anti-conversion laws. #India #NewDelhi #religiousfreedom

Sally Welch offers some practical advice about taking #funerals

The latest issue of the Church Times is out today 🗞️ A new paper produced by the #FAOC warns that the #PLF may have “considerable unintended symbolic and theological impact.”📝 And Wintershall Education is presenting its “Travelling Crib” to children in the #LambethPalace gardens. #nativity 🐑🎭

Online Advent Retreat 2025 Join us in preparation for Advent with the Bishop Guli Francis-Dehqani, the Very Revd Dr David Hoyle, the Revd Lucy Winkett; and the Revd Chris Russell Tickets: www.churchtimes.co.uk/o-com...

“We are here to be alongside you; we are here to show solidarity with you,” the Archbishop of York told the congregation at St Andrew’s, Ramallah, in the West Bank, on Sunday #gaza #palestine #westbank #archbishopofyork #churchnews #churchtimes

Converting to Christianity is “not like flicking a switch” but a gradual, often costly process that should not be held against asylum-seekers, the Bishop of London, the Rt Revd Sarah Mullally, has said #converts #asylumseekers #bishop #bishopoflondon #archbishopdesignate

Twenty London churches are now accredited as Living Wage Employers, the diocese has reported. This week is designated as #LivingWage Week, which the diocese has marked with a film featuring contributions from the accredited parishes #dioceseoflondon #livingwageweek #churchnews #churchtimes

The Constitution Bill 2023, which abolishes the Bishop of Sodor & Man’s vote in, but not membership of, the Legislative Council, the upper chamber of the Tynwald, passed its Final Reading there on Tuesday #Tynwald #sodorandman #bishopsvote #isleofman

Indigenous protesters at the #COP30 #climatesummit in #Brazil clashed with #UN security guards on Tuesday night after the group attempted to enter the conference “blue zone”, restricted to registered delegates #churchnews #churchtimes

More than 1500 primary-school children and teachers will experience the #nativity story though interactive workshops at #LambethPalace this week. #Christmas #Christmasstory

Indigenous protesters at the #COP30 #climatesummit in #Brazil clashed with #UN security guards on Tuesday night after the group attempted to enter the conference “blue zone”, restricted to registered delegates #churchnews #churchtimes

“Churches provide important roosting structures for bats, especially in more rural agricultural areas, but there are many questions to be answered, despite the positivity of the findings."

📖 Philip Welsh evaluates an ambitious course from smitf_london

📖 Peter Sedgwick reflects on a US perspective on Anglicanism

"It is right that we wear poppies for #remembrance. . . But, as we do that, we should perhaps allow ourselves to read between the lines of our war memorials — to see through the names, and to remember that the suffering and sacrifice of war is not limited to those lists." #RemembranceDay

The next lead bishop for #safeguarding in the #ChurchofEngland is to be the Bishop of Tewkesbury, in the diocese of Gloucester, the Rt Revd Robert Springett #safeguardingbishop #churchnews #churchtimes

📖 Jennie Hogan on help for female survivors of domestic abuse

What does your favourite #film say about you? Top on the list for Pope Leo, revealed by the Vatican on Monday before a special audience with Hollywood stars this weekend, is a mix of musicals, family drama, and moving comedy #films #favouritefilms #popeleo #itsawonderfullife

A pioneering technique that eliminated the need to dig up and rebuild the entire floor was used to lay the 400m² of heating pipes. The system heats only the first 3m of air, so that no heat vanishes into high roof voids #churchbuildings #churches #netzero