At last, thank God! This has been the cry from a number of people I’ve met this week, following the General Synod vote to allow women to be made Bishop
Author: blog
Integrity
Some of my early memories are of Rolf Harris in black and white when we only had the choice of BBC or ITV. Now he is in jail with his
Why were we so sure that England would win?
The evidence was against us. England has not won a Football World Cup since 1966. That’s 48 years of hoping and praying for a miracle! It was recognised that we
Walking in faith, hope and love
Some twenty years ago I went on sabbatical for three months from my churches in Cornwall, when I was working as a Methodist minister. The aim was to travel around
Greetings from Western Tanganyika
I bring you greetings from the Diocese of Western Tanganyika in Tanzania with whom we, as a diocese, are linked. I had been invited to preach at their ordination of
Finding a way to end this abuse
The Archbishop of Canterbury has changed his route back from India, so that he may pray with and give encouragement to the President of Nigeria as he works to rescue
Minimum wage v maximum wage
What do you think is a reasonable minimum wage? A lot depends on what you think is a good lifestyle. Running a car might be a luxury for some but
Using creativity for good
In 1714, the British government offered the Longitude Prize to the person who could come up with the means to allow sailors to know accurately where they were at sea.
European Elections: Indifferent or Engaged?
During the last few weeks I’ve been involved in trying to set up hustings for the European Elections. The political parties that we’ve spoken to have been hugely grateful that
Sometimes we are the solution
I suspect you will have seen a story like this before: An old man walked the beach at dawn, he noticed a young man ahead of him picking up starfish
Why do we go to church?
On the morning school run recently the following conversation occurred in our car… ‘Why do we go to church, Fynn?’ ‘To understand Mister God more.’ ‘Less.’ ‘Less what?’ ‘To understand
Positive Planning
My thoughts are taken up with the Joint Core Strategy between Tewkesbury Borough Council, Cheltenham Borough Council and Gloucester City to find sites to build 33,200 new homes in the
The End of the Race
The London Marathon is a huge event now in our sporting calendar. Literally thousands of runners attempt to conquer the 26 miles on London’s streets and many succeed. But the
Women: undervalued and at risk?
Last month saw the publication of a sobering report on violence (physical, sexual and psychological) against women by the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights. They found that “one third
Waiting in an instant response world
The disappearance of the Malaysian airline has taken the world by surprise. How can a plane just vanish? The world as we know it has never experienced such a bizarre
The case for more arguments!
I felt like cheering as I watched the televised debate between Nick Clegg and Nigel Farage over membership of the European Union. Yes, the arguments were well put. But actually,
Inspirational leader or subversive radical?
The death of Tony Benn last weekend has provoked a mixed response – some will mourn him as an inspirational and passionate speaker, others as a ‘national treasure’, and some
Carbon Fast for 40 days
Recently 12 boxes containing 3,000 booklets arrived on our doorstep. At first I felt overwhelmed by the task of distribution until our local vicar said: “You’ve still got time before
12 years a slave
Steve McQueen’s 12 years a slave won the best picture Oscar last week. I went to see it with my wife and afterwards found myself uncertain how to reply to
Who will stop me?
Recently, I have been reminded of a scene from The Fountainhead, Ayn Rand’s tribute to the creative freethinker. As the story opens, Howard Roark is being expelled from ArchitecturalSchool for
Whether the weather be wet
When at school I learnt the following: “Whether the weather be wet or fine, We will weather the weather whatever the weather, Whether we like it or not.” And we
End Hunger Fast
It is just over two weeks until Lent begins, traditionally a time of prayer and fasting, where we focus our minds and hearts on the centre of our faith; the
Paying for a decent education
“Education, education, education” was the cri de coeur of Tony Blair when he became Prime Minister, and apparently the present Education Secretary’s battle with the educational establishment was inspired in
Every cloud has a silver lining…
After more than a month, the Somerset Levels are still underwater. This kind of sight is becoming sadly more frequent, but it doesn’t make it any less devastating. I sat
