O Lord Jesus Christ, Who when on earth wast ever occupied about Thy Father’s business; grant that we may not grow weary in well-doing. Give us grace to do all in Thy Name; be Thou the beginning and the end of all; the pattern Whom we follow, the redeemer in Whom we trust, the master Whom we serve, the friend to Whom we look for sympathy. May we never shrink from our duty through any fear of man; make us faithful unto death: and bring us at last into the eternal presence, where with the Father and the Holy Ghost Thou livest and reignest for ever.

–Frederick B. Macnutt, The prayer manual for private devotions or public use on divers occasions: Compiled from all sources ancient, medieval, and modern (A.R. Mowbray, 1951)

My favourite Full Moon photo from this morning 🌝🙏🏻🥰
Ely, Cambridgeshire #FullMoon #SnowMoon #LovElyCathedral pic.twitter.com/ABdf7mS4ES

— Veronica in the Fens 🧚🏼‍♀️ (@VeronicaJoPo) February 5, 2023

The LORD reigns; he is robed in majesty; the LORD is robed, he is girded with strength. Yea, the world is established; it shall never be moved; thy throne is established from of old; thou art from everlasting.

–Psalm 93:1-2

Good morning 🌎🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 have a beautiful Sunday 💫✨🥰❤️.. leave you with this morning beautiful sunrise from the hills of Pitlochry #sunrise #Scotland #photo #goodmorning #nature @VisitScotland @StormHour @ThePhotoHour pic.twitter.com/cjoJ6Nld0l

— Dr.P_78Glasgow (@AbhaPaulina) February 5, 2023

O God, who by thy Spirit didst call Cornelius the Centurion to be the first Christian among the Gentiles: Grant to thy Church, we beseech thee, such a ready will to go where thou dost send and to do what thou dost command, that under thy guidance it may welcome all who turn to thee in love and faith, and proclaim the Gospel to all nations; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

Gerbrand van den Eeckhout (19 August 1621 – 29 September 1674) was an Dutch painter.Vertumnus and Pomona Vision of Cornelius the Centurion.Walters 372492 pic.twitter.com/EKJUyTtH3I

— Yiannis Einstein-Ιωάννης Αρβανιτάκης (@yianniseinstein) August 26, 2021

O Jesus, Master and Lord, pour into our hearts Thine own heroic love, that being filled with love we may know the love which passeth knowledge, and live in the unknown power of love to win men to trust in love, to the glory of God Who is Love.

–Frederick B. Macnutt, The prayer manual for private devotions or public use on divers occasions: Compiled from all sources ancient, medieval, and modern (A.R. Mowbray, 1951)

A pink morning. Minus 13C❄️Enjoy pic.twitter.com/BjmnOaxojs

— Anne Grete Hagby (@AHagby) February 4, 2023

Do not be deceived; God is not mocked, for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. For he who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption; but he who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. And let us not grow weary in well-doing, for in due season we shall reap, if we do not lose heart.

–Galatians 6:7-9

One of the most popular threads is birds in flight, I’m sure we have plenty to share so this mornings thread is birds in flight, I’ll start with this Red Kite near Leeds UK 🇬🇧 pic.twitter.com/Qo6tBkonGu

— Jeff’s Wildlife Photography (@sykesjeff) February 4, 2023

There has never been a visit like it and it has been years in the planning.

The first people to greet Pope Francis when he arrived in the South Sudanese capital were Archbishop Justin Welby and Moderator Rev Iain Greenshields, who both boarded the papal plane moments after it landed.

All three religious leaders were greeted with fanfare at Juba’s airport before travelling through singing, cheering and ululating crowds to the Presidential Palace.

“It is a circuitous journey, yet one that can no longer be postponed,” said Pope Francis, referring to delays in the trip caused by Covid, security concerns and the pontiff’s own health problems.

“I have come with two brothers, the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland. Together, stretching out our hands, we present ourselves to you and to this people in the name of Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace,” the Pope said.

But this trip comes at a time when long-term peace and stability in South Sudan seem a distant prospect. It’s people are suffering crushing poverty and have little hope in their political leaders.

Read it all.

Will the historic visit, by Pope Francis and other religious leaders, be a catalyst for change in South Sudan?https://t.co/EONAYWLLMI

— BBC News Africa (@BBCAfrica) February 3, 2023

The Next Steps Group of bishops met on Wednesday 01 February 2023.

The Next Steps Group of bishops are looking forward to listening and attending to Synod members’ reflections on LLF at General Synod next week. They noted that Synod members’ feedback about the draft Prayers of Love and Faith and the proposed new Pastoral Guidance will be instrumental in shaping the way that these two strands of work are taken forward and brought back to Synod in July 2023.

The group reiterated that the Prayers and the Guidance belong together. In particular, the Prayers will not be commended before the Pastoral Guidance has set out clear reassurances for clergy and laity in relation to being able to either offer or not offer the prayers. The Next Steps bishops welcome Synod’s participation in setting out what such reassurance might look like in practice and what approaches would be helpful to enable church communities to engage with one another well in relation to the opportunity these prayers offer.

Read it all.

This winter’s COVID-19 surge in the U.S. appears to be fading without hitting nearly as hard as many had feared.

“I think the worst of the winter resurgence is over,” says Dr. David Rubin, who’s been tracking the pandemic at the PolicyLab at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.

No one expected this winter’s surge to be as bad as the last two. But both the flu and RSV came roaring back really early this fall. At the same time, the most contagious omicron subvariant yet took off just as the holidays arrived in late 2022. And most people were acting like the pandemic was over, which allowed all three viruses to spread quickly.

So there were big fears of hospitals getting completely overwhelmed again, with many people getting seriously ill and dying.

But that’s not what happened.

Read it all.

This winter's U.S. COVID surge is fading fast, likely thanks to a 'wall' of immunity https://t.co/v9MVp6JWP0

— NPR Health News (@NPRHealth) February 3, 2023

According to a recent study from the Barna Group, 42 percent of pastors have given “real, serious consideration” to quitting full-time ministry. That number is higher for pastors under 45 years old and even higher for women (regardless of age). If 42 percent of pastors are seriously considering quitting, then no doubt most of the pastors reading this have at least thought about it. And if you’re a layperson, deacon, or elder, hear me now: there’s a good chance your pastor is thinking about quitting.

This column is not a call to take better care of your pastor or to take a special collection to send them on an uninterrupted vacation. As nice as vacations are—and I wonder how many “Pastors like Mai Tais, too!” T-shirts I could sell—a lack of vacation is not high on the list of burnout factors that pastors cite. In this season, clergy health requires something much more imaginative than “Here, go away.”

Pastors burn out for the same reasons engines do: they work too hard. Frontline care providers of all kinds are working too hard these days. One myth is that better engines can sustain the load, that clergy burnout is the result of weak or unfit clergy. But while it is true that some people have no business doing public ministry, the larger truth is that small, relatively weak engines can last hundreds of thousands of miles and perform incredibly well—with the right support. Both performance and lifespan depend largely on how much an engine has to compensate for systems around it that aren’t functioning well. And any pastor, whether they feel “built for this” or not, will be brought closer to burnout if they are performing most of the operational duties at a church themself.

When Barna asked pastors why they were considering quitting, the top two answers were “stress” and “feeling lonely and isolated” (with “political divisions” coming in a distant-but-meaningful third)

Read it all.

When one of Anskar’s followers suggested to him that he could work miracles he replied, ” Were I worthy of such a favour from my God, I would ask that He would grant to me this one miracle, that by His grace He would make of me a good man.” No one can read the “Life” written by Rimbert his disciple and successor which, after being lost for five hundred years, was fortunately rediscovered, without feeling moved to thank God for the accomplishment of the miracle for which Anskar had prayed. He was a good man in the best and truest sense of the term. In the character presented to us by his biographer we have a singularly attractive combination of transparent humility, unflinching courage, complete self devotion, and unwavering belief in a loving and overruling providence. The claim to the title Apostle of the North, which was early made on his behalf, rests not upon the immediate outcome of his labours, but upon the inspiring example which he bequeathed to those who were moved to follow in his steps. For whilst the Missions which lie planted in Denmark and Sweden during the thirty-three years of his episcopate were interrupted after his death by the desolating raids of the Northmen, those by whom the work was restarted gratefully recognised him as their pioneer.

Read it all.

Anskar, Bishop and Missionary to Denmark and Sweden
3 February 865

Anskar was a monk of Saxon family, born in 801. In 826, when King Harald of Denmark asked Charlemagne's successors for missionaries, Anskar led a group to Denmark, and a few years later to Sweden. pic.twitter.com/qMINutw2oU

— Jon Christenson, STS 🦬 ☕ (@Melanchthon61) February 3, 2023

Almighty and everlasting God, who didst send thy servant Anskar as an apostle to the people of Scandinavia, and dist enable him to lay a firm foundation for their conversion, though he did not see the results of his labors: Keep thy Church from discouragement in the day of small things, knowing that when thou hast begun a good work thou wilt bring it to a faithful conclusion; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

Today the Church of England celebrates Anskar, Archbishop of Hamburg, Missionary in Denmark and Sweden, 865 https://t.co/yalGhThx5A

Image: Panel painting of St Anskar (1457) by Hans Bornemann, in the Hauptkirche St. Petri, Hamburg. Photo: Lawrence OP, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0, via flickr pic.twitter.com/mUz05Qi98I

— The Anglican Church in St Petersburg (@anglicanspb) February 3, 2023

O Thou Lover of mankind, send down into our hearts that peace which the world cannot give, and give us peace in this world. O King of Peace, keep us in love and charity; be our God, for we have none other beside Thee; grant unto our souls the life of righteousness, that the death of sin may not prevail against us, or against any of Thy people.

–Frederick B. Macnutt, The prayer manual for private devotions or public use on divers occasions: Compiled from all sources ancient, medieval, and modern (A.R. Mowbray, 1951)

Standing on the windswept heights of the #peakdistrict gritstone edges, looking over the endless slopes rolling out below, you get a wonderful sense of how vast this area is – and how tiny and brief you are. pic.twitter.com/LpkHhTbmyj

— peaklass (@peaklass1) February 3, 2023

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

–Galatians 5:22-24

The sunrise was spectacular today! It’s a cold one out there! Coast Guard beach, Eastham, Cape Cod. #capecod #StormHour #sunrise pic.twitter.com/YOzQ0gS44U

— Darius Aniunas (@dariusaniunas) February 3, 2023

(Via email) Issued by the Global South Fellowship of Anglican Churches
STATEMENT – FEBRUARY 2, 2023

By the Primate of South Sudan & Chairman of Global South Fellowship of Anglican Churches on the upcoming ‘Pilgrimage of Peace’

HE Primate of South Sudan, the Most Rev Justin Badi, who is also the Chairman of the Global South Fellowship of Anglican Churches (GSFA), joyfully participates in the ‘Pilgrimage of Peace’ this coming weekend, in which the Government of his country has invited The Pope, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, and the Moderator of the Church of Scotland, the Rev Dr Iain Greenshields, to come together and to pray for peace.

However, the Primate says his warm participation does not in any way diminish his biblical views on marriage or sexuality….

South Sudan is currently going through a civil war, persistent floods have destroyed homes and livelihoods, food shortages are widespread, and millions of South Sudanese people are displaced. Archbishop Badi said: “We appreciate these Christian world leaders for their prayers, and their tireless efforts under the most challenging circumstances, to engage the world in the immense need to stand with the South Sudanese people. We pray their visit will remind us as South Sudanese people to repent of our own spirit of violence and mistrust, and to recommit ourselves to true reconciliation, justice and peaceful co-existence.”

During the weekend, the four religious leaders shall be present for a major prayer event at which a congregation of around 60,000 is expected. They will be praying for peace in the land and the well-being of her people.

Archbishop Badi affirms and values the ‘Pilgrimage of Peace’ and shall offer generous Christian hospitality to the invited world and national religious leaders. However, he says his involvement as the Provincial Anglican leader in the country does not, in any way, diminish his views on marriage or sexuality as outlined, in full, in the Global South Fellowship of Anglican Churches’ Communique, published at the conclusion of the Lambeth Conference in England in the summer of 2022.

Archbishop Badi, and the leaders of the GSFA will be earnestly praying for the outcome of the Motion on Living in Love and Faith before the General Synod of the Church of England this coming week, 6-9 Feb 2023. The views of the GSFA on the recommendations of the House of Bishops have been expressed in the GSFA Press Release of 24 Jan 2023. The GSFA is poised to follow through on the implications of the critical Synod vote, and seeks a good outcome both for the Church of England, and the world-wide Anglican Communion.

Latest #News: GSFA challenges Welby's role as "Instrument of Unity." @AnglicanCouncilhttps://t.co/HMNtDezORL

— The Living Church (@Livng_Church) January 26, 2023

Lambeth Palace has expressed dismay at reports that the Archbishop of Canterbury told MPs that he would rather see the Church of England disestablished than split the Anglican Communion over the issue of same-sex marriage.

Archbishop Welby made the remarks in a private meeting with parliamentarians on Monday. The Church Times understands that it was put to Archbishop Welby that the Church of England’s current position on same-sex marriage was incompatible with its established status, and that the Archbishop replied that he would rather that the Church lost that status than exclude conservative groups in the Anglican Communion. The remarks reportedly were met with some surprise.

A spokesman for Lambeth Palace did not deny that the Archbishop had made a comment of this nature, but said: “We do not recognise the account of the private discussion as it has been leaked, which was much more nuanced and complex than how it has been described.

“The Archbishop agreed to meet for a private conversation with MPs, and it’s disappointing that some parliamentarians have chosen not to honour the terms of the meeting.”

Read it all (registration or subscription).

Lambeth Palace has expressed dismay at reports that the Archbishop of Canterbury told MPs that he would rather see the Church of England disestablished than split the Anglican Communion over the issue of same-sex marriage https://t.co/D1oa7l9GWr

— Church Times (@ChurchTimes) February 2, 2023

On his second day in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Pope Francis told Catholics to go beyond ethnic and regional divides in fostering peace, and stressed forgiveness and conversion in overcoming violence and divisions currently tearing apart the country with Africa’s largest Catholic population.

He stressed the need to forgive even those who perpetrate violence, and called those who responsible for the country’s decades-long war to conversion.

Speaking during his Feb. 1 public Mass in Kinshasa, the pope said Christians “are called to be missionaries of peace,” insisting that “it is a decision we have to make.”

“We need to find room in our hearts for everyone; to believe that ethnic, regional, social and religious differences are secondary and not obstacles; that others are our brothers and sisters, members of the same human community; and that the peace brought into the world by Jesus is meant for everyone,” he said.

Read it all.

On his 2nd day in the #DRC, #PopeinCongo told Catholics to go beyond ethnic/regional divides in fostering peace & stressed forgiveness & conversion in overcoming violence & divisions tearing apart the country w Africa’s largest #Catholic population https://t.co/R4ULaov55r

— Elise Ann Allen (@eliseannallen) February 1, 2023

The brave new world Aldous Huxley describes in his novel of that title features the “feelies”. In 1932, its year of publication, movies were turning into talkies. Feelies must have seemed a logical, if creepy, extension of that. The book alludes to a film at a local theatre with a love scene on a bearskin rug, in which the sensation of every hair of the bear is reproduced.

The feelies have still not arrived. But people are working on them. In computer games and virtual reality (vr), two heirs to cinema’s role in light entertainment, practitioners of the discipline of haptics are attempting to add a sense of touch to those of vision and hearing, to increase the illusion of immersion in a virtual world. In future, they hope, if you reach out to pluck an apple from a tree in such a paradise, your hand will no longer go through it. You will, rather, be able to feel and grasp the fruit, if not actually eat it. Conversely, if it is a paradise lost you are in, and a baddy hiding behind the apple tree shoots you, you will feel the bullet’s impact.

To experience all this a user will wear haptic clothing. The ambitious talk of whole-body haptic suits, but in the case of the apple, the tree and the gunman haptic gloves and a haptic vest would suffice. Moving a gloved hand creates corresponding movement of a user’s virtual hand, with sensations appropriate to objects “touched” being fed back via devices called haptic actuators, incorporated into the glove. Haptic vests similarly stimulate parts of the upper body.

Read it all.

In computer games and virtual reality (VR), those working on haptics are attempting to add a sense of touch to increase the illusion of immersion in a virtual world https://t.co/KApOqiInVz

— The Economist (@TheEconomist) February 2, 2023

‘The blessed Mary offered her sacrifice to God with the child, as it was appointed in God’s law. It was so appointed in the old law, by God’s command, that those who could afford it should bring a lamb of one year old with their child, as an offering to God, and a pigeon or a turtle-dove. But if any woman were so poor that she could not obtain those things, then she should bring two young pigeons or two turtle-doves.

This smaller offering was offered for Christ, that is, the birds, which were the offerings of the poor. The Almighty Son of God was very mindful of our needs in all things; not only did he choose to become man for us, though he was God, but he also chose to become needy for us, though he was mighty, so that he might give us a portion in his kingdom and communion with his divinity. A lamb betokens innocence and the greater kind of goodness; but if we are so wretched that we cannot offer to God that greater goodness, then we should bring him two turtle-doves or two young pigeons; that is, a twofold burgeoning of awe and love. A person experiences this burgeoning in two ways: first, he dreads the torments of hell, and mourns for his sins; then afterwards he feels love to God, and he begins to murmur, and it seems to him too long a time until he shall be taken from the afflictions of this life, and brought to eternal rest.’

Read it all.

Mary and Joseph with the sacrifical doves and Anna and Simeon with the Christ child at the Presentation in the Temple, details of glass by Burlison & Grylls, 1919 at Harringworth, Northamptonshire. Today is Candlemas, the feast of the Presentation. pic.twitter.com/NeakzSiPH6

— Simon Knott (@last_of_england) February 2, 2023

Almighty and everliving God, we humbly beseech thee that, as thy only-begotten Son was this day presented in the temple, so we may be presented unto thee with pure and clean hearts by the same thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord; who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.

Today's #Candlemas, which falls on 40th day after Christmas, when Christians remember infant Jesus' presentation in temple & Simeon called him 'a light for the nations'. #OTD, some churches bless candles that are to be used in coming year. May Christ's light shine in our hearts. pic.twitter.com/L2BWkgH1jx

— St Paul’s Finchley (@StPaulsFinchley) February 2, 2023

O Holy Spirit, Who abhorrest all uncleanness and rejoicest and delightest to dwell in pure and innocent hearts: I beseech Thee by Thy mercies that, as I owe to Thy loving-kindness this glorious treasure which I carry in an earthen vessel, so I may keep it safe by Thy goodness, and daily pleasing Thee more and more with undefiled soul and body, may come to that life which knows no corruption, in which Thou livest and reignest with the Father and the Son.

–Frederick B. Macnutt, The prayer manual for private devotions or public use on divers occasions: Compiled from all sources ancient, medieval, and modern (A.R. Mowbray, 1951)

Todays sunrise on Glastonbury Tor required patience. Will the light win? It did for a few moments. ⛅ pic.twitter.com/qegsmta2JA

— Michelle Cowbourne (@Glastomichelle) February 2, 2023

For freedom Christ has set us free; stand fast therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery. Now I, Paul, say to you that if you receive circumcision, Christ will be of no advantage to you. I testify again to every man who receives circumcision that he is bound to keep the whole law. You are severed from Christ, you who would be justified by the law; you have fallen away from grace. For through the Spirit, by faith, we wait for the hope of righteousness. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision is of any avail, but faith working through love. You were running well; who hindered you from obeying the truth? This persuasion is not from him who calls you. A little leaven leavens the whole lump. I have confidence in the Lord that you will take no other view than mine; and he who is troubling you will bear his judgment, whoever he is. But if I, brethren, still preach circumcision, why am I still persecuted? In that case the stumbling block of the cross has been removed. I wish those who unsettle you would mutilate themselves! For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love be servants of one another. For the whole law is fulfilled in one word, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” But if you bite and devour one another take heed that you are not consumed by one another.

–Galatians 5:1-15

A beautiful new morning! Today’s sunrise at the Nauset Lighthouse, Eastham – Cape Cod National Seashore. #capecod #sunrise #StormHour pic.twitter.com/1brPK7m996

— Darius Aniunas (@dariusaniunas) February 2, 2023

For the first time in census history, the average age of people who identify as a Christian in England and Wales is over 50.

New data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) reveals the median age of people who describe themselves as “Christian” in 2021 was 51, an increase from 45 in the 2011 census.

Those who identified as “Christian” had the oldest average age out of the main religions in the country, with Muslims having the youngest average age of 27.

Danny Webster, director of advocacy at the Evangelical Alliance told Premier he thinks the way people label themselves has a lot to do with the way the figures have panned out.

Read it all.

Africa’s largest economy, Nigeria, is in the process of introducing new banknotes for the first time in more than 20 years. The move is an attempt to reignite confidence in the currency, the naira, which is under severe pressure. With inflation at more than 20%, people are struggling to cope with the rising cost of living. It is leading to the largest exodus of young professionals in years.

“Imagine going to the grocery store one day, and everything has tripled in price? How do you even cope? You have a family at home. What do you cut out of the budget?” Oroma Cookey Gam tells me by Zoom, her face incredulous.

The fashion designer left Nigeria’s biggest city, Lagos, with her young family a year ago for the UK capital, London. Her husband and business partner Osione, an artist, was granted a Global Talent visa, which enables leaders in academia, arts and culture, as well as digital technology to work in the UK.

She says it had become too expensive to raise their young family in Lagos. “Our money was buying us less and less. We weren’t able to pay our bills, we weren’t able to do normal things that we were doing.”

Oroma studied law at the UK’s University of Northumbria and moved back to Nigeria almost 20 years ago, keen to use her degree to help develop her country. Along with Osione, she eventually set up This Is Us, a sustainable fashion and lifestyle brand that uses local materials and artisans, including cotton grown and dyed in northern Nigeria.

Read it all.

Important piece.

“Despite having one of the largest health workforces on the continent, Nigeria's skilled health workforce density is only 1.95/1,000 population, well below the recommended benchmark”.

On brain drain @MayeniJones https://t.co/O9banuAPIw

— Ashis Basu (@BasuAshis) January 31, 2023

For the stringent materialist, everything I’ve just described is reasonable as long as it’s understood to be playacting, experience hunting, artistic experimentation. Only when it becomes serious does it offend against rationality.

However, stringent materialism is itself a weird late-modern superstition, and the kind of experimentation I’m describing is actually far more rational than a life lived as though the universe is random and indifferent and human beings are gene-transmission machines with an illusion of self-consciousness.

Yes, plenty of New Age and woo-woo practices don’t make any sense or lead only unto pyramid schemes; there are traps for the credulous all over. But the basic pattern of human existence and experience, an ordered and mathematically beautiful cosmos that yields extraordinary secrets to human inquiry and supplies all kinds of wild spiritual experiences even in our allegedly disenchanted age (and even sometimes to professional skeptics), makes a general openness to metaphysical possibilities a fundamentally reasonable default. And this is especially true if you have no theological tradition, no religious upbringing to structure your encounter with the universe’s mysteries — if you’re starting fresh, as many people nowadays are.

But precisely because an attitude of spiritual experimentation is reasonable, it’s also important to emphasize something taught by almost every horror movie but nonetheless skated over in a lot of American spirituality: the importance of being really careful in your openness and not just taking the beneficence of the metaphysical realm for granted.

Read it all.

My Wednesday column: Be Open to Spiritual Experience. Also, Be Really Careful:https://t.co/zkkGJh4JPw

— Ross Douthat (@DouthatNYT) February 1, 2023

More Americans name the government as the nation’s top problem in Gallup’s latest poll, which encompassed the rocky start of the 118th Congress’ term. With high prices persisting, inflation remains the second most-cited problem (15%), and amid elevated tensions about the southern U.S. border, illegal immigration edged up three percentage points to 11%. Mentions of the economy in general fell six points, to 10%, the lowest reading in a year.

The poll’s Jan. 2-22 field period included the four-day, 15-vote process in which Republicans, who now hold a slim majority in the U.S. House of Representatives, ultimately elected Kevin McCarthy to be Speaker of the House. Revelations about classified government documents from 2009 to 2017 found in President Joe Biden’s private office and home also surfaced while the poll was in the field. Although mentions of the government as the nation’s top problem rose six points this month to 21%, job approval ratings of Biden (41%) and Congress (21%) remained flat.

The government ranks as the top problem for both Republicans and Republican-leaning independents (24%) and Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents (18%). Inflation and immigration are each cited by 18% of Republicans, while mentions of inflation (11%), the economy in general and race relations (9% each) trail the government among Democrats. Democrats are more likely than Republicans to view unifying the country and the environment as top problems.

Read it all.

More Cite Gov't as Top U.S. Problem; Inflation Ranks Second https://t.co/Gie0ExDGc5

— Living Without Lust/Jay Haug Executive Director (@LWLorg) January 31, 2023

Everliving God, we rejoice today in the fellowship of thy blessed servant Brigid, and we give thee thanks for her life of devoted service. Inspire us with life and light, and give us perseverance to serve thee all our days; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who with thee and the Holy Spirit liveth and reigneth, one God, world without end.

St Brigid of #Kildare or 'Bride', as the medieval English saw her.

On her feast #otd of 1 Feb.

(Bodleian Tanner Ms 17, fol. 13v, South English Legendary, 1100-1500.
Bodleian Libraries, University of Oxford)#LaFheileBride #StBrigidsDay pic.twitter.com/EBMIQHzELK

— John McCafferty (@jdmccafferty) February 1, 2023

O thou who in the days of thy humiliation didst command the winds and waves, and they obeyed thee: Do thou so dwell within us, that we may be safe from all dangers, and steadfast in all temptations; and evermore keep us in thy peace, for thy holy name’s sake.

‘Porth Ysgo’ 😄🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿
Llun i godi calon ar fora cymylog!
Cheer up photo on a cloudy morning!@carolvorders @AledHall @hooson21 @Ruth_ITV @ItsYourWales @bootlegger1974 @StormHour @ThePhotoHour @hawley_caroline @RealShanCothi @HCynwal @sianharries_ pic.twitter.com/MjUdi6neDW

— Llelo Gruffudd (@Llelo2801) February 1, 2023

Tell me, you who desire to be under law, do you not hear the law? For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by a slave and one by a free woman. But the son of the slave was born according to the flesh, the son of the free woman through promise. Now this is an allegory: these women are two covenants. One is from Mount Sinai, bearing children for slavery; she is Hagar. Now Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia; she corresponds to the present Jerusalem, for she is in slavery with her children. But the Jerusalem above is free, and she is our mother. For it is written,

“Rejoice, O barren one who does not bear;
break forth and shout, you who are not in travail;
for the children of the desolate one are many more
than the children of her that is married.”

Now we, brethren, like Isaac, are children of promise. But as at that time he who was born according to the flesh persecuted him who was born according to the Spirit, so it is now. But what does the scripture say? “Cast out the slave and her son; for the son of the slave shall not inherit with the son of the free woman.” So, brethren, we are not children of the slave but of the free woman.

–Galatians 4:21-31

Good morning from Robin Hoods Bay

📸 IG/ascotography pic.twitter.com/wneWSvyarp

— Love North Yorkshire (@LoveNorthYorks1) February 1, 2023

I have been fully involved with the Church of England’s Living in Love and Faith process since it began. As an Anglican ethicist, I was invited to be a member of the theology and ethics working group, one of several groups set up to resource and inform the project. After the LLF resources were produced, I became a member of the Bristol diocese LLF reference group, and led an LLF course at Trinity College Bristol, where I am the principal.

I have participated in good faith in the process, trusting that this was an opportunity for people across the Church to work together to try to find a way forward that was “founded in scripture, in reason, in tradition, in theology and the Christian faith as the Church of England has received it”, as the Archbishop of Canterbury put it when launching the project in 2017.

But this is not just an academic matter for me. I also write as one of the minority of LGBT people who believe that the current teaching of the Church is true and good for us and should not change. (You can find out more about my story here).

Following the LLF process, the bishops of the Church of England have now published proposals for prayers for couples in committed relationships, including same-sex couples. The Church of England’s General Synod will soon be voting on whether or not to welcome the bishops’ proposals.

As a member of that Synod, I am not able to welcome them as they currently stand, and I want to share my concerns about the proposals. I do this in a spirit of genuine dialogue. There may be things I have misunderstood or overlooked, and I hope I can be corrected where I am wrong.

My concerns are as follows….

Read it all.

8 reasons why Sean Doherty, a same-sex attracted Christian, believes the CofE’s same-sex proposals won’t work:https://t.co/EKhHUAowIW

— Premier Christianity (@Christianitymag) January 31, 2023

Here is the NBC blurb–‘Colorado hiker Ruth Woroniecki plunged 200 feet in California’s San Gabriel Mountains and had to hike with a broken neck to reach the rescue helicopter. NBC News’ Steve Patterson has more details on the extraordinary story.’

Watch it all and note the faith reference at the end.