In the month since the presidential election, many in the American Jews have been in mourning over Donald Trump’s victory. For all too many Jews and the organizations that purport to represent Jewish interests, partisan disappointment has led to a great deal of loose and highly irresponsible comparisons of our present situation to Weimar Germany and the rise of Hitler. It is in that context that a new report from the Community Security Service (CSS) about terrorist incidents and attacks on Jews and Israelis in the United States since 1967 is critical reading for those who wish to re-focus the Jewish community on real rather than imagined threats to its security.

The report, which was written by Yehudit Barsky, one of the top experts on radical hate groups in the country, provides a comprehensive analysis of the recent history of anti-Semitism in the United States. She paints a frightening picture of the rising toll of violence against Jews from two distinct sources: white supremacists and radical Islamists. But more than just seeking to scare Jews about these threats, the CSS has some conclusions and recommendations that should be taken to heart.

This serves as a reminder that for all of the talk about Islamophobia, both before and after the election, Jews and Jewish institutions remain the main targets of religious-based hate crimes in this country. This is a fact borne out by the FBI’s annual reports on hate crimes. The latest available report is from 2014 and that one, like every other issued since the outset of such compilations confirms this fact. In that year, 58.1 percent of all religious hate crimes in this country were directed at Jews. Only 16.3 percent were anti-Islamic.

Read it all.

The UK today became the first country to adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of anti-Semitism.

Theresa May said that the definition “means there will be one definition of anti-Semitism ”“ in essence, language or behaviour that displays hatred towards Jews because they are Jews ”“ and anyone guilty of that will be called out on it.”

The definition states: “Anti-Semitism is a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews. Rhetorical and physical manifestations of anti-Semitism are directed toward Jewish or non-Jewish individuals and/or their property, toward Jewish community institutions and religious facilities.”

The term was agreed during IHRA Plenary meetings held in Bucharest from 23-26 May this year. IHRA Chair, Ambassador Mihnea Constantinescu, stated at the time that by adopting a working definition, “the IHRA is setting an example of responsible conduct for other international fora and hopes to inspire them also to take action on a legally binding working definition.”

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Another bombing in a Coptic Orthodox sanctuary in Egypt, with at least 25 dead and that stunning number is expected to rise.

People, please allow me to speak as an Orthodox Christian for a moment. During recent years, it has been hard not to dwell on the hellish stories coming out of Iraq and Syria, with the Islamic State crushing Christians, Yazidis, traditional Muslims and members of other religious minorities. Ancient monasteries and churches, with irreplaceable libraries and works of sacred art, have vanished from the face of the earth.

It has been easy to overlook the horrors that have continued to unfold in Nigeria, Pakistan, Egypt and elsewhere. In my own daily prayers, I have continued to pray for those dying in these lands, as well as in the ISIS zone. Quite frankly, it is easy to slide into despair about all of this.

The mainstream press coverage of this attack has been very straightforward and has ”“ appropriately so ”“ shown that Coptic believers, once again, are caught in a clash between two Islamic factions inside the tense religious and political culture of Egypt. The only confusion in the coverage concerns some basic and crucial facts, as in the specific location of the attack and why the vast majority of the dead were women and children.

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Every Thanksgiving for the past 10 years, George Dimopoulos has done something amazing.

It’s not that he shuts down his Northville, Michigan restaurant, called George’s Senate Coney Island. It’s that he opens it up even more than usual.

If you are homeless or even just alone for Thanksgiving (or Easter!), you can get a free meal at George’s.

“I’m a very good cook,” he told TODAY.com. “I cook a lot of good food, and I give a lot of food to people. I don’t tell people that I do this; I do this because I believe in God and believe that there are people who need a little help.”

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By the time the jihadists had finished, not even a woman’s eyes were legal. Showing them was a punishable offense.

The dress code imposed on the women of Mosul started soon after the Islamic State overran the city more than two years ago. It was carried out gradually, until every part of the female body was erased, starting with the face, then the rest of the body ”” including the hands, which had to be covered with gloves, as well as the feet, which had to be hidden by socks. It ended with an announcement blared over loudspeakers, telling women to wear a film of black cloth over their eyes.

Halima Ali Beder, 39, said she had resentfully made each new addition to her wardrobe, starting with the niqab to cover her face, and the abaya, also known as a jilbab, a loosefitting gown. Yet she still ran afoul of the Islamic State’s increasingly harsh enforcement of its codes when she stepped into the lane outside her home, planning to pop over to her neighbor’s house.

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Bicycle sensors in Copenhagen clocked a new record this month: there are now more bikes than cars in the heart of the city. In the last year, 35,080 more bikes have joined the daily roll, bringing the total number to 265,700, compared with 252,600 cars.

Copenhagen municipality has been carrying out manual traffic counts at a number of city centre locations since 1970, when there were 351,133 cars and 100,071 bikes. In 2009, the city installed its first electric bike counter by city hall, with 20 now monitoring traffic across the city.

Copenhagen’s efforts to create a cycling city have paid off: bicycle traffic has risen by 68% in the last 20 years. “What really helped was a very strong political leadership; that was mainly Ritt Bjerregaard [the former lord mayor], who had a dedicated and authentic interest in cycling,” says Klaus Bondam, who was technical and environmental mayor from 2006 to 2009 and is now head of the Danish Cycling Federation. “Plus, a new focus on urbanism and the new sustainability agenda broke the glass roof when it came to cycling.”

Read it all.

Egyptian President declares 3 days of mourning after Coptic Christians' #cathedral attack left 25 dead & 49 injured https://t.co/IA0xulyug8 pic.twitter.com/PeQfF5NQtQ

— CCTV Africa (@cctvnewsafrica) December 12, 2016

Egyptian President has declared three days of mourning starting yesterday after an Coptic cathedral was attacked in Cairo leaving 25 people dead and 49 others injured.

President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi called Pope Tawadros II, the Pope of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria to express his condolences and declared a three-day national mourning period. The president also pledged to find the perpetrators and to arrest them.

Read it all and make sure to see the pictures from CCTV Africa.

(Fresco from Kariye Camii, Istanbul: Wikipedia)

Found there:

I felt shame on account of all who, being no better than the many,””it is much if they are not even much worse,””with unwashen hands, so to speak, and uninitiated souls, introduce themselves into the Holy of Holies, and before they have become worthy to approach the sacred things, lay claim to the altar, as if they considered this office not to be an example of virtue, but a means of livelihood,””not a responsible ministration, but an authority for which no account will be required. One must first be cleansed, and then cleanse others; first be instructed, then instruct; become light, then enlighten; draw nigh to God, then lead others up to Him; be sanctified, then sanctify; have hands, then lead by the hand; have prudence, then give counsel. No one is worthy of our great God, both Sacrifice and High Priest, who has not first presented himself to God, as a holy, living sacrifice, nor exhibited that reasonable service which is well-pleasing to Him. How could I assume the garb and name of priest before I had consecrated my hands with holy works; before I had accustomed my eye to take a healthy view of God’s creatures, so as to honour the Creator and not injure the handiwork’; before my ears were fully opened to the Lord’s instruction, and there were given to me an ear which could not be dull of hearing; before my feet stood on the rock, strengthened like harts’ feet, and my goings were ordered in the ways of God, neither almost nor altogether slipping; before every member had become an instrument of righteousness, and had cast away all deadness? Who could assume this office, until his heart had first been set on fire by the holy and fire-proved oracles of God, while the Scriptures were opened to him, and he had got those oracles written down thrice on the tablet of his heart, so that he should have the mind of Christ? ”“St. Gregory Nazianzen, Apologetic Discourse.

O Christ our God, who wilt come to judge the world in the manhood which thou hast assumed: We pray thee to sanctify us wholly, that in the day of thy coming we may be raised up to live and reign with thee for ever.

Blessed is he who considers the poor!
The Lord delivers him in the day of trouble;
the Lord protects him and keeps him alive;
he is called blessed in the land;
thou dost not give him up to the will of his enemies.
The Lord sustains him on his sickbed;
in his illness thou healest all his infirmities.

–Psalm 41:1-3

So where can we start?

One of the success stories of recent times has been the resource church. Resource churches tend to be found in the cities and typically have been HTB style plants. As Ian Paul has pointed out in a recent thought piece resource churches have achieved rapid growth, through focusing predominately on a discrete group (the 18 to 30 age range). Their astonishing growth in numbers includes a significant number of returnees to church and new converts (around 34% of their congregations comprise these two groups). Resource churches tend to be well resourced in terms of staff numbers and, have demonstrated success in terms of planting, and resourcing, new congregations. They are in other words porous.

So far resource churches have tended to be characterized through a commitment to an evangelical and charismatic expression of faith. Resource churches of this sort are not for everyone but they have been successful; up to a point, or more precisely a geographic point. They have shown an ability to reach from the centre to the suburb, but perhaps no further. But, perhaps, we can learn from the existing model of resource church, amending and extending our understanding of the term? We could, and in my view should, consider extending it to include a wider range of ecclesiologies and geographic territories.

Maybe some real work needs to be done in identifying churches that are potentially and genuinely capable of serving rural England, less we stop at the suburbs? We must invest in potential for real growth, as every good investment manager knows. We must seek out and invest in churches which are currently undervalued and, through a prudent investment strategy seek to release value.

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…The Psalmist determines to let the story of God shape his understanding of God and his understanding of himself.

For the Psalmist that meant remembering the story of the exodus. He alludes to the plagues on Egypt and he describes the parting of the Red Sea. The exodus story kicks off when God meets Moses at the burning bush. “I have come down,” God tells Moses, “to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians” (Exodus 3 v 8). God came down to reveal himself, to liberate Israel from slavery and to form them as his own people. This was the great defining moment for Israel. And it’s recalling this moment that so radically changes the Psalmist’s perspective on life.

The season of Advent is an opportunity for us to do the same. It’s an opportunity for us to remember the moment when God came down in the person of his Son to reveal himself, to liberate us and to form us as his bride.

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It is with great sadness that we receive the news today of at least 25 people brutally murdered by an explosion during regular Sunday worship at St Peter’s Coptic Orthodox Church in Cairo, adjacent to the Grand Cathedral of Saint Mark.

Our prayers are with those whose lives have been so senselessly ended, those who have been injured, and every family and community affected. We also pray for every Coptic parish and community across Egypt as they fill their churches this morning, as well as for the broader Egyptian society that fall victim to similar inhumane attacks.

Many within our Coptic community in Britain will have family and friends in Egypt, and we also pray for them at this time of uncertainty.

We share in this tragedy but are encouraged by the strength and resilience of our brethren in Egypt that we have grown accustomed to and learn from. We pray God’s peace and protection upon the Christians of Egypt, the broader Egyptian society, Christians around the world worshipping this morning and all faith communities that fall prey to similar attacks.

Read it all and watch the interviews

..Until she became prime minister earlier this year, May was a regular member of the congregation at St Andrew’s church in Sonning, part of her Maidenhead constituency. She had been “a valued and very supportive member of our church family for the last 20 years”, said the local vicar, Jamie Taylor, on her elevation to No 10. “I believe she is well placed to lead our nation.”

Two years earlier, May had spoken on Desert Island Discs about her faith, saying it was “part of me. It is part of who I am and therefore how I approach things.” But, she added, “I think it’s right that we don’t flaunt these things here in British politics…

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Metal girders and the roof of a crowded church collapsed onto worshipers in southern Nigeria, killing at least 160 people with the toll likely to rise, a hospital director said Sunday.

Mortuaries in the city of Uyo are overflowing from Saturday’s tragedy, medical director Etete Peters of the University of Uyo Teaching Hospital told The Associated Press.

The Reigners Bible Church International was still under construction and workers had been rushing to finish it in time for Saturday’s ceremony to ordain founder Akan Weeks as a bishop, congregants said.

Read it all.

Inspiring words from today’s Morning Prayer service.
Download the app to your smartphone for more: https://t.co/9I9mh4O8gs pic.twitter.com/KueoGb2fBI

— Church of England (@c_of_e) December 11, 2016

Twenty two people have been killed in a bombing at Egypt’s main Coptic Christian cathedral.

Another 35 people were wounded in the second deadly attack to hit Cairo in two days, according to Egyptian state television.

Egypt’s official Mena news agency said an assailant lobbed a bomb into a chapel close to the outer wall of St Mark’s Cathedral, seat of Egypt’s Orthodox Christian church and home to the office of its spiritual leader, Pope Tawadros II.

Read it all.

O Lord Jesus Christ, before whose judgment-seat we must all appear and give account of the things done in the body: Grant, we beseech thee, that when the books are opened in that day, the faces of thy servants may not be ashamed; through thy merits, O blessed Saviour, who livest and reignest with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end.

Because thy steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise thee. So I will bless thee as long as I live; I will lift up my hands and call on thy name. My soul is feasted as with marrow and fat, and my mouth praises thee with joyful lips, when I think of thee upon my bed, and meditate on thee in the watches of the night; for thou hast been my help, and in the shadow of thy wings I sing for joy.

–Psalm 63:3-7

On next Sunday: Sunday Service live from St Helena’s Beaufort, SC
Listen live here at 10:15 am Eastern time [3:15 pm London time]

From December 11th,, 2016
+ The Coming of the Lord – Archbishop Stephen Than Myint Oo of Myanmar [James 5:7-10]
+ The bells of Sheffield Cathedral
+ Choral Evensong from St Paul’s Cathedral

Christmas Lights at St Andrew’s Cathedral, Singapore

From December 4th,, 2016
+ Reach: Evangelism through the local church – Glen Scrivener [1 Thessalonians 1-3]
+ The bells of Exeter Cathedral
+ Choral Evensong from Portsmouth Cathedral

From November 27th, 2016
+ A Service for Advent with Carols from St John’s College, Cambridge [Live from 10 am EST 3pm London Time]
+ Sermon series: The Saviour of the World – Vaughan Roberts and others [Luke 15-17]
+ Choral Evensong from Wakefield Cathedral

From November 20th, 2016
+ The Bells of All Saints, Worcester
+ What about war in the Bible? – Dr Vince Vitale [link now included]
+ Doing Missions Anglicanly – Archbishop Foley Beach at St Andrews Cathedral, Singapore
+ Choral Evensong from Bristol Cathedral

From November 13th, 2016
+ The Bells of Westminster Abbey
+ Remembrance Sunday Service from the Cathedral of Notre Dame, Paris for the Royal British Legion
+ Ceremony of Remembrance from the Cenotaph, London
+ Choral Evensong from Ely Cathedral

From November 6th, 2016
+ Defeat, Shame, and Remembrance ”“ Dr William Witt
+ Holy Communion from St Columba’s Church [CofI], Knock in Belfast
+ Archived Choral Service with Mozart’s Requiem from New College, Oxford
+ Called to Witness – Dr Kendall Harmon

From October 23rd, 2016
+ Formed for God’s Purpose – Bishop Rennis Ponniah [Jeremiah 1:4-10]
+ We are Called to be Worshippers of God in Spirit+Truth – Dr Kendall Harmon [Psalm 148]
+ JC Ryle: A Faithful Anglican – Rev Lee Gatiss
+ More talks from the Church Society 2016 Conference
+ Choral Evensong from Birmingham Cathedral

From October 16th, 2016
+ Suffering: Loving the Lord in your circumstances – Venerable Godwin Makabi of Jos at St Andrew’s Cathedral, Singapore [Job 1]
+ Choral Evensong from St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle

From October 2nd, 2016
+ All Things Working For Good – Revd Canon Rinji Kwashi at St Andrews Cathedral Singapore
+ We are Called to be Devoted Students of his Word – Dr Kendall Harmon (Acts 2:42-47)
+ Renewal in Exile – Rev Samuel Kennedy [Nehemiah 10] – next available part of the series on Nehemiah from the Cathedral Church of St Luke and St Paul, SC
+ Jesus’ Prayer for His Disciples – Rev Vaughan Roberts [John 17:6-19]
+ Choral Evensong from Westminster Abbey on the 90th anniversary of the first broadcast of Choral Evensong

From September 18th, 2016
+ Repentance in Exile – Dean Peet Dickinson [Nehemiah 9] – next available part of the series on Nehemiah from the Cathedral Church of St Luke and St Paul, SC
+ Jesus’ Prayer for Himself – Rev Vaughan Roberts [John17:1-5]
+ Choral Evensong from St Clement Danes Church, London sung by Genesis Sixteen
+ The End: Preaching Matters – Rev William Taylor

From September 11th, 2016
+ Sunday Sermon – Learning from the Potter and the Clay – Dr Kendall Harmon (Jeremiah 18:1-11)
+ Choral Evensong from the Charles Wood Summer School at St Patrick’s Church of Ireland Cathedral, Armagh

From August 28th, 2016
+ Rejoicing in Exile – Dean Peet Dickinson [Nehemiah 6] – next available part of the series on Nehemiah from the Cathedral Church of St Luke and St Paul, SC
+ Death and the Life Heareafter – Dr Paul Williamson – Moore College lecture
+ Choral Evensong from Edington Priory, during the Edington Festival of Music within the Liturgy

From August 14th, 2016
+ Acts of Spiritual Power – Vaughan Roberts [Acts 19:1-22]
+ Rebuilding & Resistance in Exile – Jacob Graudin [Nehemiah 2:9-20, 3, 4] – part 2 of the new series from the Cathedral Church of St Luke and St Paul, SC
+ Choral Evening Prayer [RC] at Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral with the Royal School of Church Music Millennium Youth Choir

From August 7th, 2016
+ How do you think to Yourself? The Rich Fool – Dr Kendall Harmon [Luke 12:13-21]
+ ‘Stormy Weather’ – Rev Jeffrey Miller [Matthew 14:22-33]
+ Introducing a new sermon series on Nehemiah – Dean Peet Dickinson
+ Looking for Leaders: God’s Voice is Heard – Vaughan Roberts [1 Samuel 3]
+ Sunday Worship from the Keswick Convention with Emma Scrivener
+ Choral Evensong from Chichester Cathedral during the Southern Cathedrals Festival

From July 31st, 2016
+ Looking for a Leader: Those who honor me – Vaughan Roberts [1 Samuel 2:12-36]
+ The Holy Spirit – Archbishop Foley Beach
+ Choral Evensong from the Three Choirs Festival of Gloucester, Hereford and Worcester Cathedrals
+ Preaching Matters: Preaching 2 Timothy – Andy Gemmill

From July 24th, 2016
+ The Power of Priorities & the Danger of Distraction – Dr Kendall Harmon (Luke 10:38-42)
+ Looking for Leaders: A son is born – Vaughan Roberts [1 Samuel 1:1-2:11]
+ Choral Evensong from Derby Cathedral
+ The Church and the State: The Christian’s Responsibility in the Public Square – Anglican Way Institute Summer Conference 2016 with Bishop Michael Nazir-Ali
[More on the AWI 2016 Summer Conference]

From July 17th, 2016
+ The Shape of the Christian Life – Dr Kendall Harmon (Luke 10:25-37)
+ Called to Freedom – Dr Peter Moore [Galatians, John]
+ More than Conquerors – Vaughan Roberts [Romans 8:31-38]
+ Choral Evensong from the Chapel of Eton College with the first 2016 Eton Choral Course

From July 10th, 2016
+ Sermon given at the Memorial Service for Bishop Salmon – Dr Kendall Harmon [See more here]
+ The Magna Carta of Christian Freedom – Dr Kendall Harmon (Galatians 5:1;13-25)
+ Choral Evensong from Durham Cathedral
+ Preaching 2 Peter – Rev William Taylor

From June 26th, 2016
+ Now that Faith has come – Dr Peter Moore [Luke 8:19-21, 2 Samuel],
+ The Spirit Helps Us In Our Weakness – James Fletcher [Romans 8:18-27]
+ Choral Evensong from from the Chapel of St John’s School, Leatherhead, with the Guildford Cathedral Choir

From June 19th, 2016
+ Anointment and Forgiveness – Bishop Mark Lawrence [Luke 7:39-50]
+ God’s New Creation 1 – Vaughan Roberts [Revelation 21]
+ Choral Evensong from Lichfield Cathedral

From June 12th, 2016
+ It’s Not Man’s Gospel – Dr Peter Moore at St Philip’s Charleston SC [Galatians 1:11]
+ Matins [Morning Prayer] from St Mary Magdalene, Sandringham
+ Friday’s Thanksgiving Service from St Paul’s Cathedral for the 90th Birthday of the Queen [starts 15 mins in]
Order of Service

From June 5th, 2016
+ A Man’s Faith that Amazed Jesus – Dr Kendall Harmon (Luke 7:1-10)
+ The Fall of Babylon – Vaughan Roberts [Revelation 17:1-19:10 ]
+ Choral Evensong from the St Davids Cathedral Festival

From May 29th, 2016
+ Building the Church – Dr Russ Parker at the Cathedral Church of St Luke and St Paul, Charleston
+ Town Hall Service – Vaughan Roberts
+ The Loud Absence: Where is God Amidst Suffering and Evil? – Professor John Lennox

From May 22nd, 2016
+ Pentecost: Power, Surprises and Understanding – Dr Kendall Harmon (Acts 2:1-11)
+ Talks from JI Packer on 1 Timothy at Laity Lodge, Texas [h/t Prydain]
+ Praying – Vaughan Roberts [Matthew 6:5-13]
+ Choral Evensong from Tewkesbury Abbey with Schola Cantorum

From May 15th, 2016
+ The Church is on Fire – Dr Russ Parker at St Michael’s Charleston
+ Jesus the Ascended King (Acts 1:1-11) – Dr Kendall Harmon
+ Choral Evensong from St John’s College, Cambridge
+ Choral Evensong from St Pancras Church during the London Festival of Contemporary Church Music

or there is an updated version from Rend Collective here

From May 8th, 2016
+ The Ascension of Jesus – Bishop Mark Lawrence
+ Choral Evensong from Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford

From May 1st, 2016
+ God’s Building – Vaughan Roberts [1 Peter 2:4-8]
+ Choral Evensong from St John’s College, Cambridge

From April 24th, 2016
+ The Good News – Rev Paul Wasswa Ssembiro at Christ St Pauls [Romans 1]
+ The Gospel in those Seasons when we have no fish – Bishop Mark Lawrence (John 21)
+ Choral Evensong from Holy Trinity Church, Stratford-upon-Avon, with the Choir and Orchestra of the Swan

From April 17th, 2016
Talks from New Wineskins
God at Work in South-East Asia – Bishop Rennis Ponniah [Luke 9:51 – 10:2 and Luke 24]

See: Mission Consultation South East Asia

From April 10th, 2016
+ A New Day for All Humanity – Bishop Rennis Ponniah

+The Bishop of London’s Easter Day Address

From March 27th, 2016
+ Priestly Prayer: The Prayer of Jesus and Portrait of Prayer: Agony in the Garden – Dr Kendall Harmon [Parts 6 and 7 of a Lent series on Prayer from Christ St Pauls]
+ Easter Day Evensong live from Worcester Cathedral now
+ Good Friday Meditations from St Andrew’s Cathedral Singapore

From March 20th, 2016
+ Palm Sunday Sermon – Rev Peter Cook at St Andrew’s Singapore on Sunday [Philippians 2]
+ The Bridge Keeper – Rev C. Bradley Wilson at St Philip’s Charleston on Sunday
+ The Slain Lamb – Rev Vaughan Roberts [Revelation 5] [MP3]
+ Strengthened by the Holy Spirit: The Prayer of St Paul – Rev Craige Borrett last week [Part 5 of a Lent series on Prayer from Christ St Pauls – Ephesians 3:14-21]
+ Sermon at SC Convention Eucharist – Bishop Thad Barnum
+ The Seven Last Plagues – Rev Vaughan Roberts [Revelation 15 & 16]
+ The Loud Absence: Where is God Amidst Suffering and Evil? – Professor John Lennox
+ Choral Evensong from Wells Cathedral
+ Open Thread: Lent Resources

Elgar: The Spirit of the Lord is upon me from the Choirs of the Cathedral Church of St Luke & St Paul, Charleston, SC [words from Isaiah 61:1-3,11]

“Recorded live at Choral Evensong on the Feast of St. Luke the Evangelist, October 18, 2015. The Cathedral Church of St. Luke & St. Paul, Charleston, SC. The Cathedral Choir (with members of the Compline Choir.) Paul Thomas, Organist and Choral Ministry Director“

The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because He hath anointed me to preach the Gospel to the poor:
He hath sent me to heal the broken-hearted,
to preach deliv’rance to the captives
and recovering of sight to the blind,””
to preach the acceptable year of the Lord;

To give unto them that mourn a garland for ashes,
the oil of joy for mourning,
the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness;
That they might be called trees of righteousness,
the planting of the Lord, that He might be glorified.

For as the earth bringeth forth her bud,
and as the garden causeth the things that are sown in it to spring forth;
So the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth before all the nations.

The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because He hath anointed me to preach the Gospel

From March 13th, 2016
+ The Freedom of Forgiveness – Bishop Rennis Ponniah [Genesis 45:3-15 and Mark 18:21-35]
+ Talking Jesus – Rev Rico Tice [more]
+ The Harvest – Rev Vaughan Roberts [Revelation 14]
+ The Bible: Quaint Relic or Bright Light – Dr Ken Bailey at Trinity School for Ministry
+ The Prayer of the Apostles – Let us speak boldly – Dr Kendall Harmon last week [Part 4 of a Lent series on Prayer from Christ St Pauls – Acts 4:1-31]
+ Choral Evensong from Westminster Abbey

[More from ‘What is the Gospel?’ – Rev William Taylor at St Helen’s Training]

From March 6th, 2016
+ Feeding of the Five Thousand – Archbishop Stanley Ntagali at St Andrew’s Cathedral, Singapore [John 6:1-15 and Mark 6:30-44]
+ What is Evangelicalism? – John Stott [from here where there is a summary]
+ I saw Heaven Open: the Two Beasts – Rev Vaughan Roberts [Revelation 13]
+ Choral Evensong from the Chapel of Magdalen College, Oxford
+ Hannah – Remember Me – Rev Craige Borrett last Sunday [Part 3 of a Lent series on Prayer from Christ St Pauls – 1 Samuel 1 to 2:10]

From February 28th, 2016
+ The Primacy of Religious Freedom – Bishop Mark Lawrence
+ Parting Thoughts – Rev. Jeffrey S. Miller [2 Timothy 3 & 4]
+ The Woman and the Dragon – Rev Vaughan Roberts [Revelation 12]
+ Solomon – Give me wisdom – Dr Kendall Harmon last week [Part 2 of a Lent series on Prayer from Christ St Pauls – 2 Chronicles 1:7-13 and 1 Kings 3]
+ Zechariah: When God Returns in Power – Bishop Rennis Ponniah Session 1, Session 2 and Session 3
+ Choral Evensong from King’s College, Cambridge

From February 21st, 2016
+ God Knows – Kevin de Young at St Ebbes, Oxford [Exodus 2:11-25]
+ Preaching Christ in the Old Testament – Kevin de Young in Preaching Matters from St Helens, Bishopsgate, London [see below]
+ Following Jesus Wholeheartedly – Bishop John Tan at St Andrews Cathedral, Singapore [Philippians 3:17-4:1]

From February 14th, 2016
+ David: I have sinned – Rev Craige Borrett [Part 1 of a Lent series on Prayer from Christ St Pauls]
+ Renewed and Empowered by the Holy Spirit – Bishop Rennis Ponniah today [Ephesians 4:17-28]
+ The Transfiguration – Dr Kendall Harmon last week [Luke 9] – well recommended by The Elves
+ Big Issues: Transgender – Rev Vaughan Roberts
+ Choral Evensong for Ash Wednesday from the Temple Church in London

From February 7th, 2016
+ Who is ‘God’s Servant’? – Bishop Michael Nazir-Ali at St Helena’s, Beaufort SC [John 12]
+ Rector’s Forum with Bishop Nazir-Ali
+ Facing up to the Truth – Rev Justin Terry at St John’s, John’s Island SC [Luke 4:14-28]
+ What do you see? – Rev Chris Royer at St Michael’s, Charleston SC [Ministry in the Middle East, John/Joel]
+ Pornography – Rev Vaughan Roberts [Matthew 5:27-30]
+ Sunday Worship from Down Cathedral in the Diocese of Down and Dromore [CofI]
+ Choral Evensong from Truro Cathedral

From January 31st, 2016
+ Do You Have Faith in Jesus? – Archbishop Mouneer Anis at Christ St Paul’s Today [Luke 4]
+ Sunday Worship from Long Lartin Prison, Worcestershire
+ Assisted Suicide – Vaughan Roberts

From January 24th, 2016
+ Fix Your Eyes on Jesus – Bishop Jacob W. Kwashi at Christ St Paul’s[Luke 4:14-21]
+ Finding Hope in the Baptism of Jesus – Dr Kendall Harmon
+ When the Evil Day Comes – Bishop Jacob W. Kwashi at St Philip’s Charleston [Ephesians 6:10-20]
+ Something to Aim for – The Beauty of Total Commitment – Bishop Rennis Ponniah [Luke 2:21-40; Philippians 1:1-6]

Sunday Worship live from St Helena’s Beaufort, SC
Listen here at 10:15 am Eastern time [3:15 pm London time]
Worship Bulletin [awaited]

The Cross at Camp St Christopher, SC

Previous posts are here

The ET found that Bishop Inwood’s refusal to grant Canon Pemberton an EPML did fall under s 53 Equality Act 2010 and was a “relevant qualification” within the meaning of s 54: that was not the case, however, in respect of the revocation of his PTO. The ET further held, however, that the EPML qualification was for the purposes of employment for the purposes of an organised religion and the compliance principle was engaged; therefore, Bishop Inwood was exempt from liability by reason of paragraph 2, schedule 9 Equality Act 2010. As for the harassment claim, Bishop Inwood’s conduct did not amount to harassment. Context was everything: Canon Pemberton would not have experienced that (admittedly, unwanted) conduct had he not defied the doctrine of the Church. Moreover, Bishop Inwood had acted lawfully pursuant to schedule 9; it would be an affront to justice if his conduct was found to constitute harassment.

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Trainee priests must undergo a robust spiritual formation that roots out clericalism, an obsession with the liturgy and a “presumed theological or disciplinary certainty”, according to new Vatican guidelines.

But while the 91-page document primarily seeks to ensure that seminarians become mature pastors, it controversially reiterates a ban on ordaining gay men or “persons with homosexual tendencies”, first implemented in 2005 causing widespread offence to gay Catholics, including many gay priests.

It is also at odds with Pope Francis’ more compassionate “who am I to Judge?” response when he was asked about gay priests in 2013 – and the reiteration of the ban has already received a negative response from LGBT catholics.

Nevertheless the text was signed off by Francis and was written following a two-year process, including consultation with bishops from across the world and various Vatican offices.

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I will take comments on this submitted by email only to KSHarmon[at]mindspring[dot]com.

Who are Generation Z? The latest data on today's teens https://t.co/t2lAxywj1p

— The Guardian (@guardian) December 10, 2016

Today’s youngest generation with a label, born after 2000, are connected yet isolated, savvy but anxious, indulged yet stressed. They have grown up with social media, a constant proliferation of information on a fully mobile internet, the rise of Islamic State and other forms of terrorism. As these teenagers approach adulthood, against the political backdrop of Brexit and President Trump, how will they shape the future?

The single biggest difference between Generation Z and other generations is how connected they are, and have been since birth. On average, young people in the UK, aged between five and 16, spend three hours online every day. Connectivity permeates their lives ”“ from friendships to relationships, news, entertainment, shopping ”“ and has transformed how they interact. The most popular apps are Snapchat, Instagram and messaging app Kik; the average teenager has at least 150 followers on Instagram, and spends around half an hour a day on Snapchat.

Young people are also reported to have a much more fluid sense of sexual identity and gender. A National Citizen Service (NCS) poll of 1,000 teenagers published in October this year found that only 63% of teens aged 16 and 17 define themselves as 100% straight (compared with 78% of adults). Gender identity is also less binary, with 78% of young men identifying as 100% male, and 80% of young women identifying as 100% female, according to the same NCS poll.

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When rebel forces surged into the city of Aleppo, then Syria’s largest, in the summer of 2012, they hoped to establish an alternative seat of power that could rival the government’s in the capital, Damascus. But those hopes quickly faded as the operation to seize the city stalled. The rebels could only capture half of Aleppo, splitting the city in two. A lethal stalemate ensued.

The rebel’s hopes of ever breaking the deadlock are now dead. In July, forces loyal to the Syrian government cut the last remaining road into the east, imposing a siege that has slowly strangled life there. Russian and Syrian warplanes have relentlessly bombed hospitals, schools and marketplaces, crippling civilian infrastructure. With the east on its knees, the regime launched a devastating ground offensive on November 15th to drive rebel forces out of the city.

Since then, the rebels have lost about three-quarters of their enclave, their last big urban stronghold anywhere in the country. Their defence of the city has crumbled faster than many expected. The Old City, whose winding alleyways were supposed to be well defended, fell quickly this week as pro-Syrian forces, including Shia militias from Iran, Iraq and Lebanon, crashed through rebel lines on December 7th. Cornered by pro-government forces, defeat is inevitable.

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…the reality is quite different. The Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols was celebrated at King’s for the first time in 1918, not a historic service at all but an invented tradition ”” modern and man-made. And tempting though it is to imagine that this delicate fusion of words and music was created in the exquisite interior of King’s Chapel, the product of contemplation and beauty, its origins were in fact far less exalted: born in a wooden hut in Truro and conceived in the muddy, bloody trenches of the first world war, a child of horror and suffering, not peace and goodwill.

The story of Nine Lessons and Carols begins with an Anglican clergyman. Eric Milner-White was the ”˜very shy, but tremendously kind’ young man appointed chaplain of King’s in 1912. Quick to volunteer when war broke out in 1914, he traded the quiet life of Cambridge for the squalor and violence of the French front line. Most of his letters home are gone, destroyed by Milner-White himself. But the few that remain paint a vivid picture of his experience, caught between banality (”˜On days when too many tragedies aren’t happening there are many elements of the picnic about it’) and horror (”˜Most of life is at night, and the nights are filled with prolonged terror ”” a horrid, weird, furtive existence’).

Returning to Cambridge in 1918 after ”˜a battle of special horror’, Milner-White was appointed dean of King’s and immediately set about reforming a liturgy his experience convinced him was not just inadequate but irrelevant to the needs of a community so damaged and disillusioned. ”˜Colour, warmth and delight’ were to be the focus, offering aesthetic as well as spiritual consolation in only the simplest and most direct language. Wanting to create a special service for Christmas, Milner-White took inspiration from Edward White Benson ”” the first bishop of the new diocese of Truro.

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Perhaps the carol’s simple language only enhances its beauty, conveying complex theological ideas without obscuring them; it becomes transparent, you might say. The image in the last verse, of Christ entering the world through Mary like the sunbeam passing through the glass, is a very common simile in medieval literature, and one that I’m fond of (compare this carol, and this poem). The attribution to St Anselm is not strictly accurate, in that the image doesn’t appear in his works, but it was ‘a simile much used in the school of Anselm’, according to R. W. Southern.

Read it all from Eleanor Parker.

Brother QUENON: He loved being in the midst of nature, you know. The birds were his friends.

VALENTE: What do you think he did out here?

Brother QUENON: Well, read a lot and wrote. For him, praying was just to abide in the presence””the presence of the Lord.

(touring cottage): There’s the kitchen and then a bedroom. And then, a chapel was added later on.

VALENTE: Merton wrote this in his journal:

Mr. ATKINSON (reading from Merton’s journal): For myself I have only one desire and that is the desire for solitude: to disappear into God; to be submerged in His peace; to be lost in the secret of His space. I have gone to the hermitage not because I hate the world. I go to the hermitage to deepen my consciousness, to be more in communion with the world.

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Gracious God, who didst call thy monk Thomas Merton to proclaim thy justice out of silence, and moved him in his contemplative writings to perceive and value Christ at work in the faiths of others: Keep us, like him, steadfast in the knowledge and love of Jesus Christ; who with thee and the Holy Spirit livest and reignest, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

10 de diciembre de 1968 Muere Thomas Merton, escritor y poeta religioso francés. https://t.co/MG573Hf5Yp

— El Lector (@LiteraturayMas_) December 10, 2016

My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road, though I may know nothing about it. Therefore I will trust you always though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death. I will not fear, for you are ever with me, and you will never leave me to face my perils alone.

–Thomas Merton (1915-1968)