Archdeacon Betteridge described the announcement on Thursday as “an amazing privilege”. She said: “Whenever anyone has offered to pray for me in this new role I have asked for wisdom, kindness and courage. I’d like these qualities to be hallmarks of this new phase of ministry for me.”

She will become the first female bishop of Basingstoke when she is consecrated in Southwark Cathedral on 15 October. She will be formally welcomed at a service at St Mary’s, Andover, on Saturday 15 November.

Archdeacon Betteridge enjoys reading, baking, live music and theatre, and walking. She is married to Simon, who is the National Director of Linking Lives and head of community development for Compassionate Communities UK. She has two stepchildren. “With their partners, our granddaughter, parents, siblings, and cats, we have our own growing community of blessedness,” she said.

The Bishop of Winchester, the Rt Revd Philip Mounstephen, said that she combined “a warm pastoral heart” with strong experience in parish ministry and diocesan leadership. “She has a deep passion for growing a church for all ages, and her ministry has been very much appreciated by the clergy of her current Archdeaconry,” he said.

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The next Suffragan Bishop of Basingstoke is to be the Ven. Kelly Betteridge, the present Archdeacon of Bodmin, in the diocese of Truro, Downing Street announced on Thursday#BishopofBasingstoke #Bishopappointments #churchnews https://t.co/63WtYx3Yal

— Church Times (@ChurchTimes) August 29, 2025

A major new initiative that will see the Good News of Jesus blaze across the hearts of children and young people in Lancashire launched this week.

The Ignite Project is part of the Diocese of Blackburn’s ambitious vision to see Jesus made known amongst the younger generation in the County. Funding for the project follows a generous grant from the national church.

The Diocese knows that employing a youth or children’s minister is the biggest common factor to seeing sustainable growth of ministry to those age groups. So we are strategically placing 30 youth and children’s leaders in parishes across Lancashire to enable greater engagement with local young people.

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(Lancashire Post) Ignite Project aims to fire up county's young people for Jesus https://t.co/vMi9aOgLvW 'The Diocese knows that employing a youth or children’s minister is the biggest common factor to seeing sustainable growth of ministry to those age groups. So we are…

— Kendall Harmon (@KendallHarmon6) September 3, 2025

American companies are once again beating profit expectations, but this time around they aren’t banking on blockbuster consumer spending to make it happen.

Instead, the latest batch of quarterly earnings is getting a lift from managers who are squeezing out costs, boosting productivity and turning to new technologies. Companies from Monster Beverage to Estée Lauder said they are holding down hiring, often while finding new ways to get employees to work more efficiently. And they are raising prices when they can.

“The processes are human-light now,” Damon Lee, chief financial officer of C.H. Robinson Worldwide , said last month as he told investors about an initiative that includes automation upgrades. The global logistics company reported higher profit margins in the second quarter despite a nearly 8% drop in revenue, which it attributed to a prolonged freight recession. It said it had increased productivity 35% since 2022.

“The outcome of those transformations means less head count, more productivity,” he said.

More broadly, the gains enjoyed by companies and their investors aren’t softening the unease consumers and employees feel—and might be obscuring signals that ordinary Americans are putting their anxiety into action.

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For retailers, price increases have generated most of the growth in sales since 2021, with volumes largely flat. Meanwhile, companies are cutting staff on the margins and relying on new technologies to fill gaps. “The processes are human-light now." https://t.co/61FEHkzBCa pic.twitter.com/nprY1Qo2Mg

— Lisa Abramowicz (@lisaabramowicz1) September 3, 2025

Ukraine is pursuing a multibillion-dollar arms buildup that would be funded by Europe, seeing it as the best chance of ensuring the country’s long-term survival as American assistance dries up and Western security guarantees remain uncertain.

Kyiv wants not only to sustain its army through the current war but also to make it the backbone of any postwar settlement, with the goal of deterring Russia from invading again. As Ursula von der Leyen, the European Commission president, recently put it: “Ukraine must become a steel porcupine, undigestible for potential invaders.”

At the center of these efforts is a new NATO-backed procurement system that will channel European funds into buying U.S. weapons for Ukraine. President Volodymyr Zelensky hopes the system will enable $1 billion in purchases each month, with a particular focus on acquiring U.S.-made Patriot air-defense systems to expand Kyiv’s limited arsenal.

The new system would both help replace U.S. arms donations that President Trump has ended and also increase and streamline deliveries of weapons to Ukraine over time. A first sale of cruise missiles and GPS navigation kits, worth $825 million, was announced on Thursday.

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Ukraine Pursues a Weapons Buildup More Potent Than Any Security Guarantee https://t.co/pEmO0N1JJZ via @NYTimes

— Luba Howard 🇺🇦 (@marynlm) September 3, 2025

Eternal God, who didst raise up thine servant Phoebe as a deacon in thy church and benefactor of the Gospel, such that she took the message of thine Apostle Paul into the very heart of a hostile empire; grant unto us thy same grace, that aided by her prayers and example, we too may take the Gospel unto the ends of the earth, Through Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord; who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Today is also the feast of Saint Phoebe of Rome, a first century Christian woman. Mentioned by Saint Paul in his Epistle to the Romans as both a deacon and helper or patron of many (Greek prostatis), she was Paul’s personal envoy to the Romans. pic.twitter.com/2uMnhRtGzN

— Chess Valley RC (@ChessValleyRC) September 3, 2025

O God, who hast brought life and immortality to light by the gospel, and hast begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead: Make us steadfast and immovable in the faith, always abounding in the work of the Lord, who died for our sins and rose again, and now liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, world without end.

#Aurora at Skye Bridge, Isle of Skye #Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿@bbcweather @SkyNewsWeather @StormHour @ThePhotoHour @VisitScotland pic.twitter.com/mFsqWMGhyT

— James MacInnes (@Macinnesplant) September 2, 2025

And as soon as it was morning the chief priests, with the elders and scribes, and the whole council held a consultation; and they bound Jesus and led him away and delivered him to Pilate. And Pilate asked him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” And he answered him, “You have said so.” And the chief priests accused him of many things. And Pilate again asked him, “Have you no answer to make? See how many charges they bring against you.” But Jesus made no further answer, so that Pilate wondered.

Now at the feast he used to release for them one prisoner for whom they asked. And among the rebels in prison, who had committed murder in the insurrection, there was a man called Barab′bas. And the crowd came up and began to ask Pilate to do as he was wont to do for them. And he answered them, “Do you want me to release for you the King of the Jews?” For he perceived that it was out of envy that the chief priests had delivered him up. But the chief priests stirred up the crowd to have him release for them Barab′bas instead.

–Mark 15:1-11

Morning everyone I hope you are well. As I always say, even in grey and moody weather there is still beauty to be found in the Lakes. Have a great day. #LakeDistrict pic.twitter.com/h8KdvKhb7h

— Rod Hutchinson (@lakesrhino) September 3, 2025

The Church of England’s latest cathedral statistics show continued growth in 2024, with weekly attendance rising to 31,900, an increase of eleven per cent compared to 2023. The rise was driven particularly by midweek services, which saw a 15 per cent increase in adult attendance and a 16 per cent increase in child attendance, although still lower than the pre-pandemic figure. 

Easter services attracted 50,200 worshippers, a 12 per cent increase year-on-year, while Holy Week attendance reached 90,200. However, Christmas attendance dipped slightly to 121,100, down three per cent from 2023, and Advent services saw a similar decline. 

Visitor numbers continued to climb, reaching 9.87 million in 2024 – surpassing pre-pandemic levels for the first time. Cathedrals also hosted 6,000 public and civic events, including 370 graduation ceremonies, with a total attendance of 1.74 million. 

Musical life in cathedrals flourished, with 2,120 choristers and lay clerks (adult professional singers), and 2,070 voluntary choir members meaning figures are now above pre-pandemic levels. The total number of cathedral choirs also reached a record high of 207.

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BREAKING:
The Church of England’s latest cathedral statistics show continued growth in 2024, with weekly attendance rising to 31,900, an increase of eleven per cent compared to 2023.

"By most measures, attendance, participation, and engagement were higher in 2024 than in…

— English Cathedrals (@engcathedrals) August 29, 2025

Tolkien later wrote that he began creating his Middle Earth mythology – the foundation for the future “The Lord of the Rings” – while “in grimy canteens, at lectures in cold fogs, in huts full of blasphemy and smut, or by candlelight in bell-tents, even some down in dugouts under shell fire.”

Yes, the man who survived days huddled in shell craters and trenches in France would later write, in a blank page in an Oxford student’s exam book, these famous words: “In a hole in the ground there lived a Hobbit.”

Tolkien and Lewis remain stunningly popular – in print and on digital screens. A graphic novel by John Hendrix, “The Mythmakers: The remarkable fellowship of C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien,” will soon become a feature-length animated film. Netflix recently began filming the latest movie and cable-television production based on “The Chronicles of Narnia,” the seven novels Lewis wrote for children and families. Another film linked to “The Lord of the Rings” – “The Hunt for Gollum” – is scheduled for 2026 release.

Loconte stressed that the faith woven into the works of Lewis and Tolkien was a sharp contrast to the despair and doubt found in many classic books after “The War to End All Wars,” which killed 16 to 22 million soldiers and civilians.

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#Tolkien, #Lewis and great post-World War I myths https://t.co/Iepqr5gWB0

— Religion Unplugged (@ReligionMag) August 21, 2025

I fully recognize that many, if not most, readers don’t share my view that each embryo — and each unborn child with Down syndrome — is a human life worthy of protection under the law. But I would ask you to put aside thoughts of the law for just a moment and think carefully about the culture we’re creating, from the beginning to the end of life.

What happens when we make a transition from understanding that suffering is an inevitable part of the human condition, one that rallies people to love and care for the people they love (or even to love and care for people they don’t know), to it being somebody’s fault — perhaps it’s the parents who wrongly brought you into this world or your own fault for hanging on too long?

It is understandable and deeply human to want to bring all aspects of our health as much into our control as possible. Terminally ill patients often face horrifying levels of pain. We should try to treat that pain as best we can. Vulnerability is terrifying, but it is also inescapable. In our quest for health and fitness, we are fighting a delaying action. There is no earthly victory over decay and death.

Yet at each stage of life, we can fool ourselves into believing we possess more control than we really do. If we test to control the beginning of life and die by suicide to control the end of life, the negative side of movements like what has come to be known as MAHA (Make America Healthy Again) is to teach you that your health is under your control throughout your life.

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What It Really Means to Choose Life https://t.co/1ZKwZLRQ99

— Anders Carlgren (@AndersCarlgren) August 25, 2025

A potentially invasive crab species has landed in coastal South Carolina, from Hilton Head, though the Charleston area and up to Myrtle Beach.

State regulators are asking the public to report sightings of blue land crabs, which can cause damage to crops and other animals by digging deep holes in search of water.

Historically found in Brazil, the Caribbean and South Florida, blue land crabs are thicker and bulkier than the blue crabs found in coastal waters and served in local restaurants. Despite their name, they range in shades of blue and purple to orange and have one claw that’s larger than the other.

The burrowing creatures resemble a “fiddler crab on steroids,” said S.C. Department of Natural Resources crustacean researcher Daniel Sasson.

For a long time, it was thought the crabs’ northernmost range was the middle of Florida, Sasson said. That has changed.

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‘Fiddler crab on steroids’: SC agency on the lookout for a new invasive (and edible) species https://t.co/WvvYRopXRa

— The Post and Courier (@postandcourier) September 2, 2025

Almighty God, we remember before thee this day the blessed martyrs of New Guinea, who, following the example of their Savior, laid down their lives for their friends; and we pray thee that we, who honor their memory, may imitate their loyalty and faith; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

Today we remember Lucian Tapiedi, who was among 333 Christians who lost their lives in New Guinea during the occupation of the island by Japanese forces in 1942.

Tapiedi is one of ten 20th-century martyrs whose statues above the Abbey's Great West Door. pic.twitter.com/HJqGGJNxBn

— Westminster Abbey (@wabbey) September 2, 2025

O Lord, we pray that your grace may always precede and follow after us, that we may continually be given to good works; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.  Amen.

A warm welcome to September and happy Tuesday, friends #ScotlandisNow #StormHour #photography #photooftheday #landscape #OutAndAboutScotland #landscapephotography @VisitScotland @ScotsMagazine #STVSnaps #ThePhotoHour #beautiful pic.twitter.com/o4ue1ZLInG

— Mike Wood (@MikeMikwd) September 2, 2025

And as Peter was below in the courtyard, one of the maids of the high priest came; and seeing Peter warming himself, she looked at him, and said, “You also were with the Nazarene, Jesus.” But he denied it, saying, “I neither know nor understand what you mean.” And he went out into the gateway. And the maid saw him, and began again to say to the bystanders, “This man is one of them.” But again he denied it. And after a little while again the bystanders said to Peter, “Certainly you are one of them; for you are a Galilean.” But he began to invoke a curse on himself and to swear, “I do not know this man of whom you speak.” And immediately the cock crowed a second time. And Peter remembered how Jesus had said to him, “Before the cock crows twice, you will deny me three times.” And he broke down and wept.

–Mark 14:66-72

Morning Tracks. 15°C and blue skies. Rabbits. pic.twitter.com/yzSFTUUhAb

— Yorkshire Wolds Weather (@WeatherWolds) September 2, 2025

O Lord Jesu Christ, Son of the living God, grant me, a weak and wretched sinner, to have ever before the eyes of my heart Thy life and character, and as far as in me lies to imitate them.  Make me to go forward in them and to grow up into a perfect man and into an holy temple in the Lord.  Enlighten, I pray Thee, my heart with the brightness of Thy grace, and let it continually prevent and follow me; that having Thee as my guide in all my ways, I may do such things as please Thee and shun what is displeasing in Thy sight.  Direct, I beseech Thee, my thoughts, words, and actions in Thy law and in Thy precepts, O Most High; so that in all things I may do Thy will, and may be accounted worthy to be saved by Thee both here and 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)

We color the world, not with the darkness of our pasts,
But with the rainbow of our hope.
(Jenim Dibie)

Good Monday&new month lovely people in my phone.

🌈#NewWeekNewGoals #newmonth #MondayMood #StormHour #GoodVibesOnly #jefinuist #outerhebrides #Scotland pic.twitter.com/FmZRS6WHua

— DaliMach (@frenchscotjeff) September 1, 2025

O Lord, we pray that your grace may always precede and follow after us, that we may continually be given to good works; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.  Amen.

Say goodbye to August… the last day has begun

Enjoy Sunday ☕️ pic.twitter.com/Rc4EEE1qSO

— Cloudymamma (@cloudymamma) August 31, 2025

Oh my God, by Whose loving Providence, sorrows, difficulties, trials, dangers, become means of grace, lessons of patience, channels of hope, grant us good will to use and not abuse those our privileges; and of Thy great goodness, keep us alive through this dying life that out of death, thou may raise us up to immortality. For his sake, who is the life Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.

—Give us Grace: An Anthology of Anglican Prayers, ed. Christopher L. Webber (Harrisburg: Morehouse, 2004), p. 305

I can never walk in this woodland without a delicious little shiver creeping down my spine, but on this particular morning my imagination was in overdrive. The trees were definitely whispering about me, ushering me further and further in. Their trunks were slick and shining, the… pic.twitter.com/htdanOfayo

— peaklass (@peaklass1) August 30, 2025

Father of lights, from whose unshadowed home above comes every good and perfect gift, I receive as from Thy hand my share in the common blessings which, without respect of persons, hourly descend upon mankind.  I thank Thee for the special tokens of Thy friendship and personal care that have made me glad this day.  Help me to use these and all Thy bounties according to Thy design, that my whole life may be a hymn of praise to Thee; through Jesus Christ our Lord.

–Robert W. Rodenmayer, ed., The Pastor’s Prayerbook: Selected and arranged for various occasions (New York: Oxford University Press, 1960)

Pretty early morning view of the Ravenel Bridge from Downtown Charleston! pic.twitter.com/YH9iEToi47

— Joey Sovine Live 5 (@JoeySovine) August 29, 2025

O Lord Jesus Christ, who didst drive forth from the temple those who profaned the holy place, saying to them, My house shall be called the house of prayer: Make us so to love the habitation of thy house and the place where thy honour dwelleth, that with humility and godly fear we may draw near to worship thee; who livest and reignest with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end.

Chalk Tracks. 19°C and a gentle breeze. Swifts preparing to leave. pic.twitter.com/HDPAmX0R3b

— Yorkshire Wolds Weather (@WeatherWolds) August 28, 2025

O Lord and heavenly Father, who through thy Son our Saviour hast taught us that we cannot serve both God and mammon: Deliver us, we pray thee, from the love of money; and grant us grace to use wisely and faithfully all such possessions as thou hast entrusted to us, for the furtherance of thy kingdom, the relief of those in need, and the supply of our own necessities; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord.

Sunrise above Beinn Tianavaig – Isle of Skye #Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 @bbcweather @StormHour @ThePhotoHour @VisitScotland pic.twitter.com/aRoMWyCIUZ

— James MacInnes (@Macinnesplant) August 27, 2025

Almighty God, whose loving hand hath given us all that we possess: Grant us grace that we may honour thee with our substance, and, remembering the account which we must one day give, may be faithful stewards of thy bounty; through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Good morning 🌅 pic.twitter.com/XmDd9LHlZm

— Sharon Welby📷 (@sharonwelby1) August 26, 2025

Let your continual mercy, O Lord, cleanse and defend your Church; and, because it cannot continue in safety without your help, protect and govern it always by your goodness; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

weekend hiking
⛰️ pic.twitter.com/QLzco85tJr

— Portmann Carrick (@PortmannCarrick) August 25, 2025

Almighty and everlasting God,
who gave to your apostle Bartholomew grace
truly to believe and to preach your word:
grant that your Church
may love that word which he believed
and may faithfully preach and receive the same;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
Amen.

One of my very favourite heather views in the #peakdistrict, especially at sunset, when the last light floods over the moors and makes every flower glow. Standing amid the huge boulders on the Iron Age hill fort of Carl Wark, you can look towards the rocks of Over Owler Tor and… pic.twitter.com/c76oMD1ugz

— peaklass (@peaklass1) August 24, 2025

O God, who art faithful to thy people and dost not permit them to be tempted above that they are able, but with the temptation also makest a way of escape that they may be able to bear it: We humbly entreat thee to strengthen us thy servants with thy heavenly aid and keep us with thy continual protection; that we may evermore wait on thee, and never by any temptation be drawn away from thee; through Jesus Christ our Lord.

'Painted Sky' This morning just before sunrise in Glastonbury, the whole sky turned orange. 🧡 pic.twitter.com/IritiKprdq

— Michelle Cowbourne (@Glastomichelle) August 19, 2025

Make us tender and compassionate towards those who are an overtaken by temptation, considering ourselves, how we have fallen in times past and may fall yet again.  Make us watchful and sober-minded, looking ever unto thee for grace to stand upright, and to persevere unto the end; through thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord.

Almighty God, who sent your Holy Spirit to be the life and light of your Church: open our hearts to the riches of your grace, that we may bring forth the fruit of the Spirit in love and joy and peace; through Jesus Christ, your Son or Lord, who is alive and remains with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

Serene Son of God, whose will subdued the troubled waters and laid to rest the
fears of men: Let thy majesty master us, thy power of calm control us; that for our
fears we may have faith, and for our disquietude perfect trust in thee; who dost
live and govern all things, world without end.

–Robert W. Rodenmayer, ed., The Pastor’s Prayerbook: Selected and arranged for various occasions (New York: Oxford University Press, 1960)

We humbly beseech thee, O Father, mercifully to look upon our infirmities; and for the glory of thy Name turn from us all those evils that we most righteously have deserved; and grant that in all our troubles we may put our whole trust and confidence in thy mercy, and evermore serve thee in holiness and pureness of living, to thy honour and glory; through our only Mediator and Advocate, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

⛰️🌞💙 Guten Morgen 💙🌞⛰️ pic.twitter.com/bhFlyBgBVp

— Brigitta Neurauter (@BrigittaNeurau2) August 15, 2025

O Almighty and merciful Lord, who givest unto thy faithful people the Holy Spirit as a sure pledge of thy heavenly kingdom: Grant unto us this same Spirit, that he may bear witness with our spirit that we be thy children and heirs of thy kingdom; through our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

Wishing you a happy Thursday from my little slice of North Yorkshire 😊 pic.twitter.com/SzDkgWm88p

— Nicky (@Nicky13Johnson) August 14, 2025