Archbishop’s warning over economic ‘depression’; C of E prayer for struggling farmers; Kirk’s critical report on same sex marriage; Archbishop of York’s Tribute to Stephen Lawrence; Success of C of E Easter Twitter campaign
Archbishop’s warning over economic ‘depression’
BBC news – Archbishop Welby: ”What we are in… is not a recession, but essentially some kind of depression”
It will take “something very, very major” to get the UK out of its economic “depression”, the Archbishop of Canterbury has said.
A “severe” economic crisis and “a breakdown in confidence” made for “a generational problem”, the Most Rev Justin Welby said.
“Recapitalising at least one of our major banks” and breaking it up into regional banks could help, he said.
He was speaking at a Bible Society-organised event at Westminster.
The former oil executive is on Parliament’s banking standards commission and his comments come days before the release of gross domestic product figures that are expected to show the economy has stalled.
Archbishop Welby said that, in the past, “the great failures in banking have led to very, very long periods of recession at best”.
“I would argue that what we are in at the moment is not a recession but essentially some kind of depression,” he added.
“It therefore takes something very, very major to get us out of it, in the same way as it took something very major to get us into it.” More at:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-22259724
C of E prayer for struggling farmers
The Church of England has published a prayer for farming communities recovering from weather conditions that have led to thousands of sheep and cattle being lost and crops being sown weeks late or ruined.
“We grieve for the loss of so many livestock in the recent appalling weather conditions,” said the Rt Rev James Bell, Bishop of Knaresborough, who chairs the Church of England’s Rural Affairs Group. “We grieve, too, for the farmers who have worked so hard to feed and shelter their animals so that we can have good food to eat. This prayer is an expression of solidarity with those who have experienced hardship or distress, in the hope of a fruitful and kind season to come, and in commitment to see farmers properly supported and rewarded.”
The Rt Rev Anthony Priddis, Bishop of Hereford, recently issued an open letter of support and solidarity, calling on churches to pray regularly for local farmers and their families; remember the Farming Help Charities, such as the Farming Community Network, Royal Agricultural Benevolent Institution; and buy local British produce wherever possible.
A prayer for farmers struggling to recover from the severe weather written by Cn Dr Jill Hopkinson, the CofE’s National Rural Officer based at the Arthur Rank Centre in Stoneleigh:
Gracious God, you provide us with food from the earth through the work of human hands: after a poor summer and long winter, we pray for all those who grow and produce our food in the most difficult conditions. We remember the physical hardships and distress of farmers dealing with livestock that have died, and those who are still to sow crops to harvest this year. Bless the work of all those who care for your land and animals so that we may have food to sustain us. This we ask through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Kirk’s critical report on same sex marriage
A theological commission of the Church of Scotland has submitted a report to the upcoming church general assembly on same sex relationships and church ministry.
The report describes the breadth of theological opinion that exists within the church on the question of whether the Church of Scotland should ordain ministers who are in same-sex relationships.
It also offers the general assembly a choice of either legislating to allow for such ordinations or reaffirming the traditional understanding that it is inappropriate to ordain ministers who are in same-sex relationships.
The general assembly will consider the various proposals. On the one hand, the report offers the Scottish church a way of allowing the ordination of ministers in same-sex relationships who have entered into a civil partnership, while protecting both individuals and congregations who, in conscience, do not agree with the theological principles which underpin that choice. On the other hand the report, while reaffirming its belief that homophobia is sinful, invites the church to reaffirm its traditional stance that the only appropriate sexual activity should be within marriage between a man and a woman.
The report offers no recommendation.
Tribute to Stephen Lawrence
The Archbishop of York has written a tribute to Stephen Lawrence, to mark the 20th anniversary of Stephen’s death. His article in The Yorkshire Post follows…
http://www.archbishopofyork.org/articles.php/2878/tribute-to-stephen-lawrence
Success of C of E Easter Twitter campaign
“Good News in a nutshell, Cosmos in a Hashtag” #EverythingChanges as Church Twitter campaign reaches 5.8 million at Easter
Almost 6 million people were reached by the Church of England’s (@c_of_e) Easter 2013 twitter campaign according to figures released today. Official figures from Twitter showed a cumulative reach of 5.8m users from the 8,527 tweets sent over the Easter period, from Good Friday to Easter Day, using the hashtag #EverythingChanges.
Nearly six million people were reached by the Church of England’s Easter Twitter campaign.
The campaign used the hashtag #EverythingChanges to share the Christian meaning of Easter via the social media site.
Official figures from the Church of England show that the campaign had a cumulative reach of 5.8 million users from the 8.527 tweets sent out over the Easter period.
Vicky Beeching (@vickybeeching), Research Fellow in Internet ethics at St John’s College Durham said: “The #everythingchanges hashtag was another great example of the Church engaging proactively with the digital sphere.
“To get a new ‘digital generation’ to feel welcome in Church and to hear the Christian message, using social media is crucial.
“Social media is a medium where all of life is lived; meaningful messages can be communicated and the Church is boldly embracing the digital world in these campaigns.”
The Bishop of Southwell & Nottingham, the Right Reverend Paul Butler (@BishopPaulB), praised the campaign, saying it had caught the imagination of people across the county.
“Since we seek to share the joy of the risen Jesus, that’s good news,” he said.
The Bishop of Worcester, the Right Reverend Dr John Inge (@BishopWorcester) added: “I’m delighted to have been able to be one of those tweeting the wonderful good news which we celebrate in the resurrection – that love wins.”
Clergy and churchgoers were encouraged to take part in the campaign.
Trainee Vicar Liz Clutterbuck (@LizClutterbuck) said she had been hugely encouraged to watch the campaign spread across Twitter from Good Friday onwards.
“Young and old embraced it and used it to demonstrate to their followers of all faiths and non what the resurrection means for all,” she said.
Blogger, the Reverend Peter Ould (@PeterOuld) said the campaign demonstrated the way social media can “not just help bring faith communities together, but also enable them to reach out beyond their boundaries in innovative and modern ways”.
“In an increasingly technologically grounded generation this is the way forward for the Church of England to communicate,” he said.
For full story see – http://www.churchofengland.org/media-centre/news/2013/04/good-news-in-a-nutshell,-cosmos-in-a-hashtag.aspx