Church

Theresa May's 'hostile environment' policy has made UK 'markedly nastier', says CofE's policy adviser
Theresa May's 'hostile environment' policy on immigration has created a country which is 'markedly nastier', the Church of England's policy advisor has said.

Church of England warns 'reluctant' clergy: Learning to spot abuse not 'optional extra'
Learning to spot potential child abuse is not an 'optional extra', grumbling clergy are being told, as the Church of England admits some turn up to training 'reluctantly'.

Catholic home accused of allowing 'illegal' adoptions
A Catholic-run home in Northern Ireland has been accused of 'illegal' cross-border adoptions after allegations emerged it had shipped babies overseas against their mother's will.

Australian court fires staffer for accessing information about trial of cardinal facing sexual misconduct charges
A staff member of Victoria's county court in Australia has been fired for allegedly accessing sensitive information about the trial of Cardinal George Pell, who has been charged with sexual assault.

Ohio Victory Christian Center megachurch gives away free gas to 100+ motorists
In celebration of its 10th anniversary, a megachurch in Ohio has decided to give back to the community by fueling up more than 100 motorists with free gas.

Number of American Christians who believe evangelism is their responsibility plummets, Barna poll says
A new study conducted by Barna Research as found that the number of American Christians who believe that sharing their faith is necessary has dropped by 25 percent in a quarter of a century.

Membership decline means Church of Scotland's 'very existence' under threat, report warns
The Church of Scotland's 'very existence' is under threat with whole generations missing from its pews.

Colin Morris, Methodist minister and BBC religion broadcaster, dies aged 89
Dr Colin Morris, the former Methodist president and BBC's head of religion, has died aged 89.

Church of Scotland takes another step towards allowing same-sex marriages
'From those of us who want to uphold the traditional and orthodox teaching of the Church, it is possibly as good an outcome as we could expect.'

Christian businessman builds mosque as Ramadan gift to Muslim workers in UAE
A Christian businessman from India built a mosque costing Dh1.3 million (US$350,000) as a gift for Muslim workers in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) this Ramadan.
Pope Francis admits he has reflected on resigning
The pope reflected on his resignation by citing St. Paul in the Scriptures.

BBC royal wedding coverage accused of anti-Christian bias as Prince Harry, Meghan Markle wed in Windsor
A Northern Ireland lawmaker has accused the BBC of attacking Christians in a broadcast covering the wedding of Prince Henry "Harry" of Wales and former American actress Meghan Markle.

Past its sell-by date? 5 reasons to close your mission agency
I thought I'd take the bull by the horns and suggest some criteria by which agency boards could assess whether they should keep going, or close their agency.
Chile's bishops offer mass resignation following Pope Francis' rebuke
'We have put our positions in the hands of the Holy Father and will leave it to him to decide freely for each of us.'

Disestablishment of CofE 'not a disaster' says Justin Welby
The disestablishment of the Church of England would 'not be a disaster', according to the archbishop of Canterbury.

'Radical answer to decline': Church in Wales launches £10 million evangelism fund
The Church in Wales has announced £10 million in funding to support evangelism projects across its dioceses, as part of its first ever 'Evangelism Fund'.