UK-based Christian organisation Church Army, has launched its newest campaign, ‘Inside Out Mission in Community’, featuring projects where their evangelists are seeing lives transformed. In a Church Army press release the charity said that in the coming months various projects will be highlighted: Where our evangelists are transforming whole neighbourhoods by living and working in communities. As it says in John 1:14: ‘The word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.’ Church Army, which has been going since 1882 aims to be a leading organisation in the training, equipping and deploying of evangelists, to develop appropriate and relevant forms of Christian community for pioneering situations. Wilson Carlile founded Church Army and believed the Christian message had to be shared through words and action and he encouraged all manner of people to witness to their faith.

Pray:

that this new campaign will reach the very heart of the communities with the gospel. (Jn.1:14)

More:

http://www.assistnews.net/Stories/2013/s13040022.htm

A respected Baptist academic has called upon churches to ensure they are a welcoming home for Britain's ageing population. Dr Roy Kearsley, of South Wales Baptist College, admitted that ageing was a challenge for church, mission and pastoral care. He said that recent headlines about poor levels of care for older people in Britain were ‘disturbing’ and indicative of a ‘social and spiritual crisis’. Recent reports, including most recently the Which? report last month, have revealed shocking levels of neglect by care workers across Britain. In some instances, older people do not have enough food and water, are forced to sleep in soiled beds, and are missing taking their medication. The study was published just days after the Royal College of Nursing declared that care homes for the elderly are in crisis. Dr Kearsley said: ‘These shocking revelations are impacting not just the elderly but also their family carers, voluntary carers and professionals of varied kinds.’

Pray: that the church would take a lead by example in support of the elderly and challenge those whose roll is care in our society. (Lev.19:32)

More: http://www.christiantoday.com/article/church.must.never.see.older.people.as.problem/29576.htm

The Scottish Government has come under fire for completely failing to mention Christmas in its ‘Winter Festivals’ programme. In an official news release the Government mentions St Andrew’s Day eleven times, Hogmanay five times and Burns Night several times. But Christmas is not mentioned at all. Bashir Mann, a prominent figure in Glasgow’s Muslim community, has criticised the omission of Christmas, saying: ‘This is political correctness gone mad. Why should we be offended? Scotland’s religious population is 98 per cent Christian. Why should they not be allowed to celebrate their biggest religious festival? If my neighbour is celebrating Christmas, then I should join him. That’s what my religion tells me.’ And John Deighan, parliamentary officer for the Roman Catholic Church of Scotland, described the omission as ‘disappointing and hurtful’.

Pray: that the protests by the Church and others would lead to the reinstatement of Christmas as central to the nations beliefs. (Job11.4:5)

More: http://www.christian.org.uk/news/christmas-snubbed-by-scottish-government/

The daughter of the clergyman author who created Thomas the Tank Engine has criticised television producers for writing Christmas out of a new series. Hilary Fortnam said that her father, the Rev W Awdry, would have been distressed after executives decided to omit religious references from one his adventures. His relatives have now protested after the television company which is recording new adventures for the little blue engine rebranded Christmas as ‘the holidays’ in its latest storyline, to comply with ‘politically correct’ thinking.‘He would feel very strongly about this politically correct age and that those who now write his stories should not have taken Christ out of Christmas. Political correctness against Christian beliefs offends,’ Mrs Fortnam said in a letter to the Daily Telegraph. She explained that her father, who worked as a vicar for nearly 30 years, ‘always impressed on reporters and publishers that he ‘was a priest first and a children’s author second.’’

Pray: for such misguided political correctness to be abandoned and replaced by a better understanding of the needs of different faith groups who understand and respect each other’s traditions. (1Co.2:13)

More: http://www.anglican-mainstream.net/

Christians’ rights of conscience are being sacrificed on the altar of “obsessive political correctness” contrary to the values of a democratic society, two European human rights judges have claimed. They likened the treatment of a London marriage registrar, who asked not to carry out civil partnerships because of her beliefs on homosexuality, to conscientious objectors of the past who suffered “at the hands of the Spanish Inquisition or a Nazi firing squad”. The claims were contained a vocal dissenting judgment by two of the seven European Court of Human Rights judges who sat in a landmark case on religious freedom in Britain. The court in Strasbourg upheld the right of workers to wear crosses as a visible manifestation of faith – as long it does not fall foul of health and safety policies. The court also rejected challenges by two Christians who lost their jobs for taking a stand on what they saw as a matter of conscience.

Pray: for clarity in what proved to be a mixed, possibly ambiguous judgement. (1Co.2:14)

More: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/religion/9804007/Christians-rights-trampled-on-by-obsessive-political-correctness-say-dissenting-European-judges.html