Commissioners to go public with footprint
THE Church Commissioners have committed themselves to publicly disclosing the carbon footprint of their equity portfolio each year. By signing the PRI Montreal Pledge, launched last year, they join almost 100 organisations representing more than $8 trillion. The Commissioners are already signatories to the UN-supported Principles for Responsible Investment.
Increase in child abuse involving witchcraft
THE number of child-abuse cases involving accusations of witchcraft and exorcism reported to the police has increased, the Metropolitan Police said this week. A specialist unit in London, Project Violet, recorded 46 alleged crimes in this category — more than double the figure in 2013. So far this year, it has identified 60 cases. Detective Sergeant Terry Sharpe told Radio 5 Live, which investigated the issue, of the case of a nine-year-old boy who was called a devil child, and was thrown out of his home.
Bishop Thorpe at Bishopthorpe
THE Bishop for Church Planting, the Bishop of Islington, the Rt Revd Ric Thorpe, led a workshop at Bishopthorpe on Monday. “There are impressive examples of churches being planted and rejuvenated across the north of England,” he said. “We would love to see a fresh wave of church planting in our day, in order to reach new people with the Gospel of Jesus Christ.”
Church bell rings non-stop in Borough
THE incessant tolling of a broken clock bell of St George the Martyr, in Borough High Street, London, kept residents awake on Monday night. A sign on the church door on Tuesday morning apologised, and a series of lighthearted tweets promised that it was “not intentional” and that its frustrated staff were becoming “hysterical”. Engineers fixed the malfunctioning bell on Tuesday, at lunchtime.
New website to be one-stop shop for healing ministry
A NEW website dedicated to healing ministry in Anglican churches — a “one-stop shop” for resources — was launched this month. The Archbishops’ adviser for the healing ministry, the Revd Dr Beatrice Brandon, said that although search engines presented people with “a vast range of options”, there was “nothing to offer information about how it is expressed, or its availability within the Church of England’s dioceses, parishes and cathedrals”. www.healingministry.org.uk
