Stonemasonry up for auction at Worcester Cathedral
AN AUCTION of stones carved by apprentices has been announced by Worcester Cathedral. On display in the Dean’s Chapel until 28 November, the ten action lots were chosen by the Master Mason, Darren Steele. The apprenticeship programme, which began 35 years ago, was vital to ensure a supply of people “with the skills to restore, conserve and respect the stonework”, he said. “It is key that we retain all the characteristics and architectural styles so future generations will be able to enjoy the beauty of the Cathedral and explore its history.” Anyone can submit a sealed bid by 1 December on a form on the cathedral website, or in person at the exhibition. The stones vary from 8kg to 30kg in weight. All proceeds will support the stonemason team. www.worcestercathedral.org.uk/support-us/carved-stone-auction
Interfaith specialist to hold Church House public-life portfolio
THE next Director of Faith and Public Life for the C of E is to be the Revd Dr Richard Sudworth (above), currently the Archbishop of Canterbury’s secretary for inter-religious affairs. Before taking up his current post, he served as a parish priest in Sparkbrook, Birmingham, a Muslim-majority area where he worked on community outreach and interfaith dialogue. He also lectured in Anglican theology at the Queen’s Foundation, Birmingham, and wrote a book, Encountering Islam, about Christian-Muslim relations (Books, 16 June 2017). In 2023, he was appointed OBE for services to interfaith cohesion. Expected to take up the post early next year, he succeeds the Revd Dr Malcolm Brown, who is retiring after 17 years.
Children need education about vaping, charity warns
THE Government’s Tobacco and Vapes Bill, to ban vape advertising and restrict flavours, packaging, and display, has been welcomed by the Christian charity Hope UK. But it warned last week that there was “no substitute for evidence-based drug education”, reporting that its work with Year 6 primary-school children suggested that “many youngsters wrongly believe that the legal age for vaping is 16 and do not know that vapes or e-cigarettes were invented to help people quit smoking.” NHS data suggest that around one in ten secondary-school pupils vapes.
Lord Harries’s British-values Bill progresses unamended
A BILL to extend the “British values” taught in schools to freedom of religion and respect for the environment, proposed by the former Bishop of Oxford Lord Harries, will now move to its Third Reading in the House of Lords, after no amendments were tabled. In the introduction to the Second Reading of his Education (Values of British Citizenship) Bill (News, 2 August), Lord Harries sought to “make these values clearer and more holistic” as well as to get them termed “values of British citizenship” in future.
National Estates Churches Network celebrates 20 years
CELEBRATIONS to mark the 20th anniversary of the National Estate Churches Network culminated in a party at St Mary Magdalene’s, Gorleston, on the Norfolk coast, on Monday. Children and young people from the local community were invited to celebrate with a birthday cake and activities including a giant inflatable human whack-a-mole. St Mary Magdalene’s has one of the most deprived parishes in the country. Its Vicar, the Revd Matthew Price, praised the Network, an ecumenical charity, for providing “invaluable support and encouragement to churches like us who are seeking to serve communities in some of the most deprived neighbourhoods of our area”.
Archbishops’ Council member to chair BRF
THE next chair of BRF Ministries will be Canon Mark Sheard, a former chief executive of World Vision, it was announced this week. Formerly known as the Bible Reading Fellowship, the charity was launched in 1922 by the Revd Leslie Mannering, a Vicar in south London, offering a leaflet with daily Bible readings. It is now home to ministries including Messy Church, Parenting for Faith, and Anna Chaplaincy. A licensed lay minister in the dioceses of London and St Edmundsbury & Ipswich, Canon Sheard is also a member of the Archbishops’ Council. At BRF he will succeed Bishop Colin Fletcher, who has served as chair for more than 20 years.