i-church

Thank you Caroline for the New Year Prayer :votive1: I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone involved with the day to day running of i church, nothing ‘just happens’ It all takes commitment, time, enthusiasm and sometimes the cooperation of modern technology to give us this Sanctuar...

Which pieces of music say 'Christmas' to you? This is one of my favourites - the Shepherd's Farewell from 'L'Enfance du Christ by Berlioz. Like many of my favourite pieces, it's one that I sang while in my school choir, and I enjoyed being part of the lush harmonies. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=...

I think we've taken the idea of TV debates from the US, and so far I don't think they really suit our style of politics. There don't seem to be many interviewers who can hold things together and keep the speakers on track in terms of answering the questions rather than reciting their manifestoes. An...

I think General Elections are often fought on who can paint the most appealing picture of the future, aren't they? The BBC have provided a guide to candidates here . I heard one of the political commentators say that the manifestoes this time around will probably be quite sparse. I think the way I'l...

I think austerity has been an attempt to "live within our means", and has led to a lot of deprivation and the starvation of systems many of us rely on, like the NHS and public transport. Of course, this is my personal view. No, I don't know where the borrowed money comes from, either - maybe from th...

I prefer to vote in person so that I can take the whole campaign into consideration, but I know a lot of people prefer a postal vote. I think PR does imply that parties will have to work together, since there are likely to be several different parties represented, with no clear majority. There's no ...

I think there are two sides to discerning a vocation to a formal ministry - our own sense of calling, and the church's assessment of where we fit into the wider ministry picture. Sometimes our sense of calling runs ahead of the church! I was convinced God was calling me to be ordained, but always fe...

I think if you know where God is calling you, you know. If you're not sure, then being given a steer like a suggestion to work in a wider area can be really helpful. I've been watching the sudden discovery of 'Estates Ministry' in the C of E with a degree of scepticism, because I know people who hav...

I hope and pray that the EU agrees to an extension to allow the General Election to go forward where I am pretty sure there will be a Brexit motion on the manifesto of all parties, which might or might not, decide the issue for the longer term. <snip> :minicandle: :minicandle: :minicandle: Prayers ...

Great to see you here again, Barry. I’ve been to Keswick, but not during the Convention. When our children were young, we used to go with my sister and her family to New Wine in Somerset, which was a similar event with plenty of teaching, music and prayer ministry. We found it a breath of fresh air ...

The choir sang it at church yesterday. I'd forgotten how uplifting it was.

To celebrate this lovely summer day - John Rutter's beautiful anthem, sung by Paya Lebar Methodist Girls' School (Primary) choir.

Re politics and preaching - your original question - I'm always aware of the alleged gap between clergy and congregations in the C of E, in that it's always assumed that clergy are politically to the left of most congregations. I don't know if this is supported by any research, or just a perception....

I just wanted to add : if you can't avoid talking about poverty and inequality,( but please try to ) for God's sake don't talk about the poor and unequal as if they are other people. This is my own biggest bete noir. One of my own biggest bete noires in prayer has always been 'Those less fortunate ...

I guess our new PM feels he has to make a big impact in a short time, and, having promised to deliver Brexit, has gathered the team he feels can do that. I can't really criticise him, even though a lot of good ministers have been sidelined - that's politics, I suppose, and they will be aware of the ...

He is risen indeed.

Alleluia!

I tend to agree that the current situation is Parliament working as it should, Joyce. Things that will profoundly affect the development of our country deserve more than a passing glance by out legislators. What I don't understand is why the vast majority of these legislators were happy to vote thro...

Back in the day, the EU was known as the Common Market, and was about trading. I remember when I was a child the shops had a lot of goods like 'Australian cheddar' that we don;'t see any more. As I understand it, the EU as a body signs trade deals which guarantee the other party access to the whole ...

I've just listened to this BBC Lent talk by Bex Lewis about her experiences of cancer, which I found very helpful.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0003jj7

Bex believes strongly in 'keeping it real' online, and has been sharing her experiences honestly, including the difficult bits.

Today marks the 25th anniversary of the ordination of women to the priesthood in the Church of England. Women now serve at every level of ordained ministry except Archbishop! 25th anniversary of the ordination of women to the priesthood Maybe today is the day to read my recent birthday present - Arc...

Very sorry to hear of this tragedy, Joe,

I think it depends on local custom and practice, especially in the UK. I went to a Catholic retreat centre for a guided Ignatian retreat, and the introductory leaflet stated that non-Catholics should request a blessing at the Eucharist. It was explained to us that this was in keeping with the rules ...

When I first joined a church, there was a very active 'Area Council of Churches' (which became 'Churches Together' in due course) and I attended lots of joint events. However, I couldn't but notice that it was the same few people from each church who ran and attended the events. I did particularly e...

Speaking of 'ases' - I find there's a lot to think about in 'Love your neighbour as yourself', too.