I have never heard of anything so daft!!! - 2 PC hits CofE!

Church of England Bishops have rejected a request to ring out the bells of churches on St George’s Day.
The idea to ring out the bells was suggested by churchgoer Libby Alexander, who wrote to each of the 44 Church of England diocesan bishops suggesting the idea.
Only five of them responded positively to the idea, whilst more than half did not respond to the letter.
In her letter, Alexander said that church attendance was falling because of “the lack of assertiveness or confidence emanating from the top… [and the] strangulations of political correctness”, reports the Daily Mail.
She also encouraged the bishops, “What an uplifting, wondrous sound it would be if bells rang out to remind the country that Christianity exists and that churches are there to welcome."
However, the Bishop of Ripon and Leeds, the Rt Rev John Packer, responded saying, “I am not sure assertiveness is a Christian value.”
The Bishop of Portsmouth, the Rt Rev Dr Kenneth Stevenson, also expressed concern that “some secularists would claim the Church was imposing its beliefs and practices on the whole population”.
The Rt Rev Dr Peter Foster, Bishop of Chester, said meanwhile, “There would be dangers in putting on ‘public displays’ of confidence.”

Something to pray about.. (in case you're stuck)

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Japanese, South Korean and U.S. missile-destroying ships set sail to monitor North Korea's imminent rocket launch, as Pyongyang stoked tensions Monday by detaining a South Korean worker for allegedly denouncing the North's political system.
North Korea says it will send a communications satellite into orbit between April 4 and 8. The U.S., South Korea and Japan suspect the regime is using the launch to test long-range missile technology, and warn it would face U.N. sanctions under a Security Council resolution banning the country from any ballistic activity.
North Korea has threatened to quit international talks on its nuclear disarmament if punished with sanctions. The communist regime's main newspaper, Rodong Sinmun, reiterated that warning Sunday, saying the talks will "completely collapse" if taken to the Security Council.

Film Night

FAFF Film Night - Great nibbles provided and a great crowd but unfortunately it had to be cancelled due to bad light!

Man

If a man is standing in the middle of the forest speaking and there is no woman around to hear him...is he still wrong?

Alice Kahn - Technology

For a list of all the ways technology has failed to improve the quality of life, please press three.
- Alice Kahn

John Piper - Prayer

A prayerless Christian is like having your room wallpapered in Sak's Fifth Avenue gift certificates but always shopping at Ragstock because you can't read.— John Piper

Matthew - Good Gifts

"Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened."
"Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!"
Matthew 7:7-11

10,000,000 Baptisms in Africa

The Africa Assemblies of God Alliance (AAGA) has set out to baptise 10 million believers within a 10-year period, reports the denomination’s news agency.
AG African leaders committed themselves to the “Decade of Pentecost” at an AAGA meeting in Johannesburg, South Africa, earlier this month that occurs once every four years.
Spearheading initiatives for the Decade of Pentecost will be Acts in Africa, a ministry aimed at encouraging Pentecostal revival in the Assemblies of God in Africa.
During the Decade of Pentecost, which will begin in 2010 and continue through 2020, national Assemblies of God churches will mobilise for global missions with the vision of reaching “yet-to-be-reached” peoples in Africa and the world with the Gospel, according to AG News.
AAGA’s strategies for achieving its goal include an annual Pentecost Day when about 48,000 AG pastors will be challenged to preach on the “baptism in the Holy Spirit and the mission of God” and pray with believers to be filled with the Holy Spirit.
There are about 16 million AG members meeting in more than 50,000 churches in 50 countries in sub-Sahara Africa and the Indian Ocean Basin, according to the denomination. In 1990, there were only 2.1 million constituents and 12,000 churches.
The Assemblies of God is the world’s largest Pentecostal denomination with somewhere between 57 to 60 million adherents.
Three decades ago, the combined total of Pentecostals and Charismatics was less than 5 per cent, now they make up some 17 per cent of Africa’s population, or about 147 million people, according to a 2006 Pew Forum study that highlighted the dramatic growth of the movement within half a century.
"Pentecostalism's dramatic expansion has left almost no part of sub-Saharan Africa unaffected," stated the Pew Forum. "If Pentecostal churches continue to grow in numbers and activism, the long-range political impact of Africa's vibrant Pentecostal community will become increasingly difficult to ignore.”
The Pew Forum report on Pentecostalism in Africa was one of three parts that also examined the movement’s growth in Asia and Latin America.

Anyone else catch this? Not much said in the press!!!

Anyone else here a fan of soccer genius Paul Gascoigne? Over the years I've followed his career with desperate fascination as he has hurtled down towards the bottom of the cliff, wanting to reach out and not knowing how.

As a one-time journeywoman along that 'road most travelled', I feel a gruesome horror when watching another flawed human being in the grip of compulsions they cannot believe they cannot control, lurching from one disaster to the next, pursued by those hideous 'horsemen of the apocalypse'.

All around, all the time, there are others making that same journey. Most never 'get off the lift'. When they do, they often rarely stay off it. Death or insanity are too often the result. But I've seen others, deemed beyond hope by all who know and love them including me, make incredible recoveries.

Gascoigne credits his new-found faith in God. 'I just thank Him for today. If I don't drink, I just say thanks.'

An old friend of mine, Andre, used to say: 'When even one man or woman gets to this place, all the angels in heaven are silent in awe.' I believe that's something of what Jesus meant when he talked of not even one sparrow falling without God knowing of it.

Judging by this interview that I caught on Sky this morning, Paul Gascoigne has finally got it. I really never thought he would, and can only pray silence in awe.

Ruth Gledhill is The Times Religion Correspondent. In this blog she offers her views on the issues of the day. Your responses are invited.

Indira Gandhi - Shake Hands

"You cannot shake hands with a clenched fist."

You can get anything in the Trade-It

"Nagging Wife. No Tax, No MOT. Very high maintenance -- some rust," wrote Gary Bates, 38, in a small ad in Trade-It, more usually used to buy and sell cars or household goods.

Bates, a self-employed builder from Gloucestershire, southwest England, snapped after his wife Donna on got on his nerves while she was watching television and decided to place the ad as a joke.

"She was nagging me for doing something small, while she was watching some rubbish on TV. So I just thought I'd put an ad in to get rid of her.

"I didn't think anyone would ring up but I've had at least nine or 10 people calling about her. It's gone mad. There was no one I knew -- just people asking, 'Is she still available?'"

The couple only married last year, and Bates said his 40-year-old wife -- whom he advertised in the magazine's Free to Collect section, along with some of his fishing tackle -- initially gave him "a bit of an ear-bashing."

But he said: "She's seen the funny side of it now though!"

Dwight L Moody - Faith

A little faith will bring your soul to heaven, but a lot of faith will bring heaven to your soul.
Dwight L. Moody

£15.5m to repair churches from English Heritage.

English Heritage and the Heritage Lottery Fund have allocated 15.5 million pounds to help with urgent repairs on some of the oldest churches, chapels and synagogues in England.

Beneficiaries include St Mildred’s church, a Grade I listed building on the Isle of Wight, that was designed by the husband of Queen Victoria, Prince Albert. Both worshipped at the church, which has been awarded £208,000 to help repair the roof. Queen Victoria’s youngest daughter, Princess Beatrice, was also married and buried there.

Speaking to Church Times, Rev Jonathan Hall, the Rector of the church said, “When she came here to worship, she used to sit on a simple chair, upholstered in blue velvet in the side aisle, which has its own private entrance. The new grant will enable us to retile the chancel and the Royal Pew roof, as well as take down and rebuild the bell tower.”

He said that the church had already been given a grant of £216,000 to repair the roof of the main tower.

The church to receive the biggest grant was the independent Congregational church, the Union Chapel in Islington, which received a grant of £421,000.

The New West End Synagogue in Bayswater, London, also received a grant of £108,000.

The Rabbi Geoffrey Shisler said, “We are extremely grateful to receive this grant. It is not just important to our Jewish community, but important to the whole of England to have historic buildings, like our magnificent synagogue, that we can be proud of.”

Train runs over person!

Someone was current on their tithing

Table Top Sale - Saturday 14th March 2009

Beat the Credit Crunch! Grab a bargain.
TABLE TOP SALE - Saturday 14th March 2009
Church of the Nazarene, Broadwalk, Knowle Park, Bristol BS4 1BZ. Opposite Redcatch Park!
Time: 9 to 12 am
Location: Church Hall
Atmosphere: Very Friendly and always better than sitting in front of the telly!
Tea and Coffee: Excellent (and free!)

Time to do a bit of first minute Christmas shopping!!! Credit crunch friendly! Donations of goods, time or baked items always welcome. Come by for a free cup of tea or coffee and a natter. This is also a good opportunity to come and ask someone about the church and upcoming events you might be interested in, such as Friday Friendship or Children's Clubs.

From Table Top Sales

Prayer Day for State of the Nation!

“Your Kingdom come, Your will be done” was the prayer of hundreds of Christians who gathered at a central London church on Saturday to cry out to God over the moral and spiritual crisis in the UK.

The State of the Nation gathering also focused on repentance over the church’s silence in the face of immoral legislation passed over the decades, particularly in the areas of the unborn child and marriage. All mainstream denominations were represented at Saturday’s gathering at the Emmanuel Centre, near the Houses of Parliament. Prayer gatherings were also held in Birmingham, Manchester and Edinburgh and in countries around the world, including the US, Germany and Australia, in an expression of solidarity with the London meeting. The day of prayer and repentance was organised following a meeting at the House of Lords last December of some 80 Christians from the church, the Houses of Parliament, and the business and education sectors. The meeting focused on the moral and spiritual implications of the financial crisis and concluded with a call for a season of prayer and fasting for the UK. David Noakes, a member of the State of the Nation facilitating group, said the prayer meeting was possibly the most important gathering since World War II.

“Only then it was a nation. Now it is a remnant people. But don’t be dismayed that it is a remnant,” he said, pointing to the battle won by the Lord with the 300 warriors of Gideon. Mr Noakes chided the church for failing to speak out against ungodly legislation and urged the church not to be swayed by political correctness. “God is not politically correct but biblically correct,” he said, adding that the church needed to cast out the sin within its own ranks and return to a fear of the Lord. Mr Noakes ended with a note of encouragement, saying that God had not forgotten about Christians in Britain because of the country’s special history and that the despair brought on by the financial crisis would prompt more people to turn to God.

“There are many people in great despair because the whole world system is coming down around them. God will bring many people into the light of salvation out of that darkness and they will come back again to a fear of the Lord.”

Never thought I would put an article about Jade Goody here!

Terminally ill Jade Goody is looking forward to the christening of her sons next weekend. Fresh from her wedding to Jack Tweed last Sunday, Goody is focusing on preparations for the christening of sons Bobby, five, and Freddie, four. According to her publicist, Max Clifford, the christening will take place next Saturday at a church near Goody’s home in Upshire, Essex.

“She is looking forward to the christening,” said Mr Clifford. “She is planning it with friends and family.”

Goody made the decision to christen her sons after being told by doctors last month that her cancer was terminal. She said she wanted to christen them and teach them about Jesus so that they would know their mummy was looking down on them from Heaven. The christening will be performed by independent Bishop Jonathan Blake, who also performed Goody’s wedding to Tweed. Mr Clifford said Goody wanted to throw a big party for her boys.

“It will be a local church then a party for all the children. She wants to make it as big a party as possible. She is going to get christened herself as well. She wanted to do that.”

The former Big Brother contestant’s condition is said to be deteriorating. She is being cared for at the St Clare Hospice in Hastingwood, near Harlow, Essex, after being taken in for treatment on Friday following hallucinations. A friend of Jade told the Sunday Mirror she was in utter pain and had said she feared not making it to the weekend. Bishop Blake has offered to hold the christenings wherever is easiest for Jade.

He was quoted by The Daily Mail as saying: “The christening can happen anywhere, inside or outside, there are no restrictions. It can even be carried out in the hospice, if that’s where Jade wants it. It would not matter one iota if she is bedridden. The family have asked me to keep quiet about the ceremony they want and I must respect their privacy. She knows I am there for her when she needs me.”

Bruce Reed - Free

To worship effectively is to enable men to become free.

Bruce Reed

What ever happened to "Spend-A-Penny?"

LONDON (Reuters) - Ryanair's chief executive said Europe's largest budget carrier might start charging passengers for using the toilet while flying, but his spokesman cautioned Michael O'Leary often just made things up at will.

"One thing we have looked at in the past and are looking at again is the possibility of maybe putting a coin slot on the toilet door so that people might actually have to spend a pound ($1.43) to spend a penny in future," O'Leary told BBC television. He said this would not inconvenience passengers traveling without cash. "I don't think there is anybody in history that has got on board a Ryanair aircraft with less than a pound."

A spokesman said the airline had considered the fee as a possible source of extra revenue since passengers had the option of not using the toilet on board, but added that "maybe O'Leary was just taking the p*ss this morning. Michael makes a lot of this stuff up as he goes along and while this has been discussed internally there are no immediate plans to introduce it," Stephen McNamara said in a statement.

O'Leary has a reputation as a cost-cutter, expanding Ryanair by offering low headline fares and charging extra for items such as additional luggage. Last week, Ryanair announced it was to shut all check-in desks at airports and have passengers check in online instead.

"We're all about finding ways of raising discretionary revenue so we can keep lowering the cost of air travel," he said