Christian Concern Podcasts: Recent Episodes
Christian Concern
We seek to speak of Jesus Christ in public life – especially in the arenas of politics, law and the media – and particularly on issues related to gospel freedoms, family and God’s precious gift of life.
Through the Christian Legal Centre we give support to those facing challenges, in their workplace or in community life, as a result of their Christian faith.
We also provide news and resources to help Christians and local churches to engage in public life.
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Head of Public Policy Tim Dieppe has highlighted for years the link between ‘grooming gangs’ and Islam. Here he appears on Pure 24/7 Radio to review the new report from Rupert Lowe’s inquiry.Read more: https://christianconcern.com/comment/rape-gang-inquiry-report-islam/
Our Head of Public Policy Tim Dieppe explains our legal case against Colchester City Council which attempts to shut down and censor local church’s evangelism efforts.
Steve Beegoo joins Premier Radio to respond to tax on Christian schools by Christian Concern
Tim Dieppe discusses 'Anti-Muslim hatred' definition on Premier Radio by Christian Concern
Head of Education Steve Beegoo discusses the government's draft gender guidance for schools on Premier Radio by Christian Concern
Jennifer Melle talks to Rod Liddle on Times Radio after St Helier and Epsom University Hospitals dropped its ‘data breach’ case against her and reinstated her.Read more: https://christianconcern.com/news/nhs-trust-drops-case-against-jennifer-melle-and-reinstates-her/
Straight after the Darlington Nurses' win, Jennifer's job was also saved. Not only that but we contended for Christian schools and for sacked theology lecturer Aaron Edwards.Chief executive Andrea Williams joins us for a livestream telling the remarkable story of this week and what needs to happen next.
Livestream: Police lie after enforcing Islamic demands to ban Israeli fans by Christian Concern
Michael Phillips from the Christian Legal Centre discusses the potential enforcement of hate crime laws on Premier Christian Radio.
Our Head of Public Policy Tim Dieppe spoke to Tom Swarbrick on LBC about a university's plan to host a mockery of the Christmas nativity, titled: A Gay in a Manger
Our Head of Education Steve Beego joins BBC Radio Ulster to discuss Northern Ireland's Religious Education Supreme Court ruling
Christian street preacher Shaun O’Sullivan has been cleared by a jury at Swindon Crown Court after a trial that raised serious questions about freedom of speech and the policing of so-called “hate claims.”Mr O’Sullivan, 36, who is being supported by lawyers at the Christian Legal Centre, faced charges of religiously aggravated intentional harassment under the Crime and Disorder Act 1998, after being accused of saying “We love the Jews” , Jew haters,” and “Palestine lovers,” at a group of Muslims in Swindon town centre on 15 September 2024.Here he speaks to Premier radio about his case with the Christian Legal Centre's Michael Phillips.
| Tim Dieppe on the grooming gangs scandal, with United Christian BroadcastersDescription: Head of Public Policy Tim Dieppe speaks to United Christian Broadcasters about the grooming gangs scandal, and the withdrawal of the man who was thought to be the only remaining candidate to chair the government's inquiry.Wednesday 22 October 2025
The Darlington Nurses' employment tribunal begins in Newcastlehttps://christianconcern.com/cccases/darlington-nurses/BBC Radio 4 22/10/25
This week, hundreds of thousands of students received their grades - but just how important are children’s academic results?Head of Education Steve Beegoo spoke to United Christian Broadcasters this week about results day, and reminds parents that academic results, while important, are not as important as the need to disciple our children in the ways of the Lord Jesus.
Pastor Tunde Balogun spoke with Premier Christian Radio about his church's legal victory, after successfully overturning a controversial Public Spaces Protection Order (PSPO) that effectively criminalised its Christian outreach ministry.Read more: https://christianconcern.com/news/church-overturns-ban-on-outreach-ministry-in-uxbridge/
Aliya Abbasi, mother of Zainab Abbasi, spoke to BBC Radio 4 after a landmark win for open justice at the Supreme Court this week. For seven years now, the Christian Legal Centre has been supporting Rashid and Aliya Abbasi, and Lanre Haastrup in challenging the Court's permanent gagging orders which prevented them from naming doctors involved in their children's end of life care and tragic passing.Read more about the judgment and watch their statements:https://christianconcern.com/news/supreme-court-win-for-parents-over-secretive-end-of-life-practices/
This week at the High Court, the government will face a judicial review of its unprecedented VAT policies on private and independent Christian schools.The government’s decision to impose VAT on the provision of education by independent schools has made the UK an outlier among the 46 Council of Europe states.Supported by the Christian Legal Centre, Christian schools, parents and pupils are bringing the challenge from the award-winning Emmanuel School in Derby, the Branch Christian School in Yorkshire, the King’s School in Hampshire and the Wyclif Independent Christian School in South Wales.Find out more: https://christianconcern.com/news/government-to-face-judicial-review-from-christian-schools-over-vat-tax-raid/
"You must look at what the words actually mean, not how the reader may illegitimately receive it."Now it falls on the employer to show that she wrecked their reputation. It falls on the employer to show that what she was doing was manifestly wrong. And that's a much better standard."Andrea Williams, Chief Executive of Christian Concern, spoke with Trevor Phillips on Times Radio about Kristie Higgs' win at the Court of Appeal and what it means for Christian freedoms.Read more about Kristie's case: https://christianconcern.com/news/kristie-higgs-wins-as-court-of-appeal-rules-dismissal-for-free-speech-is-illegal/
Steve Beegoo, Head of Education at Christian Concern, was on Premier Christian Radio offering advice to parents on how to love and guide their children if they are being bullied in school. He shares about how parents can respond in a godly way if their children have been found to be bullying others, and how important it is for parents and children to share a heartfelt connection.Have a look at our new education website where you can find resources and updates: https://education.christianconcern.com/
"It is incredible that Kristie’s case had to go all the way up to the Court of Appeal in order to show she had been discriminated against."Tim Dieppe spoke to Nick Ferrari on LBC about Kristie Higgs' vindication and the many other Christians in the UK who undergo persecution for their Christian faith.Read about her six-year long case here: https://christianconcern.com/news/kristie-higgs-wins-as-court-of-appeal-rules-dismissal-for-free-speech-is-illegal/
Michael Phillips, who defended Kristie Higgs in her landmark free speech case, was on Times Radio with Rod Liddle. Last week, after a dramatic six-year battle, the Court of Appeal ruled in Kristie's favour, resetting the legal landscape on freedom of speech and religion in the workplace.Rod Liddle by the sheer number of Christians contacting the Christian Legal Centre for help because they had been put out of job for saying or posting something which appeared offensive.Read more about Kristie's win here: https://christianconcern.com/ccpressreleases/kristie-higgs-wins-as-court-of-appeal-rules-dismissal-for-free-speech-is-illegal/
Tim Dieppe spoke with Ben Kentish on LBC about Kristie Higgs' win after a dramatic six-year legal battle supported by the Christian Legal Centre. He argued that biblical teaching of marriage is worth defending especially in schools, and that respecting views which contradict God's word does not necessarily mean agreeing with them.
Roger Kiska, Legal Counsel to the Christian Legal Centre, spoke with Martin Stanford about the high-profile and seminal legal case of sacked Christian school assistant, Kristie Higgs. They discussed just before the Court of Appeal handed down its judgment on Wednesday, 12 February.Culminating a six-year legal battle, supported from the beginning by the Christian Legal Centre, the judgment would shape the law for years to come on free speech and freedom to express faith in the UK.In 2019, Mrs Higgs was sacked for gross misconduct by Farmor’s Secondary School in Gloucestershire, and had her Christian beliefs compared to Neo-Nazism, for two Facebook posts.Read about her case here: https://christianconcern.com/cccases/kristie-higgs/
VICTORY FOR FREEDOM - KRISTIE HIGGS WINSThe Court of Appeal has reversed a ruling which defended the dismissal of Kristie Higgs from Farmor’s School in Gloucestershire for raising concern on Facebook about extreme sex education and transgender ideology being taught in her son's Church of England primary school.Roger Kiska, Legal Counsel at the Christian Legal Centre, was on LBC with Tom Swarbrick discussing the groundbreaking decision which re-shapes the law on freedom of religion in the workplace.Read about Kristie's win here: https://christianconcern.com/news/kristie-higgs-wins-as-court-of-appeal-rules-dismissal-for-free-speech-is-illegal/
Becki Bruneau is a Christian psychotherapist, county councillor, wife and mother, who has overcome life-threatening illnesses as a child and adult. And Becki is against the government’s proposed assisted suicide bill.Becki, from Kent, spoke to United Christian Broadcast on 31 January 2025, highlighting the risks of coercion in the bill, and how, if made law, assisted suicide would prey on vulnerable people.Read more: https://christianconcern.com/news/overcomer-of-cancer-and-brain-injury-speaks-out-against-assisted-suicide/
Stephen White, 40, shares on Premier Christian Radio about the many sacrifices made in order to provide his son Josiah, 14, with a Christian education. He is one of 13 claimants supported by the Christian Legal Centre who have launched an application for a judicial review over the government’s VAT tax raid on private and independent schools.Those bringing the challenge include the award-winning Emmanuel School in Derby, the Branch Christian School in Yorkshire, the King’s School in Hampshire and the Wyclif Independent Christian School in South Wales.Read more about the case: https://christianconcern.com/news/education-freedom-at-stake-as-christians-launch-legal-action/
Tim Dieppe, head of public policy at Christian Concern, was on Premier Christian Radio speaking about Gozen Soydag, a social media influencer and education behavioural specialist whose case will be heard at an employment tribunal this week.Gozen's social media accounts, which champion Biblical marriage and purity, were censored by St Anne’s Catholic High School for Girls before she was sacked on her birthday and ordered to leave the school premises without pay.Read more about it: https://christianconcern.com/news/school-pastoral-manager-sacked-for-marriage-beliefs/
Andrea Williams was on LBC speaking to Tom Swarbrick about the Christian footballer, Marc Guéhi who was criticised, pressurised and punished for loving Jesus and expressing Christian beliefs in public.What he is facing is not a new theme for us and gets to the heart of many of the biggest legal cases the Christian Legal Centre supports. Find out more: https://x.com/CConcern/status/1864334423912583405
Tim Dieppe talked to Premier Christian Radio to explain the ramifications of Kim Leadbeater's assisted suicide Bill and discuss the conflict between creating a culture of death and enabling people to live well.
Becki Bruneau, a Christian psychotherapist, county councillor, wife and mother, who has overcome life-threatening illnesses as a child and adult, was on Premier Christian Radio sharing her remarkable life testimony. Having said to her husband "Let me die" during a time of deep pain, she now speaks out against the government’s proposed assisted suicide bill, which would 'prey on the vulnerable'. The bill has its second reading in Parliament this Friday, 29 November.Read more: https://christianconcern.com/news/overcomer-of-cancer-and-brain-injury-speaks-out-against-assisted-suicide/
Church of England chaplain Rev. Dr Bernard Randall spoke to Martin Stanford on LBC this morning. He is pursuing a judicial review of a decision not to allow a disciplinary case to proceed against the Bishop Libby Lane, who was found to have wrongly blacklisted him as a safeguarding risk for giving a sermon on identity politics. Before seeking permission for a judicial review, Dr Randall also handed in a CitizenGO petition signed by more than 40,000 people calling on Justin Welby to apologise and give him his life and career back.Read more here:https://christianconcern.com/news/chaplain-pursues-judicial-review-after-justin-welby-found-plainly-wrong/
'Parents feel such pressure to be friends with their children and to just go along with them. Actually it's healthy to discipline them for things they do wrong - they appreciate it. They need clear boundaries of right and wrong.'Three schools in Scotland are officially recognising 'species dysphoria' in children who identify as wolves and other animals. Tim Dieppe was on Premier Christian Radio with youth pastor Sarah Williams and host Esther Higham to discuss godly ways in which parents should respond to schools and point their children to God's design - in his image, male and female.
Steve Beegoo was in conversation with former Labour MP Stephen Pound and Esther Higham about the overlooked problems in Labour's proposed tax on private schools, and how it would disproportionally penalise faith-based, special needs and small private schools.Christian schools, parents and pupils, being supported by Christian Legal Centre, say they will pursue a judicial review as opposition to Labour’s policy grows:https://christianconcern.com/news/labours-vat-policy-to-face-judicial-review/30 SeptemberPremier Christian Radio
"We don't legalise to kill in this country. It would be devastating not just for those who are saying they want it, but for those who are in difficult situations and need to be told: You are beautiful, you are dignified, there is hope."Ahead of the first reading of Kim Leadbeater's bill to legalise assisted suicide on Wednesday 16 October, our Chief Executive Andrea Williams speaks with LBC about the far-reaching consequences of a change in law, seen in countries where it has been legalised.She speaks of the truly compassionate alternative - help and community which bring hope and beauty to those in despair.
Residents have been told that being on private property is no bar to prosecution under the new abortion law in Scotland. A letter sent to residents in an Edinburgh “safe access zone,” seen by The Telegraph, warned they could face criminal prosecution if they do “anything” that “would cause harassment, alarm, or distress” to staff and women seeking abortions.Andrea Williams tells Premier Christian Radio why we have always opposed the implementation of buffer zones around abortion facilities, and shares about countless arrests that have been made for praying silently or holding a sign within the area.
Christian schools, parents and pupils, being supported by Christian Legal Centre, say they will pursue a Judicial Review as opposition to Labour’s policy grows. Caroline Santer, Headteacher at The King’s School in Hampshire, was on Times Radio Breakfast this morning to discuss with Aasmah Mir and Stig Abell.Find out more on our website: https://christianconcern.com/news/labours-vat-policy-to-face-judicial-review/Read the article on The Times: https://www.thetimes.com/uk/education/article/private-christian-schools-to-sue-government-over-vat-plans-tk7lls3vb
Andrea Williams, Chief Executive of Christian Concern and the Christian Legal Centre speaks to Martin Stanford live on LBC outside the Court of Appeal as Kristie Higgs prepares to enter for a precedent-setting challenge for the expression of Christian belief and free speech at large.The Court will determine whether it is lawful for an employer to punish employees for private social media posts expressing beliefs on religious, political and moral issues.The case will have significant ramifications for Christian freedom in the workplace and the freedom of any employee to express biblical principles on sexuality, marriage and family, without the fear of losing their livelihoods.The hearing is the culmination of a five-year legal battle.Find out more:https://christianconcern.com/comment/kristie-higgs-why-her-case-matters-for-christian-freedoms/Christian Concern and the Christian Legal Centre have supported Kristie’s case for five years. We need your help to keep supporting Kristie and other Christians like her.Could you help by making a donation today?https://mailchi.mp/christianconcern/stand-with-kristie-for-freedom
"There are people who are alive today because volunteers kindly offered an alternative to women who were desperate and saw abortion as the only option."Why should it be a criminal offence in anywhere in the UK to pray about anything you like in your mind?"Censorship zones around abortion facilities will come into force at the end of October 2024. Tim Dieppe was on LBC with Nick Ferrari to talk about why we have opposed this legislation since its introduction under the previous Conservative government.
Our head of public policy Tim Dieppe was on BBC Radio 4 with Edward Stourton, commenting on the use of cathedrals and places of worship for God's glory alone.
Rev. Dr Bernard Randall spoke with Lembit Öpik about the Church of England's safeguarding case blacklisting and barring him from ministry for almost five years now, which a legal advisor described as "egregious and the error gross”.Sign this petition calling on Archbishop Justin Welby to publicly apologise and give Bernard his life back: https://citizengo.org/en-gb/fr/13759-apologise-to-wrongly-blacklisted-chaplain-and-give-bernard-his-life-backIn 2019/20 Dr Randall was sacked for a sermon he gave on the Church of England's teaching on marriage in a Church of England chapel in a school with a Church of England ethos. Dr Randall had given the sermon following discredited and extreme gender identity group, Educate and Celebrate, being invited into the school to, in their words, ‘smash heteronormativity.’ He has been legally prevented from giving a sermon since losing his job at the school.
'They saved my daughter's life. If a buffer zone was in place I would not have my best friend today,' said 'Sarah'. In 2017 she came across pro-life campaigners while visiting an abortion facility and accepted their offer of accommodation and financial support in order to keep her baby.“The implementation of buffer zones around the country is a step backwards for freedom of movement, freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom to pray,” our chief executive, Andrea Williams told the BBC. “We can’t criminalise the mere presence of people.”
In a landmark ruling handed down yesterday, Lady Justice King, Lord Justice Singh and Lord Justice Baker overturned the decision of the Court of Protection which declared that 19-year-old Sudiksha Thirumalesh lacked mental capacity to make decisions about her medical treatment. Tragically, Sudiksha passed away in September last year.The Court of Appeal’s important judgment now reaffirms the right of patients to disagree with their doctors without risking being declared mentally incompetent and having their best interests assessed and enforced by the courts. This ruling potentially affects thousands of patients.Sudiksha's family react and Joshua Rozenberg gives legal comment on BBC Radio 4.Read more about the ruling in Sudiksha's heartbreaking case here:https://christianconcern.com/news/win-for-sudikshas-family-as-delusional-ruling-overturned/
"If this judgment stands, teachers could lose their job or be banned from the profession indefinitely if they refuse to lie about who a pupil is legally and biologically."Our Head of Public Policy Tim Dieppe spoke to Premier Christian Radio about yesterday's High Court ruling which upheld the banning of Christian maths teacher Joshua Sutcliffe, who refused to use the wrong pronouns of a girl identifying as a boy.Joshua has been supported by the Christian Legal Centre since 2017. Andrea Williams, Chief Executive says: "We will continue to support Joshua for as long as it takes to secure justice."Read more here: https://christianconcern.com/news/teacher-loses-high-court-appeal-after-being-banned-for-misgendering/
"Professor Louis Appleby who leads the National Suicide Prevention Strategy for England has said there is no evidence that suicide has risen since the High Court decision to restrict puberty blockers in 2020."Dr Jordan Peterson has described transgender ideology as the worst medical and psychological practice he has seen anywhere, including eugenics and frontal lobotomies."Tim Dieppe and Donna Birrell discuss Elon Musk's admission that his son has taken puberty blockers, and the lie that he was told that his son would commit suicide otherwise.In reality, when not affirmed, 98% of gender confused boys and 88% of gender confused girls eventually accept their biological sex after naturally passing through puberty.Read more:https://christianconcern.com/comment/how-social-transition-damages-children/-Premier Christian Radio24 July 2024
Tim Dieppe speaks to Donna Birrell about the phenomenon of cultural Christianity after Elon Musk confessed to Jordan Peterson that he is a cultural Christian.Like Richard Dawkins, these men praise and endorse the fruit of Christian values in society, but don't yet claim to worship the person of Jesus Christ - the root and way to eternal life.Premier Christian Radio24 July 2024
Join Tim Dieppe, Andrea Williams and Ben John as we react to the general election results and discuss how Christians should respond in the years ahead.
Join Steve Beegoo, Andrea Williams, Tim Dieppe and Ben John as we explore the issue of freedom from a Christian perspective - is it all about 'free speech'?
Join Roger Kiska, Andrea Williams and Paul Huxley for the third of our election-themed broadcasts. In these special editions of our 'round the table' discussions, we will be getting to the heart of what is really happening in our nation and examining the pillars of a flourishing society.
Tim went on LBC with Iain Dale to discuss Labour's pledge to implement a full ban on conversion therapy if it wins the election.Watch his full response to the Labour manifesto here: https://christianconcern.com/comment/responding-to-the-labour-manifesto/
With the advancement of reproductive technology, the number of surrogate babies has nearly quadrupled since 2011. Should surrogacy be on the cards for a Christian couple trying to conceive? What are some issues related to paying for the use of another woman's womb?Our head of public policy Tim Dieppe joined Susan Marriott of the Christian Medical Fellowship and host Esther Higham on Premier Radio to discuss the delicate matter.
"We are all made in God's image, and every human life is worthy of protection. This is foundational to good law and politics."In our second week of election-themed broadcasts, Paul Huxley, Ade Omooba MBE and Ben John discuss how laws around the beginning and end of life determine the kind of society we live in. With all-time high abortion rates across the UK and assisted suicide inching closer than ever, we must consider life's intrinsic value when choosing who to vote for.
What election issues should decide our vote as a Christian?Join Andrea Williams, Ade Omooba MBE and Ben John for the first of our election-themed broadcasts. In these special editions of our 'Round The Table' discussions, we will be getting to the heart of what's really happening in our nation - and how Jesus is our hope.
"It has never been difficult to define what a man or woman is in the past thousands of years, why is it suddenly difficult now in 2024?"Our head of public policy Tim Dieppe went on Premier Christian Radio to explain the implications of the Conservatives' promise to rewrite the Equality Act, so that protections it enshrines on the basis of someone's sex apply only to their biological sex."A gender recognition certificate allows you to falsify your birth certificate and say you were born as the opposite sex - this is just legal fiction. People should not be allowed to lie about who they are in law, that's changing history. Biological sex is very clearly defined."
At Round the Table on Friday, Ben John shared about an unprecedented case that has reached national news: 26 female nurses complained about harassment from a male, who identifies as a woman, in their changing room. He had been taking cross-sex hormones but then stopped doing so and was trying to get his girlfriend pregnant. These nurses have launched legal action against the NHS Foundation Trust with the help of the Christian Legal Centre.Andrea Williams shared updates on Aaron Edwards' case, as we have been in Sheffield supporting him during the week. The former lecturer in theology has just finished giving evidence at Tribunal against the Methodist Bible College who sacked him over a biblical tweet: "Homosexuality is invading the Church...".A commemorative casebound edition of "Beyond the Odds – Providence in Britain’s Wars of the 20th Century" has been released to mark the 80th Anniversary of D-Day. Tim Dieppe, who contributed two chapters to the book co-authored by John Scriven, spoke about God's remarkable providence in Britain's history.
Our Head of Education Steve Beegoo was on Premier Christianity's Inspirational Breakfast with Esther Higham to discuss the importance of open, ongoing and prayerful conversation between parents and children.He welcomes the government's new draft guidance on Relationships and Sex Education (RSE), and is saddened by what it suggests about mainstream education in the UK.For years now, RSE teachers have had to teach contentious topics such as gender ideology as fact, or face disciplinary action in some cases. Meanwhile parents have voiced concerns around inappropriate materials for their young children, from contraceptives to graphic images of sexual intercourse.Could this all change now that the guidance has been published?
"We're expecting schools to solve all the ills of society, it seems."1 in 6 teachers quit the profession within one year of starting, while 1 in 3 quit within the first five years. In the last year, 1 in 5 say they have been physically hit by pupils, whilst 15% of secondary school teachers say they have been sexually harassed.With mounting workloads and more than ten unpaid overtime hours every week, is low pay the key issue? How would the conversation around education reforms change, with improved working conditions and greater job satisfaction for teachers?Our Head of Education Steve Beegoo speaks to United Christian Broadcasters about alarming turnover rates of teachers nationally, and what the Church can do to support those entrusted to care for children.
Our Head of Education Steve Beegoo joins Chick Yuill on Premier Christian Radio to share the latest on cases involving parents and teachers standing against transgender ideology in schools. He responds to listeners' numerous questions as they voice concerns about bullying and increasing discrimination against Christian values in school.Whether or not we have children of our own, it is a shared responsibility to ensure that the next generation grows up in the fear of the Lord, and is instructed by His word.Want to know more about how you can practically guide your child in the way of life? Ticket sales for our day conference Education Revolution end tomorrow - so now's the time to book on if you haven't!Taking place on Saturday, Education Revolution will inspire and support you practically as you seek to hear God regarding the urgent need to pass on the Christian faith to our children.You will have the opportunity to hear from and network with those that are developing or have developed new Christian schools, home education based initiatives and other resources:https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/education-revolution-how-to-change-the-education-landscape-for-christ-tickets-753787136617?aff=oddtdtcreator
Very often, legal decisions are made before parents even find a way to access lawyers. They are unable to publicly and openly test decisions they disagree with, due to a cloak of anonymity 'protecting' clinicians indefinitely. Who will hold doctors to account while these children slip away in the prolonged course of their parents' appeal?Our chief executive Andrea Williams speaks to Premier Christian Radio about the Supreme Court case being heard today.https://christianconcern.com/news/supreme-court-to-hear-case-on-transparency-in-end-of-life-disagreements/15 April 2024
It is impossible to change gender, and adults have been lying to gender-questioning children by saying that “you’ve been born in the wrong body.” Our Head of Public Policy Tim Dieppe appeared on Premier this morning to discuss the landmark Cass Review, and reiterate what we have been saying for years, that ideology has driven ‘evidence’ rather than the other way around.There is no evidence that the best way to support gender-questioning children is to affirm them in a lie.Love rejoices in the truth (1 Corinthians 13:6).
Tolerating different people does not mean subscribing to their beliefs.It is conviction and faith in Jesus that sets Christians apart, and makes us the salt and light of the world, even if it means going against the tide.Tim Dieppe speaks with Iain Dale on LBC.
From "gesture" eggs replacing Easter eggs, to Ramadan on display in Westminster Council during Easter, our Head of Public Policy Tim Dieppe discusses recent landmark cultural moments on Talk Radio.The abandoning of our Christian heritage, coinciding with the influx of Islam over the last 20 years, has given rise to censorship all across the country.
Are Christians free to speak truth in the face of transgender ideology?On Round the Table, Ben John, Tim Dieppe, and Steve Beegoo discuss the key stories in late March.We talk about 'Hannah', whose case was heard before an Employment Tribunal during the week, as well as cancelled Christian artist Victoria Culf. Both of these women faced punishment for raising concerns about the harms of transgender ideology on children.
"I'm concerned that this definition could be used to classify Christians as extremists, and I think that would be very sad and quite disturbing in terms of our Christian freedoms and how far we have come from Christianity being the centre of our morality and values as a nation."Tim Dieppe comments on the government's new legal definition of extremism and how this can be used against faithful Christians who are pro-life, disagree with same-sex marriage, or believe in biological sex over gender ideology, among other biblical traits.Read more at: https://christianconcern.com/news/christians-risk-being-deemed-extremist-under-new-definition/Premier Christian Radio14 March 2024
Andrea Williams and Tim Dieppe join Ben John to discuss our most recent win. Two street preachers, John Dunn and Shaun O'Sullivan, were arrested and prosecuted for preaching the word of God on Glastonbury High Street. The police officers, who denied demonstrating bias, were wearing rainbow lanyards and 'Ask my pronouns' badges.We share evidence of the devastating effects of pornography, consolidated during our submission to the government's open call.Finally, Tim Dieppe shares about a briefing he recently wrote for the Free Speech Union. It was published earlier this week with the title: Banning Islamophobia: Blasphemy Law by the Backdoor, and a foreword by Richard Dawkins.
After six months of investigation, Councillor King Lawal has been cleared by the Conservative Party over his tweet that said "Pride is Sin." While the accusation of "homophobia" should never have been brought against him for speaking biblical truth, we rejoice over this legal victory and his full reinstatement.Rebecca Hunt joins Tim Dieppe and Ben John to catch up on the past week's happenings within the Church of England Synod, not least news of Stonewall's hand in developing 'Valuing All God's Children', the Church of England's anti-bullying guidance for their 4,360 schools across the country.
The world's best palliative care is found in the UK, and yet will be under threat if a bill to decriminalise assisted suicide is introduced."Wouldn't it be wonderful if as a parliament and government, we would look to palliative care being made accessible for all, for care at the end of life, not state-sanctioned killing. For hope, not despair."Our chief executive Andrea Williams shares with Nick Ferrari on LBC why introducing assisted suicide as "simply an option" will place the vulnerable at even greater risk, as seen in the Netherlands and Canada, where it is being offered as a form of medical treatment to ever-growing groups of people.
Paul Huxley and Tim Dieppe are joined by special guest Rev. Dr Bernard Randall, who lost his chaplaincy job for telling pupils they shouldn't feel forced to believe LGBT ideology.The three will discuss the frustrating delays in Bernard's case and how threats from Islamists are damaging parliamentary democracy.Plus: how does a dead lion on tins of Golden Syrup share the gospel? What should we think about Tate & Lyle updating its packaging?
From film scenes featuring nudity, to Qur'an readings and dancing to Vengaboys in the nave - cathedrals across the country have long been commercialised for activities that directly contradict the word of God.Whether the tipping point was a silent disco held in the historic Canterbury Cathedral, or the dozen more cathedrals planning to host them, there has been national outrage and a new petition calling on the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby to intervene to “make the Cathedral a house of prayer once more”.Paul Huxley joins Naga Munchetty on BBC 5 Live.
Last Friday on Round the Table, Andrea Williams, Tim Dieppe and Ben John brought highlights from the House of Lords 'conversion therapy' bill debate.Public Policy Researcher Dr Carys Moseley distils three lessons from the debate:https://christianconcern.com/comment/3-lessons-from-the-historic-conversion-therapy-bill-debate/Next, they discussed the latest amendment tabled by Dame Diane Johnson in favour of decriminalising self-abortions right up to birth, and the devastating effect that will have on women and society.See our guide on how to write to your MP:https://christianconcern.com/action/write-to-your-mp-abortion-decriminalisation/They also chatted through how to respond to the government's call for evidence of the effects of pornography.Help the government see the damages of all pornography:https://christianconcern.com/action/help-the-government-see-the-damage-of-all-pornography/
‘For God’s love of the world he gave his one and only son so that whoever, whatever person-homosexual, drunk, liar or a prostitute–believes in him shall not perish and have everlasting life.’Dwayne Lopez speaks to GB News about how police have misused PSPO (Public Spaces Protection Order) laws to shut down the likes of himself, Harmonie London, and hundreds of Christian street preachers that come through the Christian Legal Centre's doors. He lays out the gospel in plain terms, for all to examine the absence of hate or contention towards any particular group in history.While never condoning sin, the Bible teaches an all-inclusive message - Jesus is the only way to the Father. This good news is for everybody, and must be preached freely on our streets.Read more: https://christianconcern.com/news/police-weaponise-pspo-to-threaten-arrest-and-shut-down-christian-preaching/
How have we arrived at a time when law enforcement tramples the gospel, while silently endorsing violence?On GB News, Christian Legal Centre's Michael Phillips commented on yet another incident of police officers weaponising PSPO (Public Spaces Protection Order) laws to threaten and silence Christian street preachers. Although these run-ins have captured the focus of the internet and mainstream news lately, they are a 'systemic problem' which the Christian Legal Centre has been working through for over a decade now."The problem is that police officers that I meet day in, day out, are often extremely ill-informed about the Public Order Act. What the officer said is, 'You commit an offense if harassment, alarm or distressed is caused', and that is just not what the law says. "Officers always take this topsy-turvy approach to the law, whereby they say if somebody's upset then there's a crime - and that is not the case. It is not the law. And unfortunately this is a systemic problem. This is Uxbridge; we see it in Liverpool, we see it in in Yorkshire, we see it across the country."Eventually what happens is that somebody gets arrested and and put into prison, albeit maybe only for 24 hours, and it sends a chilling effect to everybody else."Host Martin Daubney duly noted that other religious groups have caused far more disruption to public life and property without repercussions.GB News14 February 2024
Tim Dieppe, Carys Moseley and Paul Huxley join Ben John in discussing Muslim immigrants falsely converting to Christianity, Canterbury Cathedral hosting a silent disco in their premises, and today's debate on the bill to ban 'conversion therapy' in the House of Lords.
Paul Huxley, Communications Manager at Christian Concern comments on the controversial silent disco held in Canterbury Cathedral with Reverend Kes Grant and host Anna Cookson on BBC Radio Kent.
"If we as a society, a school or a medical service help children as young as six, seven or eight come to terms with their biological sex - the truth - that would be the kindest thing to do for them, as opposed to forcing a school and all the children in class to believe something that wasn't true.All the medical and psychiatric evidence is showing that we should not be affirming gender confusion in children. That is absolutely objective; we've seen the Tavistock clinic closing because of the very poor outcomes in affirming them."Andrea Williams speaks to Kat Cowan on BBC Radio Sheffield about Nigel and Sally Rowe's case supported by the Christian Legal Centre, the government's guidance for schools for gender-questioning children, and the need for the Church of England to scrap its guidance.
This week has seen high-profile attacks on Christian freedoms and freedom of speech at large. Andrea Williams and Tim Dieppe join Ben John in establishing where Christians stand - in court, on our streets, in schools, and in every area of life that God has called us to.We share more about the letter that Nigel and Sally Rowe have written, with the Christian Legal Centre's support, to the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, calling on him to urgently pull the CofE’s own policy on gender-questioning children, titled ‘Valuing All God’s Children’ (VAGC).
This week, Steve Beegoo, Tim Dieppe and Paul Huxley join Ben John to discuss what Christians should think of attending same-sex or transgender “weddings”, as well as the contested prayer ban implemented by Michaela School. We also provide a step-by-step guide for you to respond to the ongoing government consultation for guidance on gender-questioning children.The consultation ends on 12 March 2024. Follow our guide here:https://christianconcern.com/action/protect-christians-and-children-in-schools-from-trans-ideology/
As we speak. 72-year-old preacher Stephen Green faces prosecution from Ealing Council for holding up a sign of Psalm 139 in the UK's first abortion centre buffer zone. Home education is threatened by invasive monitoring from the government, whilst the fear of appearing "Islamophobic" lets numerous men walk free from organised exploitation of young girls.Steve Beegoo, Tim Dieppe and Andrea Williams join Ben John to shine a Christian light on the headlines this week. Find out how you can help effect change in the areas of education and freedom of speech.
'conversion therapy' ban, a concerted push for euthanasia to be legalised, while two amendments to abortion laws are being discussed. How will these shifts affect everyday life, and how should Christians engage the conversation? Andrea Williams and Tim Dieppe join Paul Huxley on our first Round the Table of the year.
Join Tim Dieppe, Paul Huxley and Pastor Ade Omooba MBE for our last Round the Table of 2023.Find out what drives us at Christian Concern and what God is doing through the Christian Concern community.
Is financial and ideological censorship on the rise?
Many, many stories have emerged in the media this week of banks, with ties to LGBT+ activist group Stonewall, closing the accounts of individuals with no explanation provided. These include Nigel Farage, Rev Richard Fothergill, and Professor Lesley Sawyers.
The Core Issues Trust, a ministry that offers support to men and women who voluntarily seek change in their sexual preference, expression and/or gender identity, has also been targeted. With the support of the Christian Legal Centre, they secured over £20k in compensation plus legal costs as settlement for a legal claim for discrimination.
On today's Round The Table, Tim Dieppe is joined by Mike Davidson of Core Issues Trust, and Joe Boot from the Ezra Institute to discuss this alarming trend of financial exclusion for expressing the wrong views.
Over 4,000,000 children have taken part in Just Like Us' extreme LGBT+ Diversity Week – the majority of which without the knowledge of their parents.
Additionally, many more schools will have celebrated LGBT+ Pride or have plans to do so.
What can parents, teachers and other concerned individuals do?
Join us for an important discussion as Tim Dieppe is joined by our head of education, Steve Beegoo and Fr Calvin Robinson to discuss how we can respond to the radical sex education going on in schools.
Today on Round the Table we will be discussing the highly significant case of Kristie Higgs who was sacked for gross misconduct for expressing her concerns about sex education in schools on Facebook.
Last week, Kristie won an appeal in the Employment Appeal Tribunal which ruled that the Employment Tribunal had erred in its earlier ruling which supported her dismissal: https://christianconcern.com/news/teaching-assistant-wins-appeal-after-sacking-for-facebook-posts/
Andrea Williams CEO of Christian Concern, and Michael Phillips from the Christian Legal Centre will join Tim Dieppe to discuss the significance of the case and its wider implications.
This week a woman was sentenced to prison for unlawfully aborting her 32-week baby. Christian Concern was mentioned in the sentencing remarks.
This sentence has provoked outrage from the abortion industry and calls for abortion to be decriminalised. What is the truth of the matter, and how should Christians respond to such a sentence?
Tim Dieppe is joined by Dave Brenan from pro-life group Brephos, and Ben John from Christian Concern to discuss what really happened and what should change as a result.
It’s Pride month again! But the Bible says Love is not Proud! (1 Corinthians 13:1). How can Christians engage with Pride, respond to Pride, and learn from Pride?
Today we are joined by Pastor Keith Waters who lost his job for a tweet that was critical of Pride. We also have Michael Phillips from the Christian Legal Centre legal team. Together with Tim Dieppe they will discuss Christian perspectives on Pride events and how Pride has led to Prejudice against Christians who don’t support LGBT ideology.
A new survey shows that there is overwhelming support for people who are struggling withs sexual or gender identity issue being allowed to seek therapy for these issues.
Notwithstanding the lack of popular support, the government is still planning to ban what it calls ‘conversion therapy’ which will criminalise therapists or others who seek to help people who want to be helped.
Tim Dieppe is joined by Andrea Williams and professional therapist Mike Davidson who has helped multiple clients with these issues.
Learn more about the polling here: https://christianconcern.com/news/public-strongly-oppose-ban-on-talking-therapy-for-sex-or-gender-issues/
RoundTheTable
Our Head of Education, Steve Beegoo, and Head of Public Policy, Tim Dieppe, speak to Christian Legal Centre client Joshua Sutcliffe who has been banned from teaching indefinitely for ‘misgendering’ a pupil.
Together they unpack more about what happened to him and what his story means for Christians in teaching. They also discuss the rights and wrongs of affirming children in social gender transition.
RoundTheTable
This week, our Head of Policy Tim Dieppe joined hundreds of others in attending the National Conservatism conference in London. This was not a party political conference, and some speakers said they had never voted Conservative. There were a lot of Christians in attendance, and Christian values and the role of religion repeatedly came up at the conference. Tim Dieppe will be joined by theologian Aaron Edwards and director of the Coalition for Marriage Tony Rucinski who both also attended the conference to discuss the issues raised and whether conservatism can conserve Christian culture.
The coronation of King Charles III was visibly Christian, with deep roots to our Christian heritage. But how are we to think of it when in so many ways our nation has turned away from God? Our Head of Public Policy, Tim Dieppe, is joined on this week's Round The Table by Professor Jonathan Patrick Burnside, professor of Biblical Law at the University of Bristol, and our co-founders, Ade Omooba MBE and Andrea Williams, to discuss the spiritual significance of the coronation. You can read more from Jonathan on how the Bible shapes the Coronation on our website or in the Spectator: https://christianconcern.com/resource/the-book-behind-the-throne/ | https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/why-christianity-is-at-the-heart-of-the-kings-coronation/
Global Anglicans met in Kigali last week for the fourth GAFCON conference which comprise 1,302 delegates from 52 countries including 315 bishops, 456 other clergy and 531 laity. The conference released a statement which was bold and forthright about how the Church of England has departed from Anglican orthodoxy. Rev. Andrew Symes was at the conference and joins Andrea Williams and Tim Dieppe to discuss the implications of the conference for global Anglicanism and the Church of England in particular.
Steve Beegoo, Head of Education at Christian Concern joins Tim Dieppe and Ben John to discuss the Channel 4 Programme Naked Education which features adults exposing themselves in front of children. Just what is wrong with this and what is a Christian approach to nakedness and shame? We will also discuss other related issues in education more generally with explicit sex education classes often featuring naked pictures.#RoundTheTable #ChristianWeeklyNews
What state is the church in when a Christian college fires a Christian lecturer for defending a Christian understanding of sexuality?This week, news broke of Dr Aaron Edwards, a lecturer at Cliff College, Derbyshire, a Methodist Bible college, who was sacked and even threatened with a counter-terrorism referral for sharing a tweet on human sexuality that went viral. The father of five was told that for sharing the Christian view of sexuality, he had brought “the college into disrepute.”Tim Dieppe is joined by Aaron on this week’s Round the Table, as well as Joe Boot, founder of the Ezra Institute, to discuss how changes in the UK Church’s doctrine on marriage and sexuality is leading to more confusion and cases like this. How are faithful Christians now to respond?Find out more about Aaron's case: https://christianconcern.com/news/evangelical-bible-college-fires-lecturer-over-tweets-on-sexuality/You can find Aaron's Crowfunder here: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/writing-and-speaking-for-evangelical-free-speech
Four teenage boys were suspended from a school in Wakefield after they dropped a translation of the Qur’an owned by one of the boys and caused minor damage to the book. Incredibly, local Muslim councillors got involved in the supposed incident, with one saying that “their actions did not treat the Qur’an with the respect it should have, so those involved have been suspended.”Is this Wakefield school – and council – simply introducing a de facto blasphemy law? Can Islam and free speech coexist?Tim Dieppe and Carys Moseley are joined by lecturer, author and honorary research fellow at the University of Buckingham, Adrian Hilton, to discuss the impact this school suspension might have on wider society.You can read more from Adrian on his Twitter thread, which initially shone light on the incident: https://twitter.com/Adrian_Hilton/status/1629546651730706433Find out more on our website: https://christianconcern.com/comment/wakefield-quran-desecration-claim-will-test-the-government/#RoundTheTable #ChristianWeeklyNews
Rev. Dr Bernard Randall, the former school chaplain who was sacked and reported to the government’s terrorist watchdog for delivering a sermon on ‘identity politics’, was told he had an 'extreme' reaction to a radical LGBT group.The group in question, Educate & Celebrate, were invited into the school and encouraged staff to chant “smash heteronormativity” – yet the judgment in Bernard’s case claims the programme is "a subtle approach to encouraging inclusivity for all."The notorious Church of England’s guidance, Valuing All God’s Children, was cited in the judgement against Bernard as implying that CofE chaplains should not teach the CofE doctrine of marriage in a CofE chapel service. What impact will this have on Christian teaching on sex, sexuality and marriage? Join us for Round the Table, as Tim Dieppe and Andrea Williams discuss the case with Bernard himself. Sign our petition to keep radical LGBT group Educate & Celebrate out of schools: https://citizengo.org/en/210234-keep-trans-propaganda-group-educate-celebrate-out-schools#RoundTheTable #ChristianWeeklyNews
With First Minister Nicola Sturgeon's resignation, the door is open for next leader of the Scottish National Party to step up and take her place. MSP Kate Forbes is currently the frontrunner, although her Christian views on marriage, gender and abortion have recently come under fire from members of her own party who describe themselves as 'social liberals'.Is Christianity being pushed out of public life? What should Christians' role in public life look like?Tim Dieppe is joined by Rev. Dr Joe Boot, and Colin Wilson, Editor at Christians Together and a member of Kate Forbes' constituency, to discuss her candidacy, her Christian views, and what kind of role Christians should take in public life.#RoundTheTable #ChristianWeeklyNews
Mother Izzy Montague faced victimisation from her son’s school authorities after she raised concern about him being forced to attend a school Pride event. Izzy wasn’t the only one to raise concerns that parents had been given no opt-out. But when she met with the school’s executive headteacher, another teacher attending the meeting wore a t-shirt bearing the slogan ‘Why be racist, sexist, homophobic, or transphobic when you could just be quiet?’Izzy’s case has made headlines around the world, and was heard in an eight-day hearing in court last week. This is the first time that a UK court has scrutinised the legality of imposing LGBT ideology on primary schools.Izzy joins us for this week’s Round the Table, to discuss more about the dangers of promoting this ideology to young children, and the impact the LGBT agenda has had on parental rights.#RoundTheTable #ChristianWeeklyNews
As the Church of England's General Synod voted this week to approve blessing same-sex relationships, we are joined by two lay members of Synod who contributed to the debate and tried very hard to persuade the church not to go down this route. Both our guests, Ben John and Sam Margrave, gave impassioned speeches at Synod, but ultimately the vote, while close, went the wrong way. Join us as we discuss what happened and the implications for the CofE and the wider church in the UK.
It is a serious thing for a doctor to deliberately mislead anyone - his patients, a government agency, the general public. It's even more serious when that doctor tries to withhold potentially life-saving treatment from vulnerable patients by lying about it. Yet this is exactly what Dr Jonathan Lord, medical director at MSI Reproductive Choices, stands accused of.Now six UK doctors are calling on the General Medical Council (GMC) to investigate Dr Lord after he campaigned against life-saving abortion pill reversal treatment, seeking even to have Dr Dermot Kearney (one of the only doctors in the UK to offer the treatment) struck off.What's more, it could now even become illegal to make women aware of abortion pill reversal and offer them support outside abortion facilities, if the Parliament passes new legislation which would introduce censorship zones nationwide around clinics and hospitals offering abortions.Dr Dermot Kearney joins Tim Dieppe on this week's Round the Table, along with Tim Lewis of Brephos UK, to discuss how threats to life-saving pro-life work are being challenged - and how you can raise your voice, too.Find out more: https://christianconcern.com/news/doctors-call-for-investigation-of-msi-abortion-director/
Christian charity worker Matthew Grech will be facing trial in Malta on 3 February, in a case believed to be the first of its kind. His crime? Sharing his testimony of finding Christ in an online interview. Thanks to finding faith, Matthew says he was able to leave behind a homosexual life, changing his life dramatically. However, Matthew has now been accused of discussing and advertising 'conversion practices', which, according to Maltese legislation, is illegal. If convicted, Matthew could face five months in prison, and/or be fined €5,000.The case, which is being assisted by the Christian Legal Centre, should sound alarm bells around the UK about the dangers of so-called 'conversion therapy' bans. Matthew simply told his testimony of change (which didn't actually involve any formal therapy - he simply became a Christian!), explaining his beliefs.On this week's Round the Table, Matthew joins Tim Dieppe and Carys Moseley to share more about the charges he's facing and the dangers of 'conversion therapy' bans.Find out more about Matthew's case: https://christianconcern.com/news/christian-charity-worker-prosecuted-for-conversion-therapy/You can also read a full transcript of Matthew's online interview: https://christianconcern.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/CC-Resource-Misc-Matthew-Grech-Interview-Transcript-EN-20230120.pdf
After six years of discussing the Church of England's position on same-sex 'marriage', bishops have now announced plans to bless sexual immorality and sin.In a landmark moment, confirming the church's departure from Biblical teaching on human sexuality, the Church of England has announced it now plans to allow 'prayers' and 'blessings' for same-sex couples in civil partnerships in its churches, also issuing them with an apology for allegedly 'rejecting' and 'excluding' LGBT people.On today's Round the Table, we're joined by Rev. Bernard Randall, who was outrageously branded a 'risk to children' by the Church of England for a sermon he gave on identity politics, and Ben John, member of the Church of England Synod.What are we to make of the Bishop's proposal this week? And where will this lead the Church of England? Tune in to find out more and let us know your opinion on all that's been happening.Learn more: https://christianconcern.com/news/cofe-bishops-release-prayers-for-blessing-of-same-sex-couples/
A Church of England school has justified secretly teaching 8-year-olds that they can change sex, encouraging the idea that 3-year-olds can declare themselves 'non-binary' to their parents.Two valiant parents are now challenging the guidance that the schools uses, accusing the school of child abuse. Calvin and Nicola Watts, supported by the Christian Legal Centre, were forced to remove their children from a Kent Church of England primary school after discovering their 8-year-old was being taught extreme ideology on gender. They are now challenging the use of the Church of England's Valuing All God's Children guidance, which the school used to justify the teaching.On this week's Round the Table, Calvin joins us, as he speaks to Tim Dieppe and the Christian Legal Centre's Roger Kiska about why the CofE guidance needs to be scrapped.Find out more on our website: https://christianconcern.com/news/parents-fury-as-cofe-school-accused-of-secret-trans-indoctrination/#RoundTheTable #ChristianWeeklyNews
What are you grateful for in 2022?2022 has been a year of ups and downs for many of us, what with new wars, new governments, new monarchs, a cost of living crisis… the list could go on. But despite the challenges, we are grateful for the many victories we have seen over the past 12 months. We’ve seen many cases won over the past year, including Nigel and Sally Rowe’s challenge over trans policies in schools; Dr Dermot Kearney’s case against the General Medical Council, and who has now helped to save over 30 babies from unwanted abortions; and the likes of Maureen Martin, Derek Timms and Mary Onuoha, who all secured freedoms to manifest the Christian faith in public and the workplace.In this Round the Table special – the last episode of 2022 – Tim Dieppe and Andrea Williams look back over the past year, highlighting the ways in which God has been moving in our nation, through our cases and campaigns, bringing the hope of the gospel to many communities across the UK. This is one not to miss!#RoundTheTable #ChristianWeeklyNews
Should nations ever be Christian? Supposedly, we now live in a 'post-Christian' UK, but is this true? Could the UK ever be Christian in future?With new census data showing that less than 50% of the population of England and Wales now identifies as 'Christian', Dr Joe Boot, Tim Dieppe and Paul Huxley look at what that means for the UK, the societal cost of becoming 'less Christian', and how, as a Christian remnant in this land, we can take steps forward to put Christ at the centre of our nation.Read more:https://christianconcern.com/comment/diwali-dechristianisation-and-the-nation/https://christianconcern.com/comment/britains-first-hindu-prime-minister/#RoundTheTable #ChristianWeeklyNews
A hospice chaplain was told by none other than a Methodist minister to remove his small cross pin on his jumper at work because it might offend the patients.Derek Timms, who worked for a Marie Curie hospice in Solihull, was told he would face consequences and would need 're-training' if he refused to remove his small cross pin from his jumper - despite wearing that exact cross for the past four years without any complaint at the hospice. We're pleased to report that Marie Curie promptly issued Derek with an unreserved apology, clarifying that he could keep wearing his cross.But what does it say about the state of the church when a minister is advocating the removal of the cross? Data from the 2021 census suggests that 46.2% of people in England and Wales identify as Christian - the lowest number on record. Perhaps it's time for the Church to step up, unashamedly, and be clear on what we believe.Join us for this week's Round the Table, where Derek Timms will be chatting with Tim Dieppe and Ben John about his case.Find out more: https://christianconcern.com/cccases/derek-timms/#RoundTheTable #ChristianWeeklyNews
The Bible was once revered in the courtroom; now it's accused of being 'abusive' and 'no longer appropriate in modern society'.With thanks to support from the Christian Legal Centre, two street preachers have recently won their cases, having both been accused of 'hate speech' after quoting the Bible and explaining who God is. Freedom of speech laws allow street preachers to quote directly from the Bible in public, on the streets of the UK. So why are so many being arrested in the first place?Street preachers John Dunn and Shaun O'Sullivan join Tim Dieppe on this week's Round the Table to discuss their arrests, their court cases - and why they think street preaching so important to uphold.Find out more about John Dunn: https://christianconcern.com/news/preacher-wins-after-claim-parts-of-bible-no-longer-acceptable/Find out more about Shaun O'Sullivan: https://christianconcern.com/news/another-street-preacher-victory-after-police-arrest-for-hate-speech/#RoundTheTable #ChristianWeeklyNews
'Buffer zones' are supposedly there to protect women entering abortion clinics from the 'intimidating' pro-life lobby - so says the abortion industry and pro-abortion campaigners. But is that really what goes on outside abortion clinics in the UK?
In reality, pro-lifers outside abortion clinics are being shut down, threatened and attacked by pro-abortion activists - not the other way around. 'Buffer zones' don't protect anyone; they strip vulnerable women of their right to seek alternative help and information and censor the pro-life point of view.
On this week's Round the Table, Tim Dieppe is joined by Isabel Vaughan-Spruce, leader of 40 Days for Life Birmingham, who, with the support of the Christian Legal Centre, is currently challenging the introduction of a Public Space Protection Order in Birmingham, which prevents prayerful and peaceful vigils outside an abortion clinic.
Find out more about the Birmingham 'buffer zone': https://christianconcern.com/cccases/birmingham-buffer-zone/
RoundTheTable #ChristianWeeklyNews
Will the Church of England start endorsing same-sex 'marriages'?
This week, five senior Bishops have come out and openly expressed that they believe that the Church of England should allow blessings of same-sex 'marriages'. This follows the Bishop of Oxford's recent statement, explaining his change of view on the matter.
In this week's Round the Table, Tim Dieppe is joined by Rev. Calvin Robinson and Andrea Williams to discuss what has happened and the implications for the future of the Church of England.
Read more from Calvin: https://calvinrobinson.substack.com/p/gay-marriage-is-not-marriage
Account closures for differing viewpoints, censorship zones around abortion clinics, and blasphemy laws for Islam? We're asking, 'does the government care about free speech?'
This week, we're joined by free speech campaigner and co-founder of Fair Cop, Harry Miller, and CLC legal counsel, Roger Kiska, as we discuss various free speech issues that have made the headlines this week.
RoundTheTable #ChristianWeeklyNews
People have recently been waking up to the danger of cross-sex hormones and puberty blockers for children. But the problems don’t start there – ‘social transition’, where a child cross-dresses and is affirmed in a different gender, is itself harmful.
On Round the Table we’re joined this week by Dr André Van Mol, co-chair of the American College of Pediatricians’ Committee on Adolescent Sexuality, to explore the evidence on why social transition is a disaster for children.
RoundTheTable #ChristianWeeklyNews
Core Issues Trust (CIT), supported by the Christian Legal Centre, was told in July 2020 that its banking facilities with top-ranking Stonewall employer, Barclays, would be stopped following a coordinated harassment campaign by LGBT activists. Over that period, the group received over 300 nuisance calls, numerous intimidating messages and death threats, including messages expressing hopes that family members would be raped and killed.
This week, CIT took its case to court in Belfast.
The controversy follows similar news from last month where PayPal cancelled - and then reinstated - the account of the Free Speech Union over its political views.
On this week's Round the Table, Tim Dieppe is joined by Mike Davidson and Liam Hayden of Core Issues Trust to discuss more about the case. We will also be joined by Carys Moseley from Christian Concern to discuss the latest developments in research and policy around plans to outlaw so-called ‘conversion therapy’.
Find out more about CIT's case: https://christianconcern.com/news/barclays-tries-to-strike-out-christian-ministrys-legal-case/
RoundTheTable #ChristianWeeklyNews
Over 1,600 people have now signed the 'Greater Love' Declaration, affirming Christian teaching on marriage, sex and gender - and rejecting some churches' push for same-sex 'marriage' and transgender affirmation.
On today's Round the Table, Tim Dieppe speaks to one of the co-authors of the declaration, Rev. Dr Matthew Roberts, to find out why this declaration is so needed - and how you can get involved.
Find out more: https://www.greaterlove.org.uk/
Parents Nigel and Sally Rowe, who were backed by Christian Concern, recently won a huge case victory, culminating with a commitment from the government to reform transgender policies in schools and £22,000 in legal costs.
This is huge news, and means that children will be much better protected from harmful teaching that has been infiltrating the classroom.
Meanwhile, the Charity Commission has also opened an investigation into transgender campaign group Mermaids. The group was found recently to be offering free 'chest binders' to girls as young as 13 without parental consent, but is also well-known for promoting harmful material, much like the 'Gender Unicorn' (https://transstudent.org/gender/).
So what do parents, teachers and schools need to be aware of now? And what needs to change?
On today's Round the Table, Tim Dieppe is joined by Nigel and Sally Rowe, as well as our Policy Researcher Dr Carys Moseley, as they talk about how to win the battle for our children.
Find out more about what Nigel and Sally's win means for your child's school: https://christianconcern.com/comment/how-parents-challenge-impacted-government-policy/
Dr Richard Scott has now secured the freedom for doctors to pray with their patients, following no less than 10 years of investigations against him, including multiple complaints by the National Secular Society.
In a brand new series of Round the Table, Tim Dieppe and Andrea Williams are joined by Dr Scott, as they discuss what this new victory really means for Christians up and down the UK.
Learn more: https://christianconcern.com/news/doctor-vindicated-as-nhs-england-allows-him-to-pray-with-patients/
Praying, protesting or even just offering support outside an abortion clinic could land you up to two years in prison if a new amendment to the Public Order Bill is made law.
Sadly the effort to silence the pro-life voice and viewpoint isn't new. But why this targeted attack on the pro-life movement?
Tune into this week's Round the Table with Ben John, Andrea Williams and the Christian Legal Centre's Roger Kiska, as they look at why so-called 'buffer zones' are such a dangerous idea.
Find out more: https://christianconcern.com/action/praying-outside-an-abortion-clinic-could-land-you-in-jail-for-two-years/
RoundTheTable #ChristianWeeklyNews
This week on RTT we will be joined by special guest Calvin Robinson. Calvin is a political advisor, broadcaster, and commentator. He has also trained for ministry in the CofE, but found that he was blocked from taking a curacy. A subject access request showed that Bishops objected to his political views.
In this week’s livestream we will be discussing the state of the CofE. Is the CofE institutionally racist? Has the CofE adopted a new religion? How can Christians respond?
roundthetable #live #christianconcern #christianweeklynews
Church pastor Keith Waters was pushed out of his part-time job as a school caretaker after he tweeted a warning that Pride events are harmful to children.
However, an Employment Tribunal recently ruled in his favour, finding that he had been discriminated against for his Christian views.
From death threats to spam calls, messages of support to taking on new cases, find out from pastor Keith Waters himself what took him by surprise and what kept him going over the last three years of his case.
Find out more about Keith's case: https://christianconcern.com/news/pastor-who-warned-against-lgbtq-pride-events-wins-discrimination-case/
Read Keith's reflections on his case win and the last three years: https://christianconcern.com/comment/keith-waters-the-uk-needs-confident-christians/
roundthetable #live #christianconcern #christianweeklynews
Pastor Keith Waters has won his case after an employment tribunal ruled that he was discriminated against over a tweet he sent about LGBTQ pride.
Meanwhile, a Christian school has dropped its support for Christian charity Samaritan's Purse because of its leader Franklin Graham's Christian beliefs.
Learn more about Pastor Keith Waters' case win: https://christianconcern.com/news/pastor-who-warned-against-lgbtq-pride-events-wins-discrimination-case/
Learn more about the Christian school dropping support for Samaritan's Purse: https://christianconcern.com/news/school-cancels-support-for-samaritans-purse-after-one-complaint/
This week, 'The Family Sex Show' was cancelled - but is a theatre show providing sex education for all the family ever really going to be appropriate?
We're also joined by the Christian Legal Centre's Roger Kiska to talk about his legal opinion on conversion therapy - is a ban even legal?
Read more about The Family Sex Show: https://christianconcern.com/comment/is-a-sex-show-for-the-family-ever-really-appropriate/
Download and share Roger's legal opinion: https://christianconcern.com/resource/is-a-ban-on-conversion-therapy-legal-or-practical/
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Wilberforce Publications is pleased to announce the launch of Ruler of Kings: Toward a Christian Vision of Government, the new book by Rev. Dr Joe Boot.
About the book
We are living in an era where the cult of the expert enables the increasing encroachment of civil government into areas of cultural and societal life where it does not belong. This growing statism must be countered by a distinctly Christian response. But what should a Christian proposal for social order look like? In this book, Dr Joseph Boot critiques the world as it is today and provides the basis for a Christian response to the socio-political crisis of our time. Ruler of Kings is contextual and current, but its solutions are biblically rooted and therefore enduring.
“Ruler of Kings reminds us that Christ’s sceptre of power rules over all of life, and that he will inevitably receive the inheritance of nations. A must read in our day.” James R White, apologist, theologian and Director of Alpha and Omega Ministries, Phoenix, Arizona
About the author
Rev. Dr Joe Boot is Director of our Wilberforce Academy and Christian Concern's Head of Public Theology. Joe is a cultural theologian, leading Christian apologist, founding pastor of Westminster Chapel in Toronto, and founder of the Ezra Institute for Contemporary Christianity (EICC).
Find out more: https://www.wilberforcepublications.co.uk/ruler-of-kings
Buy your copy: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1916121136
Some senior church leaders - including former Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, and Baptist minister Steve Chalke - this week wrote a letter to the government urging it to ban 'conversion therapy' for 'trans people'. In the letter, they make the claim that "to be trans is to enter a sacred journey of becoming whole."
But is this true? Or does this message contradict foundational Christian teachings?
During this session of Round the Table, communications manager Paul Huxley is joined by three writers on the topic - Christian Concern's Dr Carys Moseley, Rev. Dr Ian Paul and Rev. Matthew Roberts - to analyse what the meaning behind this statement might really be.
Rev. Dr Ian Paul, author and writer at psephizo.com, is also a theologian and member of General Synod, Managing Editor at Grove Books, and Adjunct Professor at Fuller Theological Seminary. You can read his response to the letter here: https://www.psephizo.com/sexuality-2/are-trans-people-on-a-sacred-journey/
Rev. Matthew Roberts is minister of Trinity Church York, part of the International Presbyterian Church. He wrote his response for The Critic: https://thecritic.co.uk/the-religion-of-self-worship/
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What's really behind the government's double U-turn on a 'conversion therapy' ban? Our panel reacts to the twists and turns of the last 24 hours.
We'll also be joined by special guest Dr David Mackereth, who refused to be compelled to use 'transgender pronouns'. His case was heard this week in the Employment Appeal Tribunal.
Join us on today's episode of Round the Table for a round-up of this week's big news.
Find out more about David's case on our website: https://christianconcern.com/news/doctor-sacked-for-refusing-to-lie-about-sex-and-gender/
In a culture where schools can’t always be relied on to help raise children in line with Christian faith, home education is a much-needed option.
Today’s Round the Table sees Tim Dieppe joined by Head of Education Steve Beegoo (a former headmaster of a Christian school) and by Janine Bell – a home educator and Coordinator for Classical Conversations UK, which supports homsechooling parents with resources and fellowship.
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A doctor who helped to save babies’ lives after their mothers regretted taking the first of two abortion pills has been vindicated after the General Medical Council (GMC) lifted a ban on him for offering the practice.
Throughout lockdown, Dr Dermot Kearney and his colleague helped to save over 30 babies’ lives after offering emergency support to women in crisis pregnancies. However, after a spurious complaint from an abortion industry director, Dr Kearney was banned by the GMC from helping any more women who might have regretted taking the abortion pill.
On today’s Round the Table, Amrita Kaur, a mother who sought the help of Dr Kearney, joined our Head of Public Policy, Tim Dieppe, as well as Dr Dermot Kearney himself, to tell the in-depth story of how the doctor who cared for forgotten and vulnerable women was banned from saving lives.
Learn more: https://christianconcern.com/cccases/dermot-kearney/
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Freedom of conscience has been restored for health and social care workers with the government's announcement of the end of vaccine mandates. The government had required all health and social care workers to be fully vaccinated against Covid-19 as a requirement of employment, however has now dropped the condition after 90% of respondents to its consultation agreed the policy shouldn't be mandatory.
At Christian Concern, we don't believe anyone should be made to go against their conscience. In fact, we want to help equip you to speak the truth - boldly and lovingly. Which is why we've come up with our new Lent resource, True Love Speaks, to help guide your prayers and act to speak boldly to those around you about Christ over Lent.
On today's Round the Table, Christian Concern's Tim Dieppe will be joined by Communications Manager Paul Huxley, and the Christian Legal Centre's Navaid Syed, as they discuss why these freedoms are so important, and how you can be empowered to speak.
Find out more about vaccine mandates: https://christianconcern.com/comment/govt-to-end-vaccine-requirement-for-all-health-and-social-care/
Find out more about True Love Speaks: https://christianconcern.com/resource/true-love-speaks-lent-prayer/
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"He sets up kings and pulls down the mighty from their thrones and none can stay his hand."
Dr Joe Boot, who joins us today, was one of the Christian leaders in Canada who wrote to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, warning him that "Jesus Christ is Lord and King and the ruler of the kings of the earth."
In Ukraine, we've seen another world leader acting violently, without regard for human life. So today on Round the Table, we consider what it means for Jesus to have all authority in heaven and earth.
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Christian parents Nigel and Sally Rowe were told by their sons' school that their children might be 'transphobic' after questioning whether it was right for two children in their classes to cross-dress.
But it's not just a matter of playing dress up. Nigel and Sally have won permission to challenge trans-affirming policies in English primary schools - which they believe cause harm to the very children they're meant to help.
Nigel and Sally join us on this week's Round the Table, along with X-Out-Louder Libby Littlewood, who formerly identified as a 'transgender man'.
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Does the Church of England approve of imprisoning church leaders for offering pastoral support for those struggling with same-sex attraction? This is one of the questions it was asked at General Synod this week.
Testimonies of de-transitioners and counsellors were also shared at our Synod fringe event this week, warning of the dangers of banning 'conversion therapy'.
On this week's Round the Table, Tim Dieppe (Christian Concern's Head of Public Policy) is joined by Dr Mike Davidson, of Core Issues Trust, IFTCC and X-Out-Loud, and Julie Maxwell, member of Synod, as they discuss what message the Church is sending around the issue of conversion therapy.
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For centuries, Christians have formed an integral part of teaching and educating children. But in a culture that believes the Christian view on sex is oppressive, our educational institutions are becoming increasingly hostile to a Christian worldview. From teachers to governors to part-time pastors, how can Christians be courageous in standing for the truth in our schools without the threat of losing their job?
Pastor Keith Waters has been giving evidence to the Employment Tribunal this week having been pushed out of his caretaker job at a school because of his tweet saying children and Christians shouldn’t attend Pride events.
Christian Concern’s Tim Dieppe and Andrea Williams will be joined by Keith and also by Rev. Dr Bernard Randall to discuss how to help Christians be salt and light in our schools during these challenging times.
Find out more about Keith's case: https://christianconcern.com/cccases/keith-waters/ Find out more about Bernard's case: https://christianconcern.com/cccases/rev-dr-bernard-randall/
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Christians are often confused by the sections of law they read in the Bible.
Do the laws in Leviticus and Deuteronomy still apply to us today? Can they teach us anything about how to engage with our own culture, thousands of years on from when the laws were first written down?
What can Christians learn from the laws in the Old Testament? In this talk, Professor Jonathan Burnside explains why we should take all parts of Scripture equally seriously, including all the texts that concern Biblical Law.
We will also be joined after the talk by Christian Concern's chief executive, Andrea Williams, and Head of Public Policy, Tim Dieppe, for a live Q&A.
About the speaker
Jonathan is Professor of Biblical Law at the University of Bristol, and teaches criminal law, Jewish law and jurisprudence. He holds degrees from the University of Cambridge in law and criminology, and a doctorate in law from the University of Liverpool.
He became professor at the University of Bristol's School of Law in 2012. Previously, he spearheaded 'Relational Justice' for the Jubilee Centre.
His book, God, Justice and Society, received outstanding reviews internationally. Jonathan seeks to build bridges between our understanding of Biblical Law and modern law by connecting Biblical normative conventions to areas of modern law.
More about the series
Gospel Issues is Christian Concern’s seminar series launched in 2019 to inform and equip the church on issues that Christians are facing today. Whether we are aware of it or not, society is changing at a rapid rate, and many Christians are finding themselves at odds with the truths of the Bible and what is being accepted and promoted in modern society.
On the third Monday of each month, we will explore hot-button topics such as transgenderism, abortion, education reforms, marriage and Islam. These seminars aim to give Christians clear and compassionate ways of understanding, responding to and challenging the issues that are becoming ever present in schools, workplaces and churches.
Join us as we explore the ideological roots of the challenges around us and put on the mind of Christ as we think through the Biblical responses needed.
You can also watch all of our previous seminars for free!
“Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is — his good, pleasing and perfect will.” Romans 12:2
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An Employment Tribunal recently released a landmark judgment in the case of nurse Mary Onuoha, ruling that the hospital where she worked had harassed and discriminated against her for continually demanding that she remove the cross she had worn around her neck for years.
Sadly, Mary's case is one among many where Christians have been harassed in the workplace for wearing this religious symbol.
Join us at 1pm with special guest Nadia Eweida, who was herself victim of harassment her for wearing her own cross as a flight attendant. She'll be joined by our Head of Public Policy, Tim Dieppe, and our very own chief executive, Andrea Williams, as they discuss the victory in Mary's case and the importance of this ruling for Christians in the UK wanting to manifest their faith in the workplace - whether that's through the wearing of the cross, or simply telling someone about Jesus.
Learn more about Mary's case: https://christianconcern.com/cccases/mary-onuoha/
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Over 1,700 church leaders have said that they are willing to be “criminalised” if a ban on so-called 'conversion therapy' prevents them from proclaiming the Lordship of Jesus Christ, and calling people to find life in him.
There's also a real danger that a ban would prevent people struggling with their sexuality or gender identity from accessing the help and support they want: https://christianconcern.com/comment/church-leaders-conversion-therapy-ban-could-criminalise-us/
Join us for today's Round The Table where our Head of Public Policy, Tim Dieppe, will be joined by Christian Concern co-founder Pastor Ade Omooba and Rev. Dr Matthew PW Roberts to discuss why they're hoping and praying the proposals will be dropped.
Please respond to the government’s consultation on banning ‘conversion therapy’ (deadline Friday 4 February 2022). You can use our guide to help you: https://christianconcern.com/action/respond-to-the-consultation-on-conversion-therapy/
Terrorism: the Islam connection | Round the Table Following news of Sunday's terror attack, it quickly became widely reported that the Liverpool suicide bomber was a Christian convert. But is it really as simple as all that? Now, it appears, he had been attending a mosque "all day, every day" in the run-up to the attack: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10215949/Poppy-Day-suicide-bomber-local-mosque-day-day-Ramadan.html
On today's Round the Table, we'll be joined by special guest Beth Peltola, CEO of One Truth Project, to discuss the Islamic connection with terror attacks.
Read more: Of terrorists and Islamophobes: https://christianconcern.com/comment/of-terrorists-and-islamophobes-a-christian-terrorist/
In today’s culture, God seems to be being squeezed out of society, with Christians firmly in the minority. In the words of Richard Dawkins, “We are all atheists about most of the gods that humanity has ever believed in. Some of us just go one god further.” But what does a society without God look like? Are we actually living in a secular culture? What is a secular society really?
If Christians are going to know how to live faithfully and contend for the gospel intelligently, we need to have a clear understanding of these things, and also be able to recognise where there are real opportunities to proclaim Truth and Transformation. If you want to be equipped to share the gospel in a secular world, then be sure to tune in and join the discussion.
Rev. Melvin Tinker, Director of Theology at the Christian Church Network, Hull, and author of Secularisation: Myth or Menace?, returns once more to Christian Concern to examine what it means to live in a secular society and how, as Christians, we can bring the hope of Jesus Christ to a culture that has rejected him. Melvin previously contributed to our July Gospel Issues seminar, ‘Cultural Marxism: crisis or conspiracy?’ and has also joined us on Round the Table, explaining his reasons for leaving the Church of England.
We will be joined by Christian Concern’s Chief Executive, Andrea Williams and Head of Public Policy, Tim Dieppe for a Q&A straight after.
About the speaker Melvin Tinker is a well-known author and international speaker and Director of Theology for the Christ Church Network in Hull. For 26 years he was vicar of St John, Newland, a large Anglican Evangelical Church in Hull.
He is also the author of over 70 published articles relating to doctrine, ethics and culture and over 14 books including That Hideous Strength: How the West was Lost and Veiled in Flesh: The Incarnation – what it means and why it matters (IVP).
He is married to Heather and has three grown up sons and eight grandchildren.
More about the series Gospel Issues is Christian Concern’s seminar series launched last year to inform and equip the church on issues that Christians are facing today. Whether we are aware of it or not, society is changing at a rapid rate, and many Christians are finding themselves at odds with the truths of the Bible and what is being accepted and promoted in modern society.
On the third Monday of each month, we will explore hot-button topics such as transgenderism, abortion, education reforms, marriage and Islam. These seminars aim to give Christians clear and compassionate ways of understanding, responding to and challenging the issues that are becoming ever present in schools, workplaces and churches.
Join us as we explore the ideological roots of the challenges around us and put on the mind of Christ as we think through the Biblical responses needed.
“Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is — his good, pleasing and perfect will.” Romans 12:2
The government has recently launched its consultation on banning 'conversion therapy', which proposes criminalising conversations aimed at helping someone seeking change in sexual orientation or gender identity – unless a formal consent form has been signed. The government is also proposing that children can't consent to such conversations.
The proposals might not sound quite as dangerous as some LGBT activists wanted - but they are still problematic. You may have heard that some campaigners are seeking to criminalise prayer - this is true, but the problems with the government's proposals are much wider than that.
We've stood time and again for the freedom for anyone to access this kind of help against the scare tactics of those who ultimately want to enshrine LGBT ideology in our laws and in the Church. Now, will you stand with us?
Join us for today's Round the Table as we explore and discuss why we're challenging these proposals, why it matters - and what you can do to stand with us.
As Christians, navigating our way through the world's current crises can be tricky. As the UN COP talks on combatting climate change are happening on our doorstep, how should the Church in the UK respond? Isn't Jesus the solution we should be promoting to the world? How can we bring hope to a world in climate crisis?
Join Round the Table with Christian Concern's Ade Omooba, Paul Huxley and Tim Dieppe as we discuss what the Church's priorities should be.
This month, BBC journalist Stephen Nolan released a new podcast exploring the influence of controversial LGBT campaign group Stonewall. New evidence and personal testimonies have been shared, exposing the extent of Stonewall's grip on the UK's public institutions - including the BBC.
But with various organisations leaving the Stonewall's 'Diversity Champions' programme, will the BBC do the same? And given Stonewall's bias, just how much influence should the group be allowed to have?
On today's Round the Table, Tim Dieppe was joined by Christian Concern Policy Researcher, Carys Moseley, and Mike Davidson of Core Issues Trust, to explore some of the themes raised in the podcast and answer the question, 'Is the BBC captive to Stonewall?'
Much of culture nowadays assumes sex is just for play. Porn is sold as something that is light-hearted and fun; teenagers are encouraged to ‘experiment’ as long as it’s ‘with consent’; schools are now teaching explicit sex education, including programmes such as ‘All About Me’, which discusses self-stimulation from age 6. Some 99% of 12-15-year-olds are online in the UK. A recent survey found that 94% of children had been exposed to porn by the age of 14. And yet 75% of parents believe their children are not viewing pornography online.
So how do we raise a generation of children that experiences the freedom of living godly sexual lives, rather than trapped in the snares of online addictions and sexual sin? Sex historian Lisa Nolland takes us through how to ‘sex-proof our children’ in an age of sexual revolution.
We were joined by Christian Concern's chief executive, Andrea Williams, and Head of Public Police, Tim Dieppe (who was experiencing a few small technical difficulties), for a live Q&A straight after.
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Lisa is a sex historian who has tracked the pan sexual, 'progressive' revolutions for decades. She is CEO of the MSC, the Marriage, Sex and Culture Group, London. She edited and contributed to God, Gays and the Church (2008) and The New Normal (2018). She exposes the bad but also promotes the good and addresses claims used to discredit traditional Christian sex ethics. She runs ‘Sex Proofing Your Kids’ seminars; works closely with Once Gay and Parent Power organisations; and supports freedom of speech campaigns.
Christian parents Nigel and Sally Rowe are challenging the Department for Education over its best practice guidelines for primary schools that affirms young children as transgender.
Questions of sex and gender can be complicated and confusing to Christians, and it can be even harder to speak clearly and compassionately on this contentious issue.
So on this Round the Table, Tim Dieppe will be speaking to Nigel and Sally Rowe, alongside church leader Wayne Upton, about their case, and why they're challenging trans-affirming policies in schools.
Christian nurse Mary Onuoha was forced out of her job as an NHS nurse for wearing a cross at work. But wearing a cross isn't mandatory for Christians, so why should we care? Besides, what if it really was a health and safety issue?
Join us this lunchtime at 1pm with Tim Dieppe, Andrea Williams and the Christian Legal Centre's Roger Kiska as they discuss Mary's case and why the visibility of the cross could be more important than you might think.
The Labour Party has kicked off a debate on sex and gender after leader Keir Starmer said 'It is not right to say that only women have cervixes'.
Questions of sex and gender can be confusing to Christians and it can be even harder to speak clearly and compassionately on this contentious issue.
So on this Round the Table, we'll be helping you get to grips with this important debate and speak clearly as a Christian.
Christian parents are waking up to significant issues with schools and curriculum, and all the statistics show that our children are becoming increasingly distanced from the truth of the gospel. Now, many parents are looking for alternatives, which is causing some church leaders and groups of parents to look to start their own schools.
Sadly, schools which encourage children into Christian beliefs are becoming increasingly hard to find. Even many so-called ‘Christian’ schools, or schools with a ‘Christian ethos’ have often adopted ideologies that run contrary to Scripture.
“Education is always for the glorification of a kingdom,” says Steve Beegoo. “The question is: which kingdom is the school glorifying?”
In this Gospel Issues seminar from September 2021, Steve, our Head of Education, took us through whether there really is a case for Christ-centred, Christian schools? Steve has been working with 11 different groups, from Aberdeen to Devon, that want to start up new Christian schools. But is there really a case for taking this radical step? Is it reasonable to expect our children to be salt and light in the world with the schools they are currently in? Should we carry on as we are and hope for the best, or is there another way?
We'll be joined by our chief executive Andrea Williams and Head of Public Policy for a live Q&A straight after.
Is ‘cultural Marxism’ really something that Christians should be worried about? Or is it simply a conspiracy theory made up by the so-called ‘religious right’ who love to ‘play victim’? Rev. Melvin Tinker, Director of Theology at the Christ Church Network, Hull, and author of That Hideous Strength: How the West was Lost, draws inspiration from C.S. Lewis’ novel of the same name to explore the contemporary influence of cultural Marxism, examining how non-conformity with this radical agenda can now cost you your career. Read our review of the book here: https://christianconcern.com/comment/...
We will be joined by Christian Concern’s Chief Executive, Andrea Williams and Head of Public Policy, Tim Dieppe for a Q&A straight after.
What are the challenges and opportunities or relating to local government, police and parliament? How can the Church recognise the state's authority properly - and where that authority ends?
Our fifth Church Unlocked livestream featured Regan King (Angel Church, London), Rev. Daniel Mateola (Kingdom Faith Ministries International Church) and Peter Naylor (Immanuel Presbyterian Church) discussing how Church-government relations have been strained through lockdowns, with various governments asserting their supposed right to stop gathered worship and other Christian ministry.
But at the same time it has relied on churches through social action projects and in supporting vaccine take-up.
Where does all of that really leave the Church?
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What is Church Unlocked?
As we emerge from lockdown, reopen our doors and resume our rhythms of gathered worship, we also have a unique opportunity. This is a moment to reflect again on what it means to be the people of God in 2021.
Over the coming weeks, we'll be exploring what it means to be the Church Unlocked. We'll be asking what church life could look like as we approach the uncertain months ahead. We’ll take time to reflect on the lessons we’ve learnt during lockdown, and look back at how we’ve fought to protect vital freedoms during a time when churches have found themselves locked from the outside. We’ll celebrate churches and leaders across the UK who have continued to faithfully share the hope of Jesus with their communities – often finding innovative new ways to do so.
How can we embrace new technologies for God’s glory, and what lessons do we need to retrieve from the history of the church? How much do we really value gathered worship? How can we renew our mission to be salt and light in our communities, and see the hope of Jesus released across our nation?
https://christianconcern.com/resource/church-unlocked/
Our fourth Church Unlocked livestream will feature Canon J.John, Dominic Muir and Laura Brett talking about how the pandemic and lockdowns have changed evangelism.
Has the widespread use of streaming technology transformed how the Church will reach out? What are the felt needs of those around us, post-covid, and how can we help people see that Jesus is the answer to those needs?
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What is Church Unlocked?
As we emerge from lockdown, reopen our doors and resume our rhythms of gathered worship, we also have a unique opportunity. This is a moment to reflect again on what it means to be the people of God in 2021.
Over the coming weeks, we'll be exploring what it means to be the Church Unlocked. We'll be asking what church life could look like as we approach the uncertain months ahead. We’ll take time to reflect on the lessons we’ve learnt during lockdown, and look back at how we’ve fought to protect vital freedoms during a time when churches have found themselves locked from the outside. We’ll celebrate churches and leaders across the UK who have continued to faithfully share the hope of Jesus with their communities – often finding innovative new ways to do so.
How can we embrace new technologies for God’s glory, and what lessons do we need to retrieve from the history of the church? How much do we really value gathered worship? How can we renew our mission to be salt and light in our communities, and see the hope of Jesus released across our nation?
https://christianconcern.com/resource/church-unlocked/
For our third Church Unlocked livestream, we were joined by special guests, Rev. Matt Timms (Wave House Church, Newquay), Rev. Tunde Balogun (Kingsborough Church) and Rev. Kurt Erickson (Eleos Christian Centre), as we discussed how the Church has gone outside during the pandemic. Are open air church services the way forward? Or street preaching? These three pastors encouraged us to find new and creative ways to do mission outside, particularly when the church doors were shut.
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What is Church Unlocked?
As we emerge from lockdown, reopen our doors and resume our rhythms of gathered worship, we also have a unique opportunity. This is a moment to reflect again on what it means to be the people of God in 2021.
Over the coming weeks, we'll be exploring what it means to be the Church Unlocked. We'll be asking what church life could look like as we approach the uncertain months ahead. We’ll take time to reflect on the lessons we’ve learnt during lockdown, and look back at how we’ve fought to protect vital freedoms during a time when churches have found themselves locked from the outside. We’ll celebrate churches and leaders across the UK who have continued to faithfully share the hope of Jesus with their communities – often finding innovative new ways to do so.
How can we embrace new technologies for God’s glory, and what lessons do we need to retrieve from the history of the church? How much do we really value gathered worship? How can we renew our mission to be salt and light in our communities, and see the hope of Jesus released across our nation?
https://christianconcern.com/resource/church-unlocked/
As churches were plunged into lockdown early on in the pandemic, many were quick to move online, creating church services over Zoom, streaming live from YouTube, or uploading the weekly sermon to Facebook.
But as churches are now free to open to the public again, we’re asking, should ‘hybrid church’ be here to stay?
Tim Dieppe is joined by Dave Gobbett and Pete Cornford as part of our Church Unlocked series.
Find out more: https://christianconcern.com/resource/church-unlocked/
A new bill has been introduced to legalise assisted suicide. Is it truly compassionate or will it cause bigger problems?
On this week's Round the Table, Tim Dieppe was joined by Nikki and Merv Kenward (The Distant Voices)and Gordon Macdonald (Care not Killing.
http://www.thedistantvoices.org/ https://www.carenotkilling.org.uk/
The Covid-19 pandemic hasn't been the first time people have suffered from fear or loneliness. But it has brought those feelings into focus.
Fear of disease is instinctive, but government information campaigns have sought to heighten those instincts. Our individualistic society already led to many people feeling lonely, but being physically separated from friends and family worsened the situation for many.
This is also true in the Church. Although many Christians are keen to come to fully-fledged services, many remain anxious about the possibility of being infected or infecting others. And simply meeting once a week may simply be papering over the cracks of the loneliness people feel.
How can the Church love lonely and fearful people? What is a Biblical and pastoral response to these issues? And what innovative ways are Christians sharing the hope of Christ, who is 'a very present help in trouble' (Ps 46:1).
As part of our new series, Church Unlocked, Tim Dieppe was joined by Pastor Ade Omooba MBE, Rev. David Hall (Vicar, Christ Church Chorleywood) and Oliver Allmand-Smith (Pastor, Trinity Grace Church, Ramsbottom.
Find out more: https://christianconcern.com/resource/church-unlocked/
In our final In His Image podcast, Paul Huxley and Ben John look at Jesus' famous words in John 3:16-17 - what they tell us about God and how we engage with the world around us.
Find out more about In His Image, download the study guide and find all the podcast episodes at https://christianconcern.com/resource/in-his-image-lent-2021-series/
Peter tells us to be ready to give a reason for the hope that is in us - but are we characterised by hope? Do our friends and neighbours see our hope? And is that a foolproof guard against accusations and slander?
Our second-to-last In His Image podcast continues to look at how we are to live as Christians.
Catch up on the series: https://christianconcern.com/resource/in-his-image-lent-2021-series/
Paul Huxley and Ben John look at Matthew 5 where Jesus describes his followers as salt and light. What can we learn from this passage about how Christians should reach out to the world around them and what reaction can we expect?
Find out more about the series: https://christianconcern.com/resource/in-his-image-lent-2021-series/
What happens when someone feels like they're in the wrong body? What does being made in God's image tell us about being male and female?
Paul Huxley and Ben John look at Genesis 1 and Romans 8 as they discuss a Biblical view on transgender ideology.
Abortion policies increasingly treat the baby in the womb as a clump of cells and not a person. But what does the Bible say about when a baby is a person, a life bearing God's image and worthy of protection?
In this episode Ben John and Paul Huxley look at Psalm 139.
Find out more about the series:
https://christianconcern.com/resource/in-his-image-lent-2021-series/
In this episode we continue our look at the Ten Commandments.
Which of the values mentioned in the Ten Commandments are the most neglected/rejected by society at large?
Find out more about our In His Image series: https://christianconcern.com/resource/in-his-image-lent-2021-series/
This week in our In His Image series, we're looking at the Ten Commandments. In this episode, we look at whether the Ten Commandments are wise - are they worth applying today? How would How would non-Christians would react if we applied them today?
Find out more about our series: https://christianconcern.com/resource/in-his-image-lent-2021-series/
In this episode, we carry on our look at Romans 1 and our need for moral foundations.
How can these verses help us to understand and critique contemporary culture and its moral confusion?
Find out more about our In His Image series:
https://christianconcern.com/resource/in-his-image-lent-2021-series/
Does objective morality exist? Or to put it another way - is there only one way that people ought to live, no matter who they are or where they come from?
This week, our In His Image series looks at Romans 1:20-25 and our moral foundations.
How might you use these verses to argue for Christian morality?
Find out more about our In His Image series: https://christianconcern.com/resource/in-his-image-lent-2021-series/
In this episode we continue to look at Genesis 3, focusing on how every aspect of creation is feeling the effects of the fall.
What effects of the Fall do you see in today’s world?
Is it loving to call society - including non-Christians to live according to God's design?
Come back each Tuesday and Thursday for new episodes and find out more about the series on our website:
https://christianconcern.com/resource/in-his-image-lent-2021-series/
In the second episode of our series, we look at Genesis 3:1-7, seeing how Adam and Eve succumbed to temptation - and applying it to our lives today.
What mistakes did they make, and what lessons can we learn for society today?
Come back each Tuesday and Thursday for new episodes and find out more about the series on our website:
https://christianconcern.com/resource/in-his-image-lent-2021-series/
Through Lent, we're providing a series of podcast episodes exploring questions raised by In His Image by Stephen McQuoid.
In our first episode, we look at Genesis 1:26-28, asking:
What does it mean to be made in God's image? How does Western culture reject this truth?
Come back each Tuesday and Thursday for new episodes and find out more about the series on our website: https://christianconcern.com/resource/in-his-image-lent-2021-series/
Teaching on relationships and sex, evolution and other religions have frequently been battlegrounds between Christian parents and others when it comes to schooling. But is there more we can learn about a Christian education?
How does the gospel relate to our understanding of children, parenting and education? How can we learn from Jesus about teaching? What is distinctive about the aims of Christian education?
Former head teacher Steve Beegoo, Christian Concern’s Head of Education, addresses these questions and more to help us gain a Biblical vision for education.
We will be joined by Christian Concern’s Chief Executive, Andrea Williams and Head of Public Policy, Tim Dieppe for a live Q&A straight after.
In Romans 1, Paul writes of how those who had no understanding of God were given over to the desires of the flesh. It’s no surprise that the Bible treats sex differently to how the world treats it. But how exactly does our understanding of God affect our sexual practice and identity? And how can we speak to those who don’t know God about a Biblical understanding of sexual behaviour? Dr Peter Jones, Director of TruthXchange, addresses these questions, encouraging us to seek a Biblical worldview to shape our understanding of sex.
We will be joined by Christian Concern’s Chief Executive, Andrea Williams, Head of Public Policy, Tim Dieppe for a live Q&A straight after.
UK Christians sometimes look at their brothers and sisters in America and wonder why the church is so much more politically active on issues like abortion and sexuality. Are ‘culture wars’ part of the church’s calling or an unhelpful distraction? As agents of God’s peace, should Christians engage in ‘culture wars’ or focus on evangelism? Dr P. Andrew Sandlin addresses these questions theologically and Biblically.
We are joined by Christian Concern’s Chief Executive, Andrea Williams, Head of Public Policy, Tim Dieppe and Christian Legal Centre client Dr David Mackereth for the Q&A session.
Marriage is the stabilising bedrock of society, yet society seems intent on eroding its Biblical definition: that marriage is reserved for one man and one woman. When society understands marriage as something it was never intended to be, should the government be promoting it? Dr Tony Rucinski from C4M explores how and why the government should promote the benefits of traditional Biblical marriage and how it provides the foundation for society.
The seminar will be followed by a live Q&A with Tony, Christian Concern's Chief Executive, Andrea Williams, Head of Public Policy, Tim Dieppe and Christian Legal Centre client, Izzy Montague.
It is currently illegal in the UK to encourage or assist anyone to take their own life – the offence carries a maximum penalty of up to 14 years in prison. But recently, there have been increasing moves to legalise euthanasia and assisted suicide in the UK, with some MPs predicting that it will be made legal in a few short years and the media now campaigning to make it law.
But what does the Bible have to say about euthanasia and assisted suicide? Is there ever a reason to help end someone’s suffering? Dr Peter Saunders answers these questions, calling Christians to help cultivate a culture of assisted living, rather than assisted dying.
We will be joined by Christian Concern’s Head of Public Policy, Tim Dieppe for a Q&A straight after.
Related links: Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide booklet: https://christianconcern.com/resource/should-christians-support-the-right-to-die/ Latest assisted suicide bill offers no better safeguards: https://christianconcern.com/comment/latest-assisted-suicide-bill-offers-no-better-safeguards/
Christian Concern’s Head of Public Theology and Wilberforce Academy Director, Rev. Dr Joe Boot, will take us through a Biblical understanding of the kingdom of God and what this means for the mandate we have as Christians in the world today. If we want to see “his kingdom come and his will be done on earth as it is in heaven” then we must faithfully consider the scriptural view of the gospel and its implications for culture.
Joe is a cultural theologian, leading Christian apologist, founding pastor of Westminster Chapel in Toronto and founder of the Ezra Institute for Contemporary Christianity (EICC). Joe also served with Ravi Zacharias International Ministries for seven years as an apologist based in England and Canada.
The seminar is followed by a live Q&A with Joe, Christian Concern's Chief Executive, Andrea Williams and Head of Public Policy, Tim Dieppe.
Christian Concern’s Policy Researcher, Carys Moseley, will look at the history of transgender activism in the UK. In this seminar she will outline the origins and growth of the transgender movement in the UK, showing how we got to where we are today. Carys is also one of the authors of The New Normal: The Transgender Agenda and has written a chapter on ‘Transsexual and Transgender Rights and Ideology in the United Kingdom: Their History and Effect on Society’.
The seminar is followed by a live Q&A with Carys, Christian Concern's chief executive, Andrea Williams, Head of Public Policy, Tim Dieppe and Christian Legal Centre clients, Nigel and Sally Rowe.
You can find out more about the Rowe's case here: https://christianconcern.com/cccases/nigel-and-sally-rowe/
Recent statistics show that church attendance – particularly in the Church of England – is at an all-time low, and those identifying as Christian in the UK are decreasing in number. Why? Has the Church lost its way? Rev. Dr Clifford Hill and his wife, Monica Hill, look at the decline of the Church in the UK, sharing practical ways we can put the gospel back at the heart of this nation.
Rev. Dr Clifford Hill is the author of 'The Reshaping of Britain'. His wife, Monica, was for 20 years the Director of the British Church Growth Association and was also President of the European Church Growth Association.
The seminar is followed by a live Q&A with Dr Clifford and Monica Hill, Christian Concern's chief executive, Andrea Williams, and Head of Public Policy, Tim Dieppe.
The Christian Legal Centre’s Roger Kiska examines if Christians are being persecuted – in the UK. He looks specifically at cases of Christians who have lost their jobs for expressing their Christian beliefs, as well as other forms of discrimination against Christians. He discusses the root causes of persecution and what can be done to rectify this.
The Church of England was established to lead the nation in the ways of God, but more recently, it seems to be leading God’s people in the ways of the world. Andrea Williams, chief executive of Christian Concern and lay member of General Synod, outlines the current state of the Church of England, exploring what this means for faithful Christians throughout the UK.
Andrea Williams explores explore the social effects of over 50 years of legalised abortion in the UK and discusses how Christians and churches should respond Biblically to the pastoral needs of the nation while understanding the agenda of those looking to further liberalise the law.
Roger Kiska examines how the changes in culture and society have influenced the promotion of secular and liberal beliefs in state education, particularly on issues of religion, morality and sexuality. In addition, he will share practical ways for parents, teachers and governors to play an active role in community education, challenge the 'new normal' and safeguard the wellbeing of the children in their care.
Tim Dieppe explores the reasons why our laws are important in shaping the nation and how the shift away from Biblical principles can affect the everyday life of a believer in Christ.
Wilberforce in Conversation - Samuel Burgess on Edmund Burke and conservatism
In the fifth of a series of interviews with Wilberforce Academy contributors Paul Huxley talks to author Samuel Burgess about Edmund Burke and conservatism. Samuel gained a first-class degree in theology at the University of Durham, and subsequently studied for an MPhil at the University of Cambridge and a DPhil at the University of Oxford.
"What Burke argued was that our legal rights are a contextual expression of things that are given to us because of inherent dignity and worth, but they come with correlate duties and responsibilities that arise from the social structures, communities and relationships that we are born into."
Please listen, share with others and let us know what you think (info@christianconcern.com).
Choose the option 'More > Download' to download as an mp3.
Books referenced:
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Edmund Burke's Battle with Liberalism: His Christian Philosophy and Why it Matters Today, by Samuel Burgess https://www.amazon.co.uk/Edmund-Burkes-Battle-Liberalism-Philosophy/dp/0995683239
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Reflections on the Revolution in France, by Edmund Burke https://www.amazon.co.uk/Reflections-Revolution-France-Edmund-Burke/dp/1617206709
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The Desire of the Nations: Rediscovering the Roots of Political Theology, by Oliver O'Donovan https://www.amazon.co.uk/Desire-Nations-Rediscovering-Political-Theology/dp/0521665167
Christian Concern links: www.facebook.com/CCFON/ www.christianconcern.com/signup
The Christian life isn't spent entirely in church or in the prayer closet - the bulk of our time is spent in our vocations, whether paid or unpaid.
In the fourth of a series of interviews with Wilberforce Academy contributors Paul Huxley talks to Tim Dieppe, Head of Public Policy at Christian Concern about a Christian approach to work. What should our motivations be? What are the pitfalls? How can we glorify God in the workplace?
Please listen, share with others and let us know what you think (info@christianconcern.com).
Choose the option 'More > Download' to download as an mp3.
Books referenced:
Ed Silvoso, 'Anointed for Business' https://www.amazon.co.uk/Anointed-Business-Ed-Silvoso/dp/0800797140/
Doug Sherman and William Hendricks, 'Your Work Matters to God' https://www.amazon.co.uk/Your-Work-Matters-Doug-Sherman-ebook/dp/B07GNR9WMJ
Christian Concern links: www.facebook.com/CCFON/ www.christianconcern.com/signup
"There is no greater visible public testimony against radical autonomy than marriage"
In a second discussion with P. Andrew Sandlin (Center for Cultural Leadership), Paul Huxley asks about the nature and purpose of marriage.
Is marriage just an agreement between two people who love each other? What are the distinctives of a Christian view on marriage? What about civil partnerships and same-sex marriages? And how do we think about singleness?
Please listen, share with others and let us know what you think (info@christianconcern.com).
Choose the option 'More > Download' to download as an mp3.
Find out more:
The Center for Cultural Leadership: www.christianculture.com/
P. Andrew Sandlin's articles: www.docsandlin.com/
Christian Concern links: www.facebook.com/CCFON/ www.christianconcern.com/signup
In this second discussion with Wilberforce Academy contributors, Paul Huxley talks to P. Andrew Sandlin, about culture. What is culture, what are the dominant themes of present-day western culture and how do Christians go about changing it?
Please listen, share with others and let us know what you think.
Find out more:
The Center for Cultural Leadership: https://christianculture.com/
P. Andrew Sandlin's articles: https://docsandlin.com/
Christian Concern links: https://www.facebook.com/CCFON/ https://www.christianconcern.com/signup
This is the first in a new series of discussions with Wilberforce Academy speakers.
In this episode, Paul Huxley talks to the academy's director, Dr Joe Boot, about the place of politics and culture in the pulpit.
Please listen, share with others and let us know if you have any feedback.
Recommended resources:
The Mission of God (Joe Boot): https://www.amazon.co.uk/Mission-God-Manifesto-Hope-Society/dp/0957572565/
Gospel Culture (Joe Boot): https://www.amazon.co.uk/Gospel-Culture-Living-Kingdom-Cornerstones/dp/0995683220
Power in Service (Willem J. Ouweneel): https://www.ezrainstitute.ca/resource-library/books/power-in-service
Ezra Institute: https://www.ezrainstitute.ca/
Christian Concern links: https://www.facebook.com/CCFON/ https://www.christianconcern.com/signup
