Pastor's Thought

Today marks the 25th anniversary of the death of the young black man Stephen Lawrence.  He was murdered while waiting with his friend Dwayne Brooks for a bus one evening. Stephen  Lawrence was the victim of a brutal race attack when a gang of five white youths attacked and murdered him in an unprovoked attack based only on his race.  …

The last two weeks have seen the rise in the war in Syria, but this time with the use of chemical weaponry. The USA airstrikes against Syria in the last two days was supported by UK and France following the alleged use of chemical weapons on the Syrian civilians by its own government. The chemical weapons used resulted in over …

This week central London has witnessed an unprecedented rise in death by knife crime, which has surpassed even that in New York.  The cause for this sudden increase has not. Even fully understood, and so sociologist criminologists and other professionals have tried to give reason to this most difficult and shameful period within the UK.  The common factor to this …

Resurrection Sunday is the most important time of the year, in the Christian calendar. Although Christmas time is quite significant, wherein it demonstrated the Love Gift God sent in human form by way of His Son Jesus Christ; this was part of the wider plan. Many faiths have seen leaders come and go. Yet, for Jesus, His life held three …

Thursday 8th March marked International Women’s Day, an event observed in countries around the world. It is a celebration of the progress made in the quest for gender equality for women in all areas of political, social and economic life. We should all expect the Church to be a model of liberation whilst inspiring a hope-filled community. However, a recent …

The UK’s weather conditions were totally disrupted by a two-headed monster when the ‘Beast from the East’ met ‘Storm Emma’ on UK mainland. The Beast from the East saw heavy snow and freezing rain affecting the usual schools, work and homes. It provided opportunities for children off school to have fun in the snow, while commuters faced train delays and …

On Wednesday of this week, US evangelist Billy Graham died aged 99. He was arguably one of the most influential and globally recognised preachers/Evangelist of the 20th Century. It was reported that during his 60 years as an evangelist, it is estimated that he preached to hundreds of millions of people around the world as a true voice in the …

This week, one of the world’s best-known and biggest disaster relief charities, Oxfam, was hit by shocking allegations that its employees exploited children whom they were supposed to help.  It is reported by the Times newspaper that the allegations date back to the aftermath of the 2010 earthquake on the island of Haiti.  Following the earthquake, it was estimated 220,000 …

On February 9th, the world watched as the largest, most diverse Winter Olympics Games PyeongChang 2018 got underway with a spectacular opening ceremony in South Korea. With 92 countries taking part, of which 6 are doing so for the first time and also for the first time featuring women teams such as the Nigerian and Jamaican female bobsled team. Another …

This week 100 years ago following many years of bitter turmoil and struggles, the first section of women in British society were given the opportunity to vote.  For years The Suffragette Movement fought against the system, against men and specifically against politicians who were men only, fighting for equal rights for women. Even when women were given the right to …

Today is Homeless Sunday and an opportunity for Churches and Christian groups to join together in prayer and reflection, in order to plan practical action on homelessness. Additionally, it provides an opportunity for a united Christian voice to be empathetic, stand in solidarity and be a prophetic voice for change. People are homeless for a variety of reasons, including mental …

On Sunday 14 January 2018, the English football mourned the sudden and unexpected passing of footballer Cyrille Regis who died from a heart attack. Regis was an MBE international footballer who played as a forward. His professional football career spanned 19 years (1975 – 1996) with 614 league appearances where he scored 158 league goals and won the FA Cup …