Churches Together in Britain and Ireland - CTBI Newsletter

what's new

january 2011

We wish all our readers a happy and peaceful new year. CTBI's e-bulletin keeps our supporters up to date with new developments on our website and across the churches of Britain and Ireland. Please forward it to anyone who might be interested.

We've added iPad-style quick access icons to our website home page, so you should be able to find your way around the site more easily. Let us know what you think of them.

Please note our new central phone numbers:
Tel: 08456 806851
Fax: 08456 806852
Fax for Bail Circle: 08456 806853
(these are non-geographic numbers)

Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, 18-25th January 2011

Prepare for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity with our resources, available to order or download at www.ctbi.org.uk/weekofprayer.

This year’s theme All Things in Common, is taken from Acts 2: 42-47. The worship resources were developed by an ecumenical group in Jerusalem; from them we hear a powerful call to join with Christians there to pray for the unity of the Church and for justice and peace in our world - especially in the troubled situation of Israel-Palestine. Resources include daily reflections, a choice of orders of service, a poster, sheet music and PowerPoint presentations. There are also Welsh and Irish translations and a large print booklet. More >>

Holocaust Memorial Day 2011 Holocaust Memorial Day - 27th January 2011

Observe Holocaust Memorial Day, 27 January 2011, with the resources produced by the Council for Christians and Jews in consultation with Churches Together in Britain and Ireland. More >>

Photo: Vince Alongi

Poverty & Homelessness Action Week 2011

Poverty & Homelessness Action Week 2011 runs from 30 January to 6 February.30 January is Homelessness Sunday and 6 February is Poverty Action Sunday. This year’s theme is Who Counts? - connected to 2011 as census year. Full information and resources from The Poverty and Homelessness Action Week website

Lent 2011: The Unreconciled

How do we bring about reconciliation? Who is responsible for bringing about world peace? Who should feed the hungry? What happens when attempts at reconciliation fail? How do we cope with failure? These and other questions are explored in the Lent course for 2011 - The Unreconciled, which reflects on what God has done for us in the crucifixion, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Full resources will be available to download around the third week of January. More >>

The Church in the Public Square

How are the Churches operating in our changing society in relation to their role “in the public square”? Watch, listen to or read some of the presentations from CTBI’s recent Networking Conference by the Most Rev'd Vincent Nichols, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Westminster, the Revd Dr Kathy Galloway, Head of Christian Aid Scotland, and Professor Gavin D'Costa, Professor of Christian Theology, Department of Theology and Religious Studies, University of Bristol. More >>

China Visit 2010

CTBI's visit to China in 2010 allowed representatives from member churches to become better acquainted with the Chinese churches and to visit a number of partners of the CTBI China Forum. Download the report, which describes the aims of the trip, places visited, outcomes and recommendations for the future, along with some fascinating reflections on China from the participants at http://www.ctbi.org.uk/500

China Update

Keep up-to-date with the Church in China with China Update, a regular bulletin published on the China Online Study Centre. More >>

Living Spirituality Network newsletter

The Winter 2010 newsletter, including the article The Contemplative Voice of Thomas Merton by Bridget Hewitt, is now available to download: Living Spirituality Network Newsletters

Christians Abroad

Christians Abroad is now a self-funding project of CTBI. It provides opportunities in international mission/volunteering, consultancy and services such as travel and health insurance. More >>

More Than Gold - 2012 Olympics

More Than Gold has made two videos available to explain the opportunities for outreach and service during the 2012 Olympic Games - one for church leaders and one for use in church services. Download them at http://www.ctbi.org.uk/morethangold

christianity.org.uk

The Christian Enquiry Agency has relaunched its website, responding to the needs and questions of a new generation of people enquiring about the Christian faith. Explore the new site http://www.christianity.org.uk/

Education Sunday - 20 February 2011

Resources are now available from Churches Together in England for Education Sunday 2011. More >>

Asylum seekers cannot be forced to lie

The Court of Appeal has ruled that asylum seekers cannot be forced to lie about not holding political beliefs when returning to their home country. More >>

Climate change letter to Prime Minister

Read the letter sent to David Cameron from the Scottish faith leaders in the run up to Cancun More >>

Child protection news

The Church of England has published an updated child protection policy. More >>

CCPAS is holding a national one-day Internet Safety Conference in London on e-safety for churches and organisations working with children and young people. Information and booking at More >>

Recruiting Safely regional training events: Learn how to recruit safely within the children's workforce. Register your interest for a free training session at More >>

Conference on Poetry and Spirituality, 26-28 January 2011

This residential conference at Cumberland Lodge Windsor, will explore the spiritual potential of poetry, both within and beyond religion:

More >>

9th Conference of the European Network of Buddhist-Christian Studies

This will take place June 30th - July 4th 2011 at Liverpool Hope University, with the theme Hope: A Form of Delusion? Buddhist and Christian Perspectives.http://www.ctbi.org.uk/259#buddhistchristian

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