UK & Ireland in Brief

On 23 November, it was announced that Senior Pastor Andy Croft would leave Soul Survivor Watford. He made the decision despite being allowed to return to ministry following an investigation into his safeguarding practices, and the practices of his former colleague Mike Pilavachi (who was found guilty of an abuse of power and spiritual abuse across 40 years of ministry).

In a letter to his congregation, Andy shared that he made the decision ‘after much soul searching and prayer’ and said that he and his family ‘intend to stay as part of the congregation’ while they discern their next steps. ‘I need to acknowledge that I myself have also been deeply impacted by aspects of Mike’s abusive behaviour’, he added.

Milla Ling-Davies

CARE have said reforms are needed to tackle problems with gambling, following a recent study by the Gambling Commission which found that 2.5% of Britain’s population might have a gambling problem.

The study found that 42% of those who have gambled in the last year said they have taken financial risks; it also found that young gamblers are more of a concern than older people surveyed. CARE are calling for reforms to be implemented to tackle problem gambling, such as affordability checks and maximum stakes on online slot machines.

The Evangelical Movement of Wales have announced that they are running Church Training Days in January. One will be held for church leaders in North Wales on Saturday 13 January, and one for South Wales on Saturday 27 January.

Anyone who serves in a leadership role in the group’s churches is welcome to attend a day. They take place to support and encourage church leaders, and provide an opportunity to share ideas to help each other as they seek to serve Jesus in their local churches.

Glasgow City Free Church and Partick Free Church have united together to become Crow Road Free Church. The union of the two congregations was approved by the Commission of Assembly in mid-November.

The church is committed to mission work in its local areas of Partick and Thornwood.

The Public Engagement Group of the Free Church of Scotland says revised guidance on Relationships, Sexual Health and Parenthood (RSHP) education from the Scottish Government is an improvement on previous drafts, but still not satisfactory.

The Group believes the guidance’s new sections concerning Faith and Belief, and the rights of parents or carers to withdraw their children from RHSP education are positive additions, but does not think it goes far enough in protecting the rights of parents when deciding what is best for their children.

Dr Sam Mawhinney recently went on a seven-day pastoral tour of the Presbytery of Omagh, which is one of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland’s 19 regional Presbyteries and consists of over 40 congregations.

Mawhinney enjoyed a week of over 30 meetings, ranging from visits to schools, businesses and churches, to personal meetings with local ministers. He was particularly encouraged to see that, despite the challenges of working in schools nowadays, children were generally receptive and well-behaved, and that ‘strong church and community connections’ were important in local schools.

A gathering was held at Wembley Stadium in early December to celebrate links between Christianity and football. Several Christian organisations were invited, including the Evangelical Alliance.

The event featured an interview line-up with Christians involved in sport, before an address from Simon Thomas, the Christian host of Sky Sports’ Soccer Saturday programme. Then, after a time of fellowship accompanied by mince pies and mulled wine, those in attendance sang carols on the terraces, and heard a message.

Luke Randall

A Christian preacher has been given permission to appeal a ruling that upheld his arrest for holding placards protesting against Islam, following the 2017 London terror attacks perpetrated by Islamic State. The placards said ‘Love Muslims’ - but ban or hate Islam.

Ian Sleeper was arrested outside Southwark Cathedral following a complaint from a member of the public. He told officers he was ‘not attacking people; I’m attacking an idea’. One officer told him he was going to take the placard off him and ‘rip it up’ because he was not allowed to display it. He was released without charge but the court rejected his subsequent claim for false imprisonment. The court has now given Sleeper to appeal.

Nicola Laver