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A student made to kneel at a checkpoint, a family rationing water and a university student planning every journey around the risk of settler harassment. Matt Adcock reports from Jerusalem and the West Bank on how Palestinian Christians are measuring the latest British announcement against the realities of ordinary life. One young man of 15 arrived late for college while I was visiting Ramallah. He... Read More

Gospel of 16 September 2026 John 17:11b-19 At that time: Jesus lifted up his eyes to heaven, and praying said, 'Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one. While I was with them, I kept them in your name, which you have given me. I have guarded them, and not one of them has been lost except the son of destruction, that the Scripture mig... Read More

Bishop John Arnold, Bishop of Salford and Lead Bishop for Environmental Issues for the Bishops' Conference, has issued a statement halfway through the Season of Creation highlighting how the world's violent conflicts are impacting on our common home. Bishop Arnold also reminds us that we all have a part to play: "We must never assume that changing our own hearts and our own behaviour will have no ... Read More

A Willesden cyclist undertaking an epic 2,246-mile ride from Britain to Jerusalem says faith, prayer and growing physical strength are helping him overcome the toughest stages of his journey. Andrew Foote, who is raising money for Aid to the Church in Need (ACN), has reached Italy after weeks on the road and some of the most demanding terrain he has encountered so far. While many cyclists might ex... Read More

Under the first Catholic Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, the UK Government today has introduced the Repeal Bill to remove the historic religious restrictions which prevents a Roman Catholic or Jewish Prime Minister from carrying out the full constitutional duties of their office. This new legislation will mean Roman Catholic and Jewish Prime Ministers can provide advice on Church of England appoint... Read More

Woe to the hypocritical holy men, Christ warned, 'Because you are like to whitened sepulchres, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead men's bones, and of all filthiness.' The celebrated actor Mark Rylance is currently appearing as just such an impostor in Tartuffe, Molière's hilarious satire against religious hypocrisy. With characteristic brio, he plays Pastor Blake, an oi... Read More

Sunday, 20 September will be Home Mission Sunday. This is the day in the Church's calendar when we especially pray for and support the vital work of evangelisation throughout England and Wales. In a short filmed message, speaking on behalf of the Bishops, the Right Reverend Philip Egan, Bishop of Portsmouth, emphasised that many more people should come to know "the God who made them." "Saint John ... Read More

Tributes have been pouring in for Paddy - Patrick Joseph Naughton (of Spennymoor formerly Consett) who died on the 16th August, 2026. His funeral took place at St Charles Borromeo Catholic Church in Tudhoe, Co Durham, on Friday 11 September, followed by a private interment at Tudhoe Cemetery and a reception at The Black Horse, Tudhoe to celebrate Patrick's life. Patrick's brother Ged sends this b... Read More

Gospel of 15 September 2026 John 19:25-27 At that time: Standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother and his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, 'Woman, behold, your son!' Then he said to the disciple, 'Behold, your mother!' And from that hour the disciple took her to his ow... Read More

With the Covid emergency now over, the austerity measures at the Vatican introduced with that time are being ended. In a Motu Proprio published on Monday, Pope Leo XIV repealed the provisions introduced by Pope Francis in March 2021 that reduced the salaries of Holy See personnel, beginning with Cardinals and heads of Dicasteries of the Roman Curia, and suspended biennial seniority increases. The ... Read More

Speaking at a seminar of the Fowley Island Institute, held jointly with Lincoln Bishop University and St Mary's University, last weekend, leading Catholic academic, Professor Francis Davis, called for 'innovation' and 'expansion' in especially the English speaking Catholicism and wider Christianity's 'political' and 'pastoral' theology, to build an 'empirical political theology' "truly fit to help... Read More

Following the vote against the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill last week, Caritas Social Action Network (CSAN) reflects on its impact and ways forward. Many Catholic organisations, led by the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales, have been vocal in opposing iterations of the assisted dying bill which have come before UK Parliament in the past two years. CSAN released a statem... Read More

Pope Leo XIV celebrated his 71st birthday today, September 14, 2026, following a year marked by appeals for peace, Apostolic Journeys, and concern for human dignity. Messages and expressions of good wishes have arrived at the Vatican from around the world. Italian President Sergio Mattarella sent greetings "on behalf of the Italian people, together with his sincere wishes for spiritual and persona... Read More

On Tuesday 22 September, around 100 priests - from eight countries around the world and various regions of Italy - from the 'Priests Against Genocide' network will gather in Rome. The morning will be devoted to an internal meeting, closed to the public. The public part of the day will begin at 3pm with a moment of prayer at the Church of Santo Spirito in Sassia (Borgo Santo Spirito). At 3.30pm the... Read More