St Bride’s, Fleet Street, commemorates 18th-century peal
THE three hundredth anniversary of the primary ever peal of 12 bells was celebrated at St Bride’s, Fleet Street, on Sunday. Several towers across the country marked the occasion with celebratory peals over the weekend. At St Bride’s, a three-hour peal on handbells — replicating the unique composition, in the unique church — took place. The church’s ring of bells was not replaced after its destruction, along with all however the tower and partitions of the church, in an air raid in December 1940.
Team rector to be Bishop of Glasgow & Galloway
THE latest Bishop of Glasgow & Galloway will likely be the Team Rector of Didsbury, within the diocese of Manchester, Canon Nicholas Bundock, it was announced this week. Canon Bundock has served for nearly 20 years and lately has led a ministry referred to as “Church for Everyone” designed to welcome those that have felt excluded from the Church. This was a part of a “revolution” on the church after Lizzie Lowe, a 14-year-old member of the congregation, took her own life. The coroner said that she was “exploring her sexuality, and was struggling to come back to terms with that against her faith beliefs” (News, 9 January 2015; Features, 25 November 2016). Canon Bundock has a doctorate in molecular biology and biochemistry from the University of Sheffield, and trained for ministry at Ridley Hall, Cambridge. He succeeds the Rt Revd Kevin Pearson, who retired last 12 months.
Dr Armes to retire from Edinburgh
SCOTTISH EPISCOPAL CHURCHThe Bishop of Edinburgh, Dr John Armes
THE Bishop of Edinburgh, Dr John Armes, will retire on 31 August, after 13 years in office and 46 years of full-time ministry. In an ad clerum, he wrote of “a period of ministry which, for me, has been filled with joy and a way of big privilege”. In 2017, he was the proposer of the motion to amend the Scottish Episcopal Church’s Canon 31, on the solemnisation of holy matrimony, enabling same-sex marriage to happen within the Scottish Episcopal Church (News, 8 June 2017). In 2022, he served as Acting Bishop of Aberdeen & Orkney in the course of the suspension of the Rt Revd Anne Dyer (News, 7 October 2022). Last 12 months, he was one in all 4 bishops who urged Bishop Dyer to think about whether she was the appropriate person to steer the diocese, in view of the response to her reinstatement (News, 18 October 2024).
New President of Tribunals appointed
THE Church of England’s Appointments Committee has announced the appointment of Sir Stephen Males as President of Tribunals under the Clergy Discipline Measure (CDM) 2003, to succeed Dame Sarah Asplin. Sir Stephen has been a judge of the Court of Appeal since 2019 and was previously a High Court judge. He is a judge within the Court of Ecclesiastical Causes Reserved and a honorary canon of Rochester Cathedral. He can even chair the Clergy Discipline Commission. The tasks of the President of Tribunals include reviewing decisions by a bishop or archbishop to dismiss a grievance on the preliminary-scrutiny stage and coping with appeals against the exercise of a bishop’s power to suspend clergy under the CDM.
Auschwitz liberation recalled at Buckingham Palace
GRAINGE PHOTOGRAPHY/HMDT
The King hosts the “80 Candles for 80 Years” event at Buckingham Palace, last week. On his right is Manfred Goldberg, a Holocaust survivor
THE King hosted an event at Buckingham Palace last week to commemorate the eightieth anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp. This showcased “80 candles for 80 years”, an initiative devised by the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust for the anniversary. Communities and schools were invited to design and create 80 unique candleholders. The King, a patron of the trust, was joined by Manfred Goldberg, a Holocaust survivor, to debate the project and its inspiration. The 80 candleholders will likely be seen in a digital exhibition on Holocaust Memorial Day, on Monday, and can play a central part in local events.
Homeless people’s choir rehearses at Sheffield Cathedral
THE Choir with No Name at Sheffield Cathedral held its first rehearsal this month. The choir is a national charity working in six cities, forming choirs from people affected by homelessness. Weekly rehearsals are followed by a free hot meal. The Sheffield choir, run in partnership with the Archer Project, will initially run until April, but is hoping to secure enough local funding and support to proceed. The charity’s chief executive, Dr Kate Wareham, who lives in Sheffield, said: “With homelessness at an all-time high in our city, this choir will provide a significant space for those facing difficult times to search out community, connection, and support.”
Help flows during water emergency in Conwy
CHURCHES across Conwy arrange emergency water hubs to support communities after a pipe in Dolgarrog burst on Wednesday of last week and disrupted the region’s water network. Congregations were working with councillors, Members of the Senedd, and MPs to coordinate bottled-water deliveries to 1000’s of individuals. Welsh Water announced on Monday that the availability was back to households, businesses, and schools within the affected area.
Medieval calendars to go on display at Lambeth Palace Library
LAMBETH Palace Library has announced a £53,418 grant from The National Lottery Heritage Fund towards mounting “Unfolding time: The Medieval Pocket Calendar”, an exhibition to run from 14 February to fifteen May, exploring “ideas about time within the Middle Ages through a remarkable collection of concertina-fold almanacs”. A press release said that the artefacts had been called “medieval smartphones” because “they helped their users keep track of time, look up information, and organise their lives.” Fewer than 30 are known to exist.
Stolen cross returns mysteriously to Cornish church
A BRASS cross stolen 18 months ago from St Breward’s, a church within the Camelside Benefice, on Bodmin Moor, in Cornwall, has been secretly returned. A churchwarden, Jeremy Hooper, who found it placed next to the cupboard where it might normally have been stored, told ITV News that he had “foolishly” forgotten to place the padlock on the locker. “The church is open on a regular basis during daylight, and any person got here in and took one in all the crucifixes.” He was “delighted” by its return.
Scores gather for ministry-scheme meeting
ARCHBISHOPS’ COUNCILThe Ministry Experience Scheme gathering
MORE than 100 young people attended the annual conference of the Church of England Ministry Experience Scheme on Monday. Held in St Mary’s, Marylebone, it was led by participants from the diocese of London. The director of the Church’s national ministry-development team, Canon Nick McKee, led a brief commissioning service. He said: “Over 900 young people from all backgrounds and traditions have explored God’s call on their lives for the reason that MES began over a decade ago. The energy, boldness and humility of this group is really inspiring and offers the Church and the communities we serve across the country, an indication of great hope for the longer term.”
