Painting raffled for boiler
THE Friends of St Mary’s, Woodbridge, in Suffolk, are offering raffle tickets to win a painting, Fireworks above the Sea, by the Suffolk-born artist Maggi Hambling, with the hope of raising £10,000 towards the £200,000 needed to switch its boiler. Nick Cottam, who chairs the Friends, told the BBC that the PCC desired to install a low-carbon heating pump, which might also help toward the Church of England’s net zero goal. “Our old gas boiler gave up the ghost last 12 months, and since then we’ve been attempting to get the permissions and work out what system might work in our church,” he said. “We’re going for a low-carbon heat-pump system, which goes to cost something over £200,000.” About £30,000 has been raised to date by a wide range of methods.
Mullally reveals letters of support from women
IN A Radio 4 interview with the previous Prime Minister Theresa May, the Archbishop-elect of Canterbury, the Rt Revd Sarah Mullally, said that she had had “a whole lot and a whole lot of letters of support from women” since her nomination was announced in October (News, 10 October). Bishop Mullally, the present Bishop of London, said that one female priest had told her that it was the primary time that she had felt “affirmed” within the Church. People were returning to Church with a “hunger for relationships away for social media”, Bishop Mullally suggested. Asked concerning the Church of England’s safeguarding record, she said that safeguarding “was at the center of the Christian gospel” and apologised for failings. Progress has been revamped the past ten years, with survivors’ voices augmented and greater professionalism in Church processes, she said. The interview, which also covered Bishop Mullally’s “principled opposition” to the legalisation of assisted dying, is out there on BBC Sounds.
Churches take part prayer after sea deaths
THE churches in Withernsea, East Yorkshire, got here together last week after an incident during which two people were killed after being swept out to sea. A 3rd person stays missing. Police said that 15-year-old Grace Keeling had been hit by a wave while standing on steps leading all the way down to the beach, last Friday. Her mother, Sarah, and passers by, including Mark Ratcliffe, entered the water in an attempt to avoid wasting her. Sarah was killed, and Mr Ratcliffe died after being pulled unconscious from the water. Grace stays missing. A curate of St Matthew’s, Withernsea, the Revd Clive Hall, told BBC News that the mood within the town was sombre. Clergy from the town’s five churches had converged on Withernsea Methodist Church, which is near the beach, as a focal-point for those wishing to wish.
‘No words’ to explain deadly Boxing Day fire
A HOUSE fire in Stroud, Gloucestershire, which killed two children and their mother, was “a completely terrible tragedy” that had “impacted people deeply”, the Rector of St Mary Magdalene’s, Rodborough, the Revd Peter Francis, said. He told Sky News that opening the church for prayer was the “little that we will offer” after Fionnghuala Shearman and her two daughters died in the fireplace. Mrs Shearman’s husband, Tom, survived, after repeatedly attempting to get back into the home to avoid wasting his family. In a press release released on New Year’s Day, Mr Shearman said that his family had “had its very core, its very essence, ripped from it in probably the most violent way”.
St Martin 2026 awards now open
THE Sandford St Martin Awards, which celebrates programmes that explore religion, belief, ethics, and spirituality, have opened for submissions for 2026. The categories include journalism, radio and audio, television and video, and young audience. The deadline for entries is just before midnight on 30 January. Finalists will probably be announced in March and winners will receive their prizes at a ceremony at Lambeth Palace in June.
Lincoln Cathedral undergoes a ground-penetrating radar
LINCOLN CATHEDRAL is the primary cathedral to be “completely mapped” by ground-penetrating radar (GPR), its archaeologist, Dr Jonathan Clark, told the BBC on Tuesday. The technology avoids costly and disruptive excavations by utilizing electromagnetic waves to map features hidden beneath the bottom. The survey took two weeks and the outcomes are expected within the spring. Archaeologists hope that the survey will help explain what the unique Norman constructing looked like. “It’s like slicing through a cake. You’re seeing a number of different layers and a number of different periods,” Dr Clark said.
