The Covid-19 pandemic has impacted churches and church groups in a variety of ways. But what has remained steadfast is the desperate need of the vulnerable.
Adella Pritchard, a United Reformed Church (URC) Related Community Worker (CRCW) in Swansea, speaks to Roo Stewart, URC Programme Support Officer (Church and Society), about how the churches she supports have responded to the needs of their communities since lockdown.
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The 2025 meeting of the United Reformed Church (URC) General Assembly is taking place from 4-7 July at The Hayes Conference Centre in Swanwick. General Assembly meets annually to celebrate, discuss, worship and make decisions about the life and work of the URC. It is the URC’s central decision-making body. Items on the agenda include an update on the Church Life Review, a review of the URC retirement policy for ministers and Church Related Community Workers, the criteria for 13 new Pioneering posts, a review of its Resource Centres for Learning, the Place for Hope mediation team launch, and the 2025 Community Project Awards. A round-up of all the business discussed and decisions made will be available on the news pages of the URC’s website and Issue 5 of Reform magazine. A summary will be included in News Update, the denomination’s monthly e-newsletter. General Assembly papers can be viewed and downloaded here Source
This week the UK government has announced its intention to undertake a new nuclear mission. Keir Starmer indicated that the purchase of 12 US F-35A aircraft will provide the capacity for the UK to threaten states with US-made B61 tactical nuclear bombs. The Ministry of Defence implies that UK pilots would be trained to enable these aircraft to provide a second leg to the UK nuclear weapons programme, threatening adversaries with smaller more usable and ‘credible’ nuclear weapons in addition to the UK’s current large-scale strategic nuclear weapons system. The introduction of a new range of tactical nuclear weapons would be a mammoth shift in UK nuclear strategy, unparalleled in the past 25 years. Contrary to claims by some, the recent Strategic Defence Review (SDR) does not offer justification for this dramatic development.[1] The review only recommended “commencing discussions with the United States and NATO on the potential benefits and feasibility of enhanced UK participation in NATO’s nuclear mission”. The review has not considered the pitfalls of various options or even outlined what ‘enhanced UK participation’ might look like. Lord Robertson, the chair of the independent review team, was asked by the Defence Committee about the possibility of the UK hosting US air-launched nuclear weapons or developing its own. In reply, he stated, “We considered it. The fact that it’s not there indicates that we weren’t terribly enthusiastic about it. When I was Defence Secretary the last time round, I got rid of the free-fall bombs.” Let’s be clear: there is no identifiable public support for the UK’s involvement in tactical, more ‘useable’ nuclear weapons; no Parliamentary scrutiny of this proposal to date; and no case set out by the Government outlining the pros and cons of such a major shift in UK defence policy. Why are tactical nuclear weapons being considered? To do this question justice we need to delve into the controversial policy of nuclear deterrence, the theory of which is that the threat or potential of one party using force will convince another party to refrain from initiating some other course of action. The SDR acknowledges that Russia’s aggressive adventurism is driving the UK’s strategic thinking. Nuclear planners in Whitehall are concerned that the UK’s current nuclear weapons lack credibility as a deterrent across a range of scenarios. They worry that the UK is unable to influence the escalation ladder that climbs from conventional conflict to all-out global nuclear war, if the UK only possesses large warheads several times the size of the Hiroshima bomb. There is no evidence that President Putin, despite his brutal and ruthless tendencies, would consider using a nuclear weapon on European states. Yet the fact that he could is apparently enough for some nuclear planners to recommend spending billions of pounds on new warheads and delivery systems. This shift would reverse undertakings that that the UK has made at Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) Review Conferences, thereby weakening the NPT, which is the only international agreement binding nuclear weapons-holding states to the goal of disarmament. It’s helpful to consider what role tactical nuclear weapons might play in two potential scenarios involving Russian aggression. The first concerns suppression of conventional conflict. Imagine Russia was to invade a neighbouring state, say Lithuania or Estonia, for which they could mobilise troops in numbers that would overwhelm a NATO conventional response. Given Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, this future possibility cannot be entirely dismissed, and it is prudent to give it serious consideration. The hypothesis is that if the UK had tactical nuclear weapons this might dissuade President Putin or another future Russian leader from crossing the border with troops. Russia might assess that the United States lacked the resolve to use its tactical nuclear weapons based in Europe. In this case, Russia would then be deterred by the faint possibility of the UK breaking the global nuclear taboo and using nuclear weapons for the first time since the Second World War in a counterforce attack against Russian military assets. This possibility, vanishingly remote as it is, is thought to have more credibility if the UK were to possess tactical nuclear weapons as an alternative to its hugely destructive strategic nuclear weapons. However, the supposed deterrent effect of the UK’s nuclear weapons in this scenario does not hold water. Russia’s counter-strategy would see it engaging in hybrid warfare, destabilising regions close to the Russian border through support of provocateurs, alleging ‘extremism’ on the part of local and national political figures to provide cover for a low-level military intervention with the option to expand later. There are plenty of options open to Russia to initiate a military intervention that at no point would involve a step significant enough to conceivably warrant resort to tactical nuclear weapons. This renders UK nuclear weapons a useless deterrent against a conventional attack by Russia. The second scenario is one that is maybe more familiar in habitual nuclear deterrence thinking. It concerns deterrence of a Russian nuclear attack, and Ukraine is a pertinent case study. Over the past three years, Russia has increased its nuclear rhetoric. There are concerns that were Russia to lose this conventional conflict and be pushed out of the four regions of Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia, it could make good on recent nuclear threats. It could, let’s say, bomb military bases in Ukraine or NATO states with its tactical nuclear weapons. Western nuclear strategists suggest that if the UK had tactical nuclear weapons of a similar nature, then Russia would be deterred from a first use of nuclear weapons. The main difficulty here is the assumed plausibility of Russian ‘first use’. While the rhetoric coming from Moscow is certainly alarming at times, Russia has nothing whatsoever to gain from first use in this or any similar scenario, and everything to lose with respect to its relationship with China and India and its standing and trading position in the international community. It is precisely this diplomatic and economic cost to Russia that the UK government could look to strengthen […]
On the 4th June 1989, on my 20th birthday, I prepared to travel to Berlin as part of a Mersey Province trip to Germany for Kirchentag, the Protestant biennial congress. There are lots of tales I could tell about that trip from the journey out, to the trip’s end. But for today there’s one particular bit of the trip I want to focus on with you. The day after our arrival we popped over the wall for a daytrip to East Berlin. For those of you not as old as me, essentially this meant that we had arrived in East Germany just in time to catch the aftershocks caused by the massacre at Tiananmen Square. This trip had a profound effect on me – it was a real culture shock. So many images, and feelings are indelibly etched on my psyche. So much so that as I’m talking to you about it today, 35 years later, I can still see it like a movie in my mind. Some things were odd. The plain brick walls, buildings with no adverts on them at all, making red brick feel grey. Some things were funny. The Lada cars so scarce that there was a running gag that, before you put your newborn’s name down to register them for school, you registered them for a car. It’d take that long for one to arrive for them. And some things were unsettling. At a time before camera phones and selfie sticks, there were the cameras on every roof, at every junction – we’ve let privacy go without much thought with the advent of mobiles – still, then, it felt like a particularly ominous intrusion. But I’m getting carried away…this isn’t a reflection about that trip. There are many things I could talk about if that was the topic. But it isn’t. This is a reflection about space. Real and imagined, ancient and new, temporary tabernacles and permanent buildings. Safe space. Welcoming space. God’s space. Church. I wonder what comes to your mind when you look at this image? Given the reading from Amos, you may be thinking ‘tabernacle or booth of David’. Or, given our context, this year’s theme of Resurrection for Tim’s tenure as Moderator, your mind may be drawn to ‘tent revival’. Or you may, like me, have just glanced at this picture with nothing particular in your head and just thought – ‘circus’. There are some key elements to be found in all of those possibilities. There are performances, and participants observe and play roles. Most importantly, all involve the creation of a clearly demarcated area, that exists in the material world and is designated by the physical boundaries of canvas and pole, but that is actually designed to enable those enclosed within its embrace to access something transcendent. Having a discrete area where you can go to connect with God in some way is the origin of church. For the Israelites their skene was an earthly place for interacting with God. Highly portable, it consisted of a fenced off area that contained an altar for sacrifices and, of course, the Holy of Holies, the secluded area housing the Ark of the Covenant, separated from the general congregation by a veil, and only entered by the High Priest, once a year. From here we can trace a throughline from tabernacle to Temple to synagogue to church. Like churches, theatres can also trace their origins back to tabernacles – both are connected to the Greek word for tent or tabernacle – skene.This meeting of religion and performance is nothing new – they’ve walked through the ages, holding hands, like mardy siblings, coming together at key moments in history and then periodically squabbling over which one is the most useful, the prettiest, the most welcoming… As you will all know, theatre’s origin story in the UK derives directly from the Catholic church’s desire to communicate Biblical stories to congregations only able to access the Latin mass in church. Conversely, Shakespeare’s Richard III, one of our best theatrical villains, has his origins in portrayals of Herod in Medieval Mystery Cycles. And today? Well, like churches, many theatres are now under existential threat. The booth of David is in ruins… As Rupert Shortt suggests in his recent book, The Eclipse of Christianity, in this country at least – we are living through a recession of a profoundly Christian nature. Elsewhere, where Christians are being heard the loudest, they represent a very different form of the faith than our own. Substituting dogmatism for dogma, they present an image of Christianity armoured in certainty; its boundaries asserted loudly, angrily, intolerantly. The Christian of popular culture is viewed as, at best, irrelevant, and at worst, as an Evolution-denying, human rights oppressing bigot, whose hierarchical worldview remains grounded in Bronze Age fantasy stories. Like Paul and Barnabas in Iconium, truly it could be said that we live in unkind times, where short form video content and online echo chambers have led us to a place where our tolerance levels for uncertainty have never been lower. And that leads us to tighten ourselves culturally and religiously. To become more dogmatic, more authoritarian, expressing views with unfounded confidence and certainty, loudly and quickly, before anyone spots the enormous, fearful elephant in the room… And so, it is this authoritarian cultural turn that leads me back to East Berlin. 5th June 1989, just a few short months before the Berlin Wall is pulled down. The East German state is in its death throes and its enforcers, the Stasi, are much more dangerous as a consequence. And there, in the midst of all of this, is a space. It exists in the real world and in the imagined. Kirche. Church. During our initial meeting with the church community in East Berlin, one of the ministers apologised because he had to leave us. He had to go to his church to speak to some people who were gathering there to protest against the events […]
Following the recent vote on “The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill” in the House of Commons, I know that people with a wide range of lived experiences and perspectives are feeling anxious. In his blog on the bill, JPIT’s Steve Tinning pointed to the need to ‘continue to listen and engage with the conversation about assisted dying faithfully, prayerfully and compassionately’. This prayer is offered as one way in which we might create space for that listening, engagement and dialogue. God with us,you have experienced living, dying, and living again.You are woven within and between usthroughout our lives and in our deaths.May we hold spacefor those who are living with anxiety, uncertainty, fear and pain. [silence] God with us,you have experienced caring and loss.You are woven within and between usin our caring and in our grieving.May we hold spacefor those who care and those who grieve. [silence] God with us,you have experienced disagreements and debate,been unheard and been treated unkindly in response to your words.You are woven within and between usin our thinking, in our speaking, and in our listening,May we hold space in our certaintyfor those who are certain in a differing conviction,and hold space for uncertainty,be it our own or experienced by those we meet on the way. [silence] In the name of Christ,who lived and died and lives again,Amen. Source
As her term in office as Moderator of the Free Churches Group begins*, the Revd Dr Tessa Henry-Robinson (TH-R), who also acts as one of the Presidents of Churches Together in England (CTE), spoke to CTE’s Senior Communications Manager, Sarah Ball (SB): SB: Welcome to the CTE Presidency Revd Dr Tessa. How did your ecumenical journey begin? TH-R: My ecumenical journey began long before I understood the word. As a child in Trinidad and Tobago, I lived the beauty and complexity of the Christian tradition through my family. My father was born in Tobago and raised in the Methodist tradition. My mother was born in Trinidad and raised in a Roman Catholic and Pentecostal household. I was baptised in the Methodist Church, educated in Roman Catholic and Anglican schools, and worshipped in Pentecostal settings during holidays with my maternal grandparents. From early on, I encountered difference as a gift. That beginning shaped my lens, and helped me to see the rich variety within the body of Christ as something to honour, not to fear. My journey continues to unfold as one committed to the hard work of shared mission, mutual respect, and spiritual integrity across denominational lines. SB: What was your first ecumenical experience? How formative was this? TH-R: My earliest (formal) ecumenical experience came in the early 2000s while I was a member of Christ Church Bellingham. I was part of a small team tasked with building relationships across five local churches. That experience was not only informative. It was deeply formative. It taught me that unity across Christian traditions is not just an abstract hope. It is a relational task that demands presence, humility, and trust. As I worshipped, dialogued, and shared life with colleagues from a range of denominational backgrounds, I began to sense the Spirit moving in ways I had not seen before. I witnessed how God works through different liturgies, languages, and leadership models. Some tensions surfaced, of course. But they were not held as obstacles, they were used as invitations and opportunities to grow deeper in grace. Ecumenical work has never been about erasing difference, it is about honouring difference, engaging it with love, and letting it stretch us toward fuller faithfulness. Unity, for me, is the hard and holy commitment to keep choosing one another because of our differences, not despite them. SB: You are a URC Minister, how has being part of that church influenced your thoughts on Christian unity? TH-R: The United Reformed Church is itself a living sign of ecumenical commitment. Its very formation brought together multiple denominations in pursuit of a more faithful expression of the Church. To be a URC minister is to have been shaped in the context of being reformed and always reforming in a denomination that not only values being reformed and building unity, but was born from “Ecclesia reformata, semper reformanda secundum verbum Dei”, “The church reformed, always being reformed according to the Word of God.” My ministerial formation has been rooted in the conviction that Christian unity matters—that we can be deeply faithful to our own traditions while also working generously across them. The URC has given me space to live this conviction in practice: through shared worship, collaborative ministry, and openness to the Spirit speaking through other voices and traditions. I have been formed by a community that has moved from just talking about being a multicultural church with an intercultural habit, and becoming anti-racist, to being in the process of seeking, diligently, to embody these principles. This experience has instilled in me a deep hope that visible unity in the Body of Christ is not only possible, but essential to our witness in the world today. Read the interview in full. *The Revd Dr Tessa Henry-Robinson, was inducted as Moderator of the Free Churches Group in April, and served as Moderator of the United Reformed Church General Assembly from 2023-2024. Image: Chris Andrews/URC. Source
A round up of news from around the United Reformed Church over the past seven days, 17-23 June. Yorkshire Synod Saltaire URC hosted the Baton of Hope Tour, part of a growing movement working towards a zero-suicide society, during this year’s Saltaire Arts Festival, and in support of “Yorkshire Speak their Name”, the UK memorial site remembering loved ones lost suicide https://speaktheirname.org/ Individuals who have experienced such loss made inspiring squares which were incorporated into banners. A spokesperson for Yorkshire Synod, said: “This was an incredibly moving and powerful exhibition which was beautifully displayed in the sanctuary of Saltaire URC.” Southern Synod Thirty-two ministers from across Southern Synod recently enjoyed a lively and enriching Spring School. Mornings began with aerobics and creative prayer, while evenings offered deep conversation and shared laughter. Early risers joined Lesley Charlton for aerobics and a jog, and Sue Chapman, the Synod’s Chaplain, led daily morning prayer and reflections. The event closed with worship and communion led by Charisa Hunter-Crump, the synod’s new Training and Development Officer. Guest speaker the Revd Dr Susan Durber challenged and inspired the group with the question “Who is Jesus?”—exploring it through stories, art, poetry, and more in this anniversary year of the Council of Nicaea. National Synod of Wales All creatures great and small were celebrated in joyful style at Penuel URC’s very first pet service. Led by Revd Chris Coe and Sally Tolson, the service brought together 28 people aged three to 80, five dogs, three chicks, a cuddly hamster and a crowd of beloved soft toys, including a giant tiger. Together, they gave thanks to God for the gift of family in all its forms – especially the furry, feathered, and fluffy ones. National Synod of Scotland The Scottish College concluded its academic year with a final gathering from 4–6 June, sharing a meal and reflecting on the ministry of funerals. It’s been a year of highs and challenges for the college, but resilience and adaptability stood out. From navigating Storm Éowyn to welcoming a new College Manager, the team rose to every occasion with grace and teamwork. Looking ahead, the college is excited to begin the 2024/25 year with a visit to Torre Pellice, a commune in Italy, and the Waldensian Church, offering fresh perspective for staff and students. Source
Wombourne United Reformed Church in West Midlands Synod has officially struck gold—not in medals, but in mission. The church has proudly earned A Rocha UK’s Gold Eco Church Award. From planting a beautiful eco garden for reflection and wildlife, to fitting energy-saving features like LED lights, dual-flush toilets that are all twinned, and programmable boilers, Wombourne URC has embraced sustainability at every level. Their eco notice board, climate-friendly cleaning choices, and recycling donation point show a hands-on commitment to making a real difference. The church’s monthly newsletter inspires readers with nature photography and eco tips, while international outreach provides support to communities in Gambia through education and healthcare resources. To achieve the award, the church completed the A Rocha UK’s Eco Church Survey, submitted a land management plan, and shared their carbon footprint report, all part of a rigorous process that ensures meaningful change. A spokesperson for West Midlands Synod said: “We, at the Synod, want to encourage and congratulate everyone for all the hard work they are putting in at all of your churches and hopefully [Wombourne URC’s success] has encouraged you in continuing to steward God’s creation!” Source
The Revd David Salsbury, Moderator of the United Reformed Church National Synod of Wales, is to be made an Ecumenical Canon of Newport Cathedral. The news was announced by Bishop Cherry Vann who leads the Diocese of Monmouth within the Church in Wales. Bishop Cherry, in consultation with Dean Ian, has appointed three new Canons to the Cathedral to fill the vacancies that have arisen. David said: “It is an honour and a privilege to have been invited by the Bishop of Monmouth, the Rt Revd Cherry Vann, to serve as an Ecumenical Canon at Newport Cathedral. “The Cathedral has been working hard in recent years to strengthen ecumenical relationships within the city of Newport, where I reside. I am delighted to be able to contribute to this journey of ecumenical pilgrimage and discovery as together we seek to share the love of God with the people of the city. I look forward to joining the College of Canons later in the year.” Joining David, as Canons, will be the Revd James Henley, MAL in the East Cardiff MA and the Revd Wendy Tayler, Vicar in the Cwmbran. They all will be installed at a service of Choral Evensong at 4pm on 16 November. Bishop Cherry said: “It is a joy, as always, to appoint some new Canons to the Cathedral and, once again, to be able to strengthen our ties with our ecumenical partners. I look forward to all that they will bring to enhance the life and witness of our Cathedral Church as we work together to live out the good news of Jesus Christ.” Dean Ian added: “I am delighted at the appointment of these faithful servants of the church and partners in the gospel to be canons of the Cathedral. I look forward to installing them in November and everything they will bring to the Cathedral’s wider ministry.” Source
The United Reformed Church (URC) has announced the early retirement of the Revd Bridget Banks. Bridget has served as Synod Moderator since 2020 and before that with United Reformed Churches in Crawley. Bridget leaves her role at the end of the month. Deputy General Secretary, the Revd Jenny Mills, said: “It is with sorrow that we share the news that the Moderator of the URC’s Southern Synod, the Revd Bridget Banks, has had to take early retirement on health grounds, and will leave the role on 30 June. “Bridget is deeply saddened to have to end her formal ministry this way but has come to the conclusion that it is the right thing for her and for the Synod. “We give thanks for all that Bridget has done in her ministry with us, serving local churches in Crawley, on various committees and as Moderator to the Synod for the past five years. “She has served with compassion, deep, pastoral care, and always has sought to do her best. Hearts have been touched by her kindness and lives impacted by her service. We are grateful for all the ways in which she has shared the gospel message of love through her calling and faithfulness. She will be missed.” Bridget said: “It has been an immense privilege to have served in this role, and it has been an honour to work alongside Ministers, Elders, CRCWs, members, lay leaders, volunteers and all connected to the United Reformed Church. My gratitude goes to all the colleagues who I have been fortunate to work with. I am also grateful for their prayers, support and encouragement.” Queries about the life of the Southern Synod can be made to its office via its website. Source
The Revd Jennifer Mills-Knutsen, Senior Pastor of the American International Church, a United Reformed Church in the Thames North Synod, has been made an Honorary Ecumenical Canon of St Paul’s Cathedral. Three new clergy Prebendaries – the Revd Dr Julie Gittoes, the Revd Angus Ritchie, and the Revd Jonathan Rust – will join Jennifer in being installed at a service on 14 September. The title of Honorary Ecumenical Canon is appointed to those from other Christian denominations to recognise their contributions to the broader Christian community and promoting interdenominational unity. “I am humbled and honoured by the Bishop’s invitation and recognition,” said Jennifer. “Even more, I am moved that Bishop Sarah, Dean Tremlett and all of the folks at St Paul’s see our work together in London as a partnership–especially around the annual American Thanksgiving Service. There is nothing that I and our American International Church leadership want more than to be good partners with other people doing God’s work of worship, justice and community here in London. I am grateful for the opportunity to make the relationship closer with this mutual commitment.” Jennifer has served as the Senior Minister of the American International Church (AIC) in London since 2016. Originally from Virginia Beach, Virginia, she was ordained in the United Church of Christ in the United States and holds standing as clergy in the United Reformed Church. In addition to her role at AIC, Jennifer will begin serving as Convenor of the Board of Governors for Westminster College, Cambridge on September; and serves as board member of the Soup Kitchen London, and as a volunteer chaplain @sohoplace with Theatre Chaplaincy UK. The Bishop of London, The Rt Revd and Rt Hon Dame Sarah Mullally, who announced the news said: “I am delighted to welcome these four appointments into the St Paul’s family. They have all, in their own ways, contributed a huge amount to the Christian communities of London throughout their years of service. I look forward to seeing how they each bring their unique talents to their new roles and to see God guide them on this new journey.” The Very Revd Andrew Tremlett, Dean of St Paul’s, added: “Prebendaries and Honorary Canons play a key role in the life of the Cathedral, and I am thrilled that Julie, Angus, Jonathan and Jennifer will be joining us. I and the entire Chapter wish them the best for their new roles.” Learn more about this announcement. Image: American International Church. Source
