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A simple question about Civil Partnerships
Next week at General Synod we have the following motion being presented. Motion 24: That this Synod instruct the Faith and Order Board to instruct the Committee on Canons to prepare canonical material to enable the registration of Civil Partnerships to be undertaken in the Scottish Episcopal Church, so that a first reading of such…
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25 More Questions for people who want to make their churches grow
A lot of people seem to have been sharing my 25 Questions for people who want to make their churches grow on social media. So, here’s 25 more… If you didn’t have to go to your church on Sunday would you still go? Are the clergy happy? Are the musicians happy? Does the congregation have…
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25 Questions for people who want to make churches grow
Do you have a decent church website? Is it up to date? Is it responsive – ie does it work on mobile phones? Does your own online profile feature your ideas and hopes and dreams other than a desire for people to turn up to church? Do you know what you are doing with twitter…
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Going out and coming in
This week I’ll have been at St Mary’s for nine years. It is the anniversary of my installation on Sunday. And this year I’ve decided to give myself an anniversary treat. When I came to St Mary’s there was much to try to understand and much to take in. Just trying to get your head…
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What the Irish Marriage Referendum Means
The first thing to say is congratulations to all those in Ireland who have campaigned and voted for a change in the law that will allow same-sex couples to be able to enter civil marriage. There’s something incredibly exciting about the fact that the first country to put marriage equality (or at least a step…
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Go Ireland. Go! Go! Go!
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Why the cake decision is the right decision
There has been a judgement this morning in an iconic legal case in Northern Ireland. A judge has found that a bakery discriminated against a gay customer over their refusal to bake a cake which had a slogan on it supporting the right of gay people to be married. The decision was the right one.…
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Scottish Opera – Il Trovatore review – ****
This review was published at Opera Britannia. Rating: It was a particular joy to see Il trovatore at the Theatre Royal, not only because it is a well directed, well sung sure-fire summer hit for Scottish Opera but also because I was seeing it in the company of someone who had never been to the…
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The kind of political party I’d like to see
I’m not a member of a political party at the moment, though obviously I have been in the past. Here’s the policies that would be to the fore in the kind of political party that I would like to see and which would get me back into making a more active engagement in politics: A…