February 2021
Re: 'Keep shining your light in whatever circumstances you find yourself'
What a lovely uplifting story thanks for sharing!
Lucy Olofinjana (via Facebook)
A wonderful witness for Christ
Patricia Greer (via Facebook)
Re: Do we have enough hope?
Martin Tiller's article on the Prohibition Treaty struck a moving personal and political note for me. My father Tom Cuthbert lived in Rugby and was a lifelong opponent of nuclear weapons and the policies to justify them. As an RAF navigator flying in Wellington bombers he was lucky to have survived 'ditching' in the Mediterranean. Nursing a broken jaw, Dad and his crew were rescued after four days by the destroyer 'Blyskavica', and that happily for me ended his operational flying days.
Dad began my education in opposing nuclear weapons with a cinema trip to see 'The War Game' originally banned from broadcast by the government. Today I am an active member of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament and have worked hard for their National Council for over 30 years. The Prohibition Treaty is a huge problem for this Johnson government having invested so much in new nuclear weapons.
My MP the Culture Minister Oliver Dowden assured me that the government may attend a UN meeting in Vienna to review the Prohibition Treaty to be held at the end of 2021 and will approach the Ministry of Defence as a first step. I have written to all the County Councillors in Hertfordshire (78) asking them to support this approach as a minimum.
The problem is the commitment the Prime Minister made to the Ministry of Defence on November 19 2020 offering £192 billion over 4 years for a huge range of armaments including the nuclear armed submarine fleet.
This is a strategic disaster as the death toll from the pandemic tops 104,000 people. The Prime Minister's Integrated Review should have been for the NHS to train nurses and medical staff during the summer of 2020 when the pandemic had receded a bit and distribute the vaccines we are so in need of now in 'this winter of discontent'.
Martin's article reminds us that the treaty is a viable means to secure the end of nuclear weapons and rebuild international trust with those states like Russia and China so vilified because of their authoritarian stance and their fear of the West.
The Baptist Union is a brave voice for nuclear disarmament and the promise of world peace. If we can achieve this then at last we may have the resources to combat the numerous other problems our troubled world faces as the Covid pandemic illustrates every day in this sad time most of us still hope to live through.
Tom Cuthbert
Re: New resource helps Christians story-tell their faith
Mark is always innovative and entertaining - and above all his approach is effective at engaging people in thinking about world views and faith.
Kevin Keefe (via Twitter)
Re: Covid Conversations: church4U in Pickering
As a #housechurch from the beginning it has been freeing and an opportunity to serve in the community rather than expect people to come to our building! Love seeing #church in this way!
The Ark (Askern) (via Twitter)