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Monday, March 30, 2026
Bless GAFCON.
Glaring absences from the Archbishop of Canterbury's installation.
Wednesday saw the installation of the 106th Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Rev Dame Sarah Mullally at Canterbury Cathedral.
At the start, the Dean of the Cathedral, the Very Rev David Monteith welcomed the congregation to a “truly global gathering”. Later he installed her in the Chair of St Augustine, with the prayer that she might “by God’s grace be an instrument of communion, and fellowship in Christ within the Anglican Communion”.
To the casual onlooker, these words would seem fitting for such a ceremony. Yet to those who have followed the history of the Anglican Communion over the past forty years they had a hollow ring. And those keeping a careful eye on the procession noted that the leaders of sixteen provinces were missing.
There are forty-two provinces in the Anglican Communion, each one is autonomous and they are meant to work together aided by the Instruments of Communion. The primates of twenty-four provinces came to welcome the new Archbishop of Canterbury, and two others, Pakistan and Burundi, sent representatives. Another three, Jerusalem, Melanesia and the Acting Primate of Papua New Guinea, had sent their apologies due to travel issues caused by the war in the Gulf.
It would appear that twelve primates, more than 25% of them, had refused to attend the service. It was the primates of Alexandria, Chile, Congo, Indian Ocean, Kenya, Myanmar, Nigeria, Rwanda, SE Asia, South Sudan, Sudan and Uganda who absented themselves. Given this, the reason is clear, for these are the leaders of Gafcon and the Global South Fellowship of Anglicans (GSFA).
For more than twenty years the GSFA has called for the Anglican Communion to submit to God’s word and discipline those provinces, including the Church of England, who they perceive to have “departed from the historic faith passed down from the Apostles.” For this reason, they cannot recognise the Archbishop of Canterbury as the “first among equals leader of the global Communion”.
Last month in Abuja, Nigeria, Gafcon went a step further and announced that there has been “a shift of the stewardship of the Anglican Communion from the Canterbury Instruments to the Global Anglican Communion”. Rather than looking to Canterbury for leadership, these provinces will look to a newly formed Global Anglican Council to ensure that true communion can be found in submission to God’s word.
Sadly, Wednesday’s Installation, glorious as it appeared in all its pomp and ceremony, was not a “truly global” gathering. The real story is that the representatives of the vast majority of the world’s Anglicans have turned their back on Canterbury and are seeking new ways of maintaining the “fellowship of Christ within the Anglican Communion".
Susie Leafe is director of Anglican Futures, an organisation that provides pastoral and practical support to orthodox Anglicans. CT.
And So It Goes On.
On the Iftar in Trafalgar Square.
(Photo: Getty/iStock)Shadow Justice Secretary, Nick Timothy, provoked an almighty fuss by tweeting about the mass ritual prayer in Trafalgar Square last week.
As I write, his tweet has had over 7 million views, and has generated a whole mass of responses. The Prime Minister called on Kemi Badenoch to sack Nick Timothy during Prime Minister’s Questions. Dozens of parliamentarians wrote to the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards claiming that he had broken the House of Commons Code of Conduct, and that his comments be investigated or risk bringing the House into disrepute. On the other side, Nigel Farage called for mass Muslim prayer to be banned in public and Badenoch has refused to sack him.
It is worth quoting Nick Timothy’s original tweet in full:
“Too many are too polite to say this.
But mass ritual prayer in public places is an act of domination.
The adhan - which declares there is no god but allah and Muhammad is his messenger - is, when called in a public place, a declaration of domination.
Perform these rituals in mosques if you wish. But they are not welcome in our public places and shared institutions.
And given their explicit repudiation of Christianity they certainly do not belong in our churches and cathedrals.
I am not suggesting everybody at Trafalgar Square last night is an Islamist. But the domination of public places is straight from the Islamist playbook.
Trafalgar Square belongs to all of us. It is a national memorial to our independence and our salvation.
Last night was not like a televised football match or a St Patrick’s Day celebration.
It was an act of domination and therefore division.
It shouldn’t happen again.”
Indicative of culture change
My main response to this is to note that we are discussing it. The fact that we have mass Islamic prayer in Trafalgar Square at all is indicative of the massive culture change that we have seen in the last few decades. A culture change that was not voted for or ever agreed to by the British people. And, a culture change that can hardly be described as having been entirely beneficial to our culture as a whole. I only need to mention grooming gangs involving mostly Pakistani Muslim men, sharia courts, honour crimes, terror attacks, the assassination of an MP, an attempt to blockade Parliament, mass antisemitic marches through London, a convicted terrorist standing for local elections, sectarianism, and many other examples to make the point.
Earlier this month, the Government gave Muslims special protection with the adoption of an official definition of anti-Muslim hostility. This is also a sign of the changing culture and the newly sectarian politics we now see in this country with a Government that is keen to court the Muslim vote.
The call to prayer
The Adhan, or call to prayer which Timothy mentions, is recited in Arabic – one could say that in itself is not very British. A translation of the phrases recited is:
“Allah is greater!I bear witness that there is no god but Allah.I bear witness that Muhammad is the messenger of Allah.”
In essence, this is a proclamation. These phrases are not prayer directed to Allah, but a public declaration that Allah is God and that Muhammad is his messenger. It is a missional declaration.
Not very long ago such a proclamation would never have been heard on the streets of London.
Call to prayer stopped in London
In 2020, permission was granted to some mosques in London to broadcast the Islamic call to prayer for the first time. One brave resident saw the problems with this and, with some others, chose to object. With the help of Christian Concern, a strongly-worded legal letter was drafted questioning the legality of granting this permission. The letter explained that there was no public consultation about allowing broadcasts of the call to prayer. There had been no Equalities Impact Assessment, and some refugees in the area were traumatised by hearing the call to prayer of their persecutors’ religion in their new-found ‘safe’ home in Britain.
At this the council backed down and agreed not to allow the call to prayer to be broadcast the following year. This was a significant win. Standing up against the gradual Islamisation of Britain is important.
‘An act of domination’
Timothy described the public call to prayer as “an act of domination.” It is interesting to note that a Muslim Imam has publicly stated that he agrees with Timothy on this. Writing in The Telegraph, Dr Taj Hargey said:
“Nigel Farage, the leader of Reform UK, is absolutely right to say that mass Muslim prayer should be banned from public squares.
And Nick Timothy is equally right to view the ritual in the middle of Trafalgar Square, attended by Sir Sadiq Khan, the Mayor of London, as an ‘act of domination’.
He continued:
“Mr Timothy was right when he pointed out that the adhan (call to prayer) – which declares there is no deity but God, and that Mohammed is his messenger – can, when called in a public place, be misconstrued as a declaration of domination in this Christian land.”
And further,
“What our politicians fail to appreciate is that Islamic fanatics have an agenda that seeks to spread Islam as the only true religion. To them, all non-Muslims are kufar (non-believers). They will not be content until they have subdued the world under their flag of fanaticism.”
Ramadan Tent Project
The Trafalgar Square event was organised by the Ramadan Tent Project, whose founder and chief executive is Omar Salha. It has been claimed that Salha previously expressed support on Twitter for the controversial group UK Cage, which has faced accusations of being apologists for extremism. A senior figure in Cage once came under fire for describing Jihadi John as a ‘beautiful young man’. Apparently because of this connection, Keir Starmer himself pulled out of a Ramadan event organised by the Ramadan Tent Project in 2021. How ironic, and hypocritical for him to now criticise Nick Timothy for objecting to an event organised by the very same person that he had concerns about.
Trafalgar Square isn’t the only place where an Open Iftar has taken place. Last year, there was one at Windsor Castle. This year’s venues included AFC Wimbledon, Guildhall, the National Gallery, and King’s College, Cambridge. These are all deliberately iconic venues from which to proclaim the call to prayer and display Islamic spirituality.
Iftar in Cathedrals
Most shockingly of all, iftars have taken place at Cathedrals. Manchester Cathedral hosted an Open Iftar organised by Ramadan Tent Project in 2023. The Cathedral subsequently apologised for allowing the Muslim call to prayer in the cathedral. They were clearly wrong to do so. You can’t allow the proclamation that Allah is the greatest god in a place dedicated to worship of the Christian God. That is a breach of canon law.
Nevertheless, in the last two years Bristol Cathedral hosted a Grand Iftar. Southwark Cathedral has also hosted iftars, as has Bradford Cathedral, St Paul’s Cathedral, and Coventry Cathedral.
Somehow, I can’t imagine any mosque allowing proclamation of the gospel in their premises, let alone an act of Christian worship to take place there.
Nick Timothy was quite right to say that the call to prayer explicitly repudiates Christianity and so does not belong in churches or cathedrals. DT.
1 Peter 1.
“All people are like grass,
and all their glory is like the flowers of the field;the grass withers and the flowers fall,
but the word of the Lord endures forever.”
This Tells Us A Lot More About Islam Than It Does of Christianity.
Muslim severely wounds Christian wife during worship in Uganda.
Hajati Kyakuwa Kamiyati was attacked on March 11, 2026 during worship in eastern Uganda. Morning Star NewsThe Muslim husband of a mother of six in eastern Uganda severely wounded her this month as she was worshipping at a Bible study after he learned that she had converted to Christianity, sources said.
Hajati Kyakuwa Kamiyati, 45, remains in treatment for severe injuries at Bugiri Joint Clinic after the March 11 attack during the worship in Bugiri town, in the district of the same name.
Kamiyati, who made the Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca last year, came to faith in Christ two months after her return. She had committed herself to regularly attending Bible study sessions in order to grow in her new faith, said her pastor, Rebecca Nakiranda.
“When I gave my life to Jesus, I was told to keep going to church so I could learn how to live as a new believer,” Kamiyati told a Morning Star News contact from her hospital bed.
Cuban Baptists.
Western Cuba Baptists emphasize faith and service amid national crisis
Sunday, March 29, 2026
Palm Sunday.
https://www.christiantoday.com/news/palm-sunday-the-triumphal-entry-and-its-meaning-for-us-today
The backstory to Palm Sunday .
The backstory to Palm Sunday most evangelicals miss.
29 March is Palm Sunday, or the sixth Sunday in Lent, which kicks off Holy Week. The events of this day echo a historical episode from Jewish history which most evangelicals miss. This is the story …
Palm Sunday Events
Falling on March 29 in 2026, Palm Sunday marks the sixth Sunday of Lent, and it starts the Holy Week which leads up to Easter. On Palm Sunday, named after the palm branches in the story, churches recount Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem. This is an important story and is recorded in all four Gospel accounts (Matthew 21:1-11, Mark 11:1-11, Luke 19:28-44, and John 12:12-19). Jesus approached Jerusalem from Jericho, arriving at Bethphage and Bethany. He then instructed two disciples to fetch a donkey which he then rode into the city for Passover. Local people and pilgrims spread their cloaks and palm branches onto the road, and shouted hosannas, echoing Psalm 118:26, seeing him as a messianic liberator. This perhaps also recalled David's entry after defeating Absalom (2 Samuel 19) and Solomon riding on a King David’s mule (1 Kings 1:38). Some also saw Jesus fulfil Zechariah’s prophecy: “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion... thy King cometh unto thee ... lowly, and riding upon an ass” (Zechariah 9:9).
John records that Jesus was greeted by crowds waving palm branches (John 12:12-13). This then set the stage for the cleansing of the Temple (Matthew 21:12-13; Mark 11:15-19; Luke 19:45-46), which is traditionally recalled on Holy Monday, when Jesus overturned the money-changers’ tables, echoed in the English phrase “turn the tables”.
The backstory
The backstory to these momentous events, which many people miss, lies in the events which happened in Jewish history just under 200 years previously. The Greek Seleucid king Antiochus IV Epiphanes, ruled Judea as part of his empire. From 167 BC the Seleucids tried to crush Jewish religious practices and impose Greek culture and customs on the people. Circumcision and the Sabbath were banned, and Jewish law was forbidden. This led to “Hellenization and increase in the adoption of foreign ways” (2 Maccabees 4:13), and they tried “to compel the Jews to forsake the laws of their ancestors and no longer to live by the laws of God” (2 Maccabees 6:1). Some went along with it but others were angered (1 Maccabees 1:41-48). The breaking point came when the Temple in Jerusalem was desecrated with a pagan altar and was dedicated to Zeus (2 Maccabees 6:1-2).
Protest led to persecution and some fled to caves (2 Maccabees 6:11). As oppression increased, a family rose up who became known as the Maccabees. A local priest called Mattathias (1 Maccabees 2:1-14) refused to perform sacrilegious acts. Mattathias and his five sons John, Judah (sometimes called Judas), Simon, Eleazar and Jonathan launched a guerilla war against the Seleucid forces and became known as the Maccabees, likely from the Aramaic word for hammer. Their bravery inspired others to join the cause and a rebellion gained momentum and freed parts of Judea. In 165 BC, Simon, one of the Maccabee brothers, entered Jerusalem “with a chorus of praise and the waving of palm branches” (1 Maccabees 13:51).
Cleaning the Temple
Afterwards, with the city of Jerusalem under their control, the Judah Maccabaeus set about cleansing the Temple of its pagan altars (1 Maccabees 4:41-51) and restoring it to Jewish worship. After some months of restoration the Temple was rededicated in the winter. “Then Judas and his brothers and all the assembly of Israel determined that every year at that season the days of dedication of the altar should be observed with joy and gladness for eight days, beginning with the twenty-fifth day of the month of Chislev” (1 Maccabees 4:59, NRSV). This Feast of Dedication is still observed by Jews today and is known as Hanukkah.
Symbolism of Palm Branches
These events led to palm branches becoming symbols of Jewish national independence, and date palm is found on some ancient Jewish coins.
Messianic Anticipation
The Maccabees ruled Judea until it became a Roman client state in 63 BC, and then Herod later became “King of the Jews” in 37 BC. Under Herod, Judea was not under Greek control but under Roman control. As Jesus entered into Jerusalem, crowds likely saw him as a saviour, in the shadow of the Maccabees, hoping he’d expel the Roman occupiers just as the Maccabees expelled the Seleucids. As Jesus came, they held palm branches and shouted hosannas. They were wanting a new revolt in the style of the Maccabees. Echoing previous events Jesus then went onto cleanse the Temple, but this time from the exploitation by the religious leaders.
John’s Gospel
These intertestamental events appear in the Greek Septuagint and are alluded to in the New Testament. The story was well known to the Jews of Jesus’s time. It is St John who uniquely precedes the story of the triumphal entry into Jerusalem with Jesus attending the “Feast of Dedication” (John 10:22-23), better known as Hanukkah. Historic Reformation-era New Testaments used to cross-reference this to 1 Maccabees 4:59, and it was thus cross-referenced in William Tyndale’s 1534 edition of the New Testament, and in the 1611 edition of the King James Version of the Bible.
It is also St John who uniquely records that Jesus was greeted by crowds waving palm branches (John 12:12-13). Later St John sees palm branches in his revelation of heaven, “After this I looked, and there was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, robed in white, with palm branches in their hands” (Rev 7:9). All of these gently point back to the events under the Maccabees.
Summary
Evangelical Christians often miss this backstory. This is because the events are recorded in the books of Maccabees which appear in the Apocrypha, which is not printed in all modern editions of Bibles. Additionally, Protestant New Testaments are often quite squeamish about cross-referencing relevant verses in the Apocrypha. However, regardless of what you think about the Apocrypha, if you have not read the story of the Maccabees, you are missing the historical context to the story of Palm Sunday, which makes much more sense once you know it. CT.
Moral Decline And How It Wins.
How moral decline whispers until it eventually wins.
Decline rarely announces itself — it whispers until it eventually wins. This is what happened in the House of Lords last week in Great Britain — another whisper.
In case you missed it, last week in Great Britain, the House of Lords voted to advance proposals that would remove criminal penalties for women undergoing abortions after 24 weeks. It does not negate the Victorian-era law that establishes that late-term abortion is not legal, but it does eliminate the possibility of investigation or prosecution against any woman choosing to have a late-term abortion.
At face value, this development does not seem surprising. There is a reason for the lack of shock. Without tracing every step of how abortion language became normalized, the fact is that legislation in the U.K. criminalized abortion at any stage of pregnancy in 1861, and 106 years later, it was legalized in 1973. The same can be said for the U.S. — abortion was outlawed in every state by 1910 and was legalized only 63 years later in 1973.
The moral fade took time.
While the U.S. took an overdue step back from nationwide legalized abortion through the Dobbs vs. Jackson case in 2022, ruling that abortion is not federally protected, the fact is that the ruling significantly expanded abortion access in some states. Several states, including Colorado, Oregon, and New Jersey, now allow abortion with few or no gestational limits in law.
What does this brief history reveal? The premise of abortion went from a criminal act to a legalized ending of unborn life in a relatively short period of time. Furthermore, the last 10 years have reshaped the language around abortion by changing the verbiage to “women’s health,” and even more bizarre, not acknowledging that women are the ones who give birth to babies, to “reproductive health.”
As the culture of death has bulldozed forward, legislation has continued to expand to accommodate it. For instance, running in tandem with abortion, assisted suicide has continued to expand, with reports documenting cases in Canada where individuals seeking assisted death cited factors such as isolation, housing insecurity, and other forms of social suffering.
Where does it stop?
Given these legislative shifts, where will the issue of abortion be in 10 years? If legislation does not push back on the issue, the U.K. and liberal states in the U.S. risk moving the needle even further, even to horrifying levels.
Ten years from now, the conversation may not be about whether abortion can happen during any part of pregnancy, but how long it can happen after pregnancy.
Think about that.
Before you begin to think that the premise of post-pregnancy abortion is ludicrous, remember that the idea of abortion at any point was completely criminalized. Even fewer years ago, the legal viability of euthanasia was extremely rare. Now, both of these issues are common and allowed.
What once seemed unthinkable can, over time, become discussable — and eventually defensible. History shows that when moral boundaries are steadily redefined, yesterday’s impossibilities can become tomorrow’s policy debates. How long before the conversation of post-pregnancy abortion is discussed because of unscreened deformities or non-diagnosed diseases?
Again, as insane as the question above may be, over time, the culture of death will normalize it and push for it to be law.
For Christians and those who are pro-life and believe in the sanctity and inherent worth of every life, it is imperative to continue to not only push for pro-life legislation, but also to vote for Bible-believing politicians who are dedicated to using the power entrusted to them to be a thick line of defense against the advancement of such drastic moral decay.
The whisper will continue. Sometimes it is loud (“reproductive health” marches and the like), but many times the shift is found on the inside pages of the national news, the ones you typically gloss over.
The whisper is a whisper, until it is not. By the time you hear it, it has progressed to a scream. And in many of those cases, by the time it is heard, it is already too late.
Joseph C. Stewart is a doctoral researcher in applied theology whose work explores religion, ethics, and society. CP.
Daily Repentance Needed.
Why we need daily repentance.
(Photo: Getty/iStock)Lent is often spoken of as a season of renewal, reflection and deeper devotion. Many Christians use these weeks to pray more intentionally, fast from distractions, or refocus their hearts on God. Yet genuine spiritual renewal does not begin with outward discipline alone. It begins with repentance.
This is an uncomfortable truth in a culture that prefers affirmation to confession and self-expression to self-examination. But the Christian life has always begun the same way: by turning away from sin and turning back to God (Acts 3:19; Mark 1:15). There can be no renewal without repentance, because before the Lord makes something new in us, He calls us to surrender what is old (Isaiah 43:18-19; Ezekiel 18:30-31).
Renewal begins with and is sustained by repentance
That pattern lies at the very heart of the Gospel. We are called to die to our old selves and be made new in Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit - a truth beautifully symbolised in baptism (Romans 6:4-6; 2 Corinthians 5:17; Romans 6:3-4; Colossians 2:12). Repentance is where that transformation begins. It is the moment a person sincerely recognises their sin, acknowledges their need for mercy, and entrusts themselves to the saving grace of Jesus Christ (Psalm 51:3-4; Romans 3:23; Ephesians 2:8-9; John 3:16).
Yet repentance is not only the beginning of the Christian journey. It is also the ongoing rhythm of it - the daily posture of the Christian heart (Luke 9:23; 1 John 1:9).
This is beautifully reflected in Jesus’ words to His disciples at the Last Supper. He tells Peter that the one who has had a bath is already clean and only needs to wash his feet (John 13:10). The image is both simple, profound and comforting. The full bath points to the cleansing that comes through salvation: the believer has been washed, forgiven and made new in Christ (Titus 3:5; 1 Corinthians 6:11). But the washing of the feet points to something ongoing - the daily repentance we still need as those who belong to Christ continue to walk through a fallen world (1 John 1:8-9; Psalm 51:2).
Christians do not need to be saved over and over again (Hebrews 10:10; Romans 8:1), but they do need to keep returning to the Lord with honesty about their sin. Though redeemed, we are still weak (2 Corinthians 12:9-10). Though made new inwardly, we still contend with the flesh (Galatians 5:17; Romans 7:18-19). Our hearts are prone to wander (Jeremiah 17:9). Sin is not only found in obvious acts of rebellion, but in thoughts, motives, attitudes, words and desires that fall short of the holiness of God (Matthew 5:28; James 4:17; Romans 3:23).
A brief and honest reflection on any ordinary day is often enough to reveal this. Pride rises easily. Impure thoughts linger. Harsh words slip out. Selfish motives shape our actions. Envy, lust, impatience, bitterness or vanity make themselves known, sometimes quietly, sometimes plainly. Even where there is sincere love for God and we long to do what is right, there remains an ongoing struggle between the flesh and the Spirit (Romans 7:21-23; Galatians 5:17). We see how easily our feet can wander (Psalm 119:176; Isaiah 53:6).
Why believers still need daily cleansing
That is why daily repentance matters. It keeps the heart soft before God (Ezekiel 36:26; Psalm 51:10). It reminds us of the truth that we never outgrow our need for grace. No matter how long we have followed Christ, we do not become self-sufficient. We are sustained every day by the mercy of God (Lamentations 3:22-23; 2 Corinthians 12:9). Repentance brings us back to that reality. It humbles us, but it does not humiliate us (Psalm 34:18). It produces sorrow for sin, but not hopelessness (2 Corinthians 7:10). Properly understood, repentance is not a joyless act of self-condemnation (Romans 8:1). It is the returning of the heart to the God who is ready to forgive (Isaiah 55:7; 1 John 1:9).
And this is where repentance becomes not only necessary, but deeply beautiful.
Jesus does not recoil from or shame the repentant sinner (John 6:37; Luke 15:20). He does not grow weary of cleansing those who come to Him in sincerity (Hebrews 7:25; 1 John 1:9). He wants His people near Him (John 15:4; James 4:8). He wants them to have a share in Him, to abide in Him, and to remain in the joy of fellowship with Him (John 15:10-11; 1 John 1:3). Daily repentance is one of the chief ways that communion is maintained. It is how believers keep short accounts with God (Psalm 32:5; Proverbs 28:13). It is how the soul stays tender, watchful and awake (Mark 13:33; 1 Peter 5:8).
How repentance is nurtured
Prayer and Scripture are central to this (Psalm 119:9-11; Colossians 4:2). The more a Christian dwells in the presence of God, the more clearly both His holiness and His mercy are seen (Isaiah 6:1-5; Exodus 33:18-19). The Holy Spirit convicts, not to drive the believer away, but to draw them back (John 16:8; John 6:44). He exposes sin in order to heal it (Psalm 139:23-24). He softens the conscience so that the heart becomes increasingly sensitive to anything that grieves God (Ephesians 4:30; 1 Thessalonians 5:19). In that sense, repentance is not separate from love; it is one of love’s clearest expressions. The more we love Christ, the more we grieve what dishonours Him, and the more quickly we return when we have strayed (Psalm 97:10; Romans 12:9; Psalm 119:59-60; Luke 15:18).
Without repentance, however, the opposite happens. The heart slowly hardens (Hebrews 3:13; Proverbs 28:14). Sin becomes easier to excuse. Conviction becomes easier to ignore (1 Timothy 4:2; Ephesians 4:19). Spiritual pride begins to grow, often unnoticed (Proverbs 16:18; Luke 18:11-12). A person may still appear religious, but inwardly they begin to rely on themselves rather than on grace (Matthew 23:27-28; Galatians 3:3). This is one reason daily repentance is so vital: it protects the soul from self-deception; mindful that all we have and all we are is by the grace of God alone (Jeremiah 17:9; 1 Corinthians 10:12; 1 Corinthians 15:10; Ephesians 2:8-9). It keeps believers low before God, which is the safest place to be (Proverbs 11:2; James 4:6).
Final Thoughts
Lent therefore offers believers an important reminder. It is not simply a time to give something up, but a time to come back. Not simply a season for spiritual effort, but a season for spiritual honesty. It calls Christians to examine themselves, to confess their sins, and to place themselves once again under the cleansing mercy of Christ.
In truth, this is not only a Lenten message. It is a lifelong one.
The Christian life is not sustained by a single moment of repentance in the past, but by a continual returning to the Lord in the present. Daily repentance does not weaken faith; it deepens it. It does not diminish assurance; it strengthens dependence. It is not a sign that grace has failed, but a sign that grace is still at work.
To repent each day is to remember who we are, who Christ is, and how desperately we need Him. It is to live with an open heart before God, refusing both despair and pretence. And it is to trust that the same Saviour who once washed us completely is still willing, in His mercy, to wash our dusty feet.
So, dear reader, during Lent, and in every season of life, let us keep coming back to the Lord. Let us not wait until our hearts feel far from Him. May we never lose the habit of repentance. CT.
Päivi Räsänen.
Päivi Räsänen 'shocked and profoundly disappointed' after being convicted over pamphlet
Closing Achievement Gaps.
Religious Faith Shows Promise in Closing Student Achievement Gaps.
Faith Facts
- Students with higher religious participation saw GPAs 0.144 points higher than peers.
- Faith traditions can build moral habits, social skills, and stronger literacy.
- Religious communities may give students support, accountability, and encouragement.
A new report reveals that religious practices among students, families, and teachers significantly bridge learning gaps and elevate academic performance.
Published by the BYU Wheatley Institute and Harvard scholars, the study highlights how faith serves as a transformative resource for human flourishing.
Researchers found that active religious participation correlates with higher GPAs and increased aspirations for higher education.
This spiritual foundation provides students with a sense of purpose that translates directly into the classroom.
Engaging with a faith community also provides youth with social capital, offering trusted systems of support and values that are often missing in secular environments.
These connections with mentors and peers create a robust network of accountability and encouragement.
Educators who view their teaching as a spiritual calling demonstrate higher intrinsic motivation and commitment to their students.
This devotion suggests that honoring religious identity in the educational sphere can revitalize the American school system.
“After nearly two centuries, the promise of U.S. public schools to foster effective and meaningful learning opportunities for all children across race and social class remains unfulfilled,”
Bryant Jensen, a professor involved in the study, noted that religious faith is a key tool in closing the persistent opportunity gaps in our nation.
By leaning into Biblical principles and community support, we can better equip the next generation for success.
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