The Times: Emma Thompson
We need ministry, not management. Localised priests working on the principle of subsidiarity are essential. Read the original article here
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Parish Churches sit at the heart of Christian worship
Emma Thompson calls on the Church to take note of their own reported failures in amalgamating parishes and removing clergy from the front line. Many people from all walks of…
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Times interview: Emma Thompson. Campaign intensifies to save the parish.
An independent review of the last 6 years in Wigan has revealed that ‘Mega parishes’ have not been a success. When will the Bishops look at the mounting evidence against…
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Parson and Parish: Nov. 2022 article on Save The Parish
Emma Thompson writes about the creation of ‘Save The Parish’.
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DT: Harvest suppers are the feasts that keep on giving
Harvest allows countryside communities a big moment of celebration. It is well deserved. The underappreciated rural church pulls its weight in terms of percentage attendance. On an average Sunday, 40…
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Thunderer column Times 10/04/2023
The Church of England needs to train more clergy in order to reverse decline. Read original article here
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The Church of England is neglecting its heart and soul | Emma Thompson, the Telegraph
“Much recent C of E decline appears driven by a culture at the centre deficient in evidence-based decision-making. The result is that, perversely, parishes are neglected. “Following the money” (as…
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Parish churches are a ‘spiritual NHS’ – so why are its leaders so keen to sell them? | Emma Thompson, the Telegraph
Community and answers to life’s deepest questions draw people to church. Some of us prefer to gather in a church erected by the people who inhabited this place before us, rather than a converted warehouse or cinema. Judge this not as mossy traditionalism. The historical continuum of place (and ministry) inspires the reassuring feeling of each generation’s being moored to something precious. Despite society’s secularisation, there is some hope that the baton of faith can be passed on. One-third of this country’s schools are church schools.
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The Church of England is blighted by bureaucracy | Various, The Telegraph
“In our rural deanery, we have five parishes in vacancy, and another five to become vacant soon.”
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Why I fear the Church of England will not survive for my children | Emma Thompson, Sunday Telegraph
“Christianity in general is under threat, but the CofE has exacerbated this by “leaning in” to secular managerialism and politically divisive issues, moving counterculturally away from localism and underplaying its…
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The Church Closers’ Charter must be torn up | Emma Thompson, the Spectator
The demise of the parish system is not inevitable. If the Archbishops are truly ‘passionate’ about the parish, they should tear up the Church Closers’ Charter. As it is, it’s as if they are denying that the revolution is coming, even as they build the guillotine.
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Out-of-touch bishops are pushing the Church to the brink of ruin | Emma Thompson, The Telegraph
“Look at their actions over recent months and you could be forgiven for thinking that Anglican bishops are on a mission to alienate their flocks, run down their parishes and…
