Anne Thomas

• Presbyterian Church secures £1m to repair Grade A headquarters

  The Presbyterian Church in Ireland has welcomed a £1m grant to help repair its Grade A listed headquarters in Belfast.

• New talent emerges on UK Hip Hop Gospel scene

  J-Silver is the latest talent to emerge on the UK Hip Hop Gospel scene with his newly remodelled debut EP, ‘Who I Be’.

• Global prayer event to focus on young persecuted Christians

  Christian youth across 50 nations are to join in praying for millions of young Christians being persecuted worldwide for their faith.

• Church group to help non-English speaking community with child safety

  The Churches’ Child Protection Advisory Service is to reach non-English speaking faith communities in the UK with a new Government-funded DVD to help them develop an effective child safety strategy.

• Spain: Thousands turn out for pro-life Mass

  A pro-life Mass drew thousands of people to central Madrid on Sunday to hear the case for the traditional family in a country drifting from its Roman Catholic roots.

• Painting inspires Epiphany lantern parade

  A painting of Jesus holding a lantern in the darkness provides the inspiration for a collaborative Epiphany service in Manchester.

• Bishop urges support for children

  The Bishop of Hereford appealed to hundreds of people this week to support children during 2009, the 30th anniversary of the United Nations Year of the Child.

• ACET sees progress in HIV work

  Christian charity ACET says it has succeeded in reaching even more people in the fight against HIV and Aids during 2008.

• Churches under threat in Tajikistan

  A new draft law in Tajikistan is threatening to rob churches and mosques of their legal status in 2009.

• Methodist call to prayer for Orissa Christians

  The Methodist Church is urging Christians to pray for believers threatened with Christmas violence in the Indian state of Orissa.

• Lichfield Cathedral and Salvation Army celebrate bumper carol concert

  The Lichfield Cathedral Special Choir and the Cannock Salvation Army Citadel are celebrating the huge turnout at the cathedral’s traditional annual carol concert.

• Christian arrests in Eritrea ‘troubling’, says persecution watchdog

  The detention of more than 100 Christian men, women and children in Eritrea is “deeply troubling”, says one group working to support the persecuted church.