1. UK Christians face ridicule and discrimination
An Equality and Human Rights Commission consultation heard from Christians who had been mocked for their faith and passed over for promotion. Employees are under increasing pressure to keep their faith hidden at work. A schoolgirl was told by her teacher that only "religious nutters" believed God created the world. It should be said that some humanists also said they faced discrimination, for instance because hospital chaplains were all religious. It should also be said that some Christians protest a good deal too much, leading the Archbishop of York's famous remark that he knew what persecution looked like, and "this ain't persecution". But the weight of anecdotal evidence is piling up, and it's time for a hard look at how to balance religious and other rights more fairly.
2. Syria is worse than you ever imagined
The conflict enters its fifth year this weekend, with no sign of any end to it. So far more than 200,000 people have died, a million have been wounded and a refugee crisis has developed which the UN describes as "the worst humanitarian crisis of our time". Nearly 4 million have fled to neighbouring countries and 7.8 million have been displaced. It is a situation in which human error has been compounded with human wickedness to produce sheer horror. As well as the damage to buildings and infrastructure, there is the damage to fragile minds and bodies and the disruption of a generation's education. It is too soon to talk about reconstruction, but sooner or later the war will end and a massive Marshall Aid-style package will be needed. Who will pay, and what conditions will they attach? And who will be brought to justice?
3. Trouble ahead for Greenbelt – or is it behind?
The Greenbelt festival has struggled in the wake of its move from Cheltenham to Boughton and has had to scale back this year's event. The chair of trustees, Andy Turner, wrote of his fear that the "good ship Greenbelt might capsize", though added in an elegant metaphor that it had "weathered the worst of the storm". There is plenty of rough weather ahead, though: even in Cheltenham numbers had gradually been falling, and the soul-search provoked by the sudden crisis has been overdue. Festivals do rise and fall – but it would be good to see Greenbelt flourish. It's easy to poke fun at its right-on, no-liberal-bandwagon-unjumped-on ethos, but at its best it allows Christians to breathe some fresh intellectual air, and makes space for many who find themselves on the fringes elsewhere.
4. Children rescued from Boko Haram have forgotten their own names
About 80 children rescued from a Boko Haram camp in Cameroon cannot remember their own names or where they come from, according to an aid official who met them in a rehabilitation centre. "They've lost touch with their parents," said Dr Christopher Fomunyoh. "They've lost touch with people in their villages, they're not able to articulate, to help trace their relationships, they can't even tell you what their names are." It is impossible to imagine the trauma they must have experienced; a trauma multiplied many times over in the thousands who have been orphaned, kidnapped or displaced by Boko Haram during the last few years. There are at least now signs that it has overreached itself and that surrounding countries are taking the fight to this terrible enemy.
5. Pope Francis two years in – how's he getting on?
Francis was elected two years ago after the shock resignation of his predecessor Benedict XVI. The Argentinian cardinal was a breath of fresh air, heralding a new beginning for the Papacy in his request to the crowds assembled in St Peter's Square to "pray for me". He turned down the apostolic apartments and lives in the Vatican guest house and has stressed the need for Catholicism to be a 'Church for the poor'. Not everything has gone entirely smoothly – he tends to shoot from the hip, and Vatican insiders see him as a bit of a loose cannon. But his great strength lies in reminding the Church – and the world – that it's a Church, not just a machine for propogating doctrine. Is he the man for the hour? Unquestionably.
A good week for:
Jean Vanier, founder of L'Arche, the network of communities for mentally disabled people, who is a worthy winner of the $1.7 million Templeton Prize.
A bad week for:
Top Gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson, who has been suspended by the BBC after he was involved in a "fracas" with a producer over a meal. He may be sacked.
The story you may not have read but ought to know about:
Naghmeh Abedini, whose husband Pastor Saeed is being held in an Iranian prison, told Christian Today how she is coping. "This trial has not made me question his goodness, it's helped me to discover it," she said. Inspirational.
And one for pure enjoyment:
Martin Saunders offers eight more Christian book covers from the '70s and '80s. Did we really buy these?
