Tag: school

  • A peace I’d never experienced before

    Siya Kolisi is the first black captain of the Springboks, the South African team that won the Rugby World Cup in 2019. In his recently published autobiography “Rise”, Siya tells how he grew up in Zwide, Port Elizabeth, where he experienced hunger and violence. He said, “I would scream with hunger. It went past being…

  • The courage of Henriette Hanotte

    In the dark days of war heroes and heroines often emerge who demonstrate outstanding courage. Recently Henriette Hanotte died at the age of 101. During World War II this brave Belgian lady, known by the code name ‘Monique’, assisted 100 Allied airmen to evade capture by the Germans. She escorted them along the Comet Escape…

  • Loving our children and grandchildren

    We are all conscious of the seriousness of climate change. What we are doing now will have serious implications for future generations – our children and grandchildren. Children who have contributed the least to the climate crisis will pay the highest price. Higher temperatures will leave many families living in poverty with less food, less…

  • The Plight of Afghan People

    Afghanistan is no longer in the headlines, but the plight of the Afghan people is desperate. NATO forces, who were there for 20 years, have been withdrawn. The Taliban are in power. Many people have lost their jobs, the economy collapsed after foreign aid ended overnight, the currency has lost almost half its value, the…

  • My joy in the way God has made me

    This week the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games begins. More than 4500 athletes from 163 countries will compete in 539 events in 22 sports. Sadly, the two athletes from Afghanistan have not been able to travel because of the political turmoil in the country. Zakia Khudadadi, who competes in taekwondo, would have been the first female…

  • The secret of all true success

    William Hartley was born in 1846 in Colne, Lancashire. His father, John, was a tinsmith and his mother, Margaret, ran a grocery. He was their only child to survive infancy. William left school at 14 and started work in his mother’s grocery. When he was 16, he was put in charge of the business and…

  • We’re the same as everyone else

    In a recent interview with Irish radio host Brendan O’Connor, who has a daughter with Down’s syndrome, the geneticist Richard Dawkins said it is “wise and sensible” to abort babies who have either Down’s syndrome or are deaf or blind in order to “increase the amount of happiness in the world.” In 2014 Dawkins told…

  • From Pitch to Pulpit

    Gavin Peacock has just published his autobiography, “A Greater Glory: from Pitch to Pulpit.” Gavin’s father, Keith, played for Charlton and Gavin’s ambition was to be a professional footballer. When he was 16, he left school to play for Queens Park Rangers. Later he played for Newcastle United and Chelsea. During his career he made…

  • It’s not good to be alone

    Personal relationships are very important. On a morning walk I saw young children going back to school. They were happy, smiling and singing. They were looking forward to seeing their friends and teachers again. Soon elderly people living in care homes will be able to see one close relative face to face after, for many,…

  • A father to the fatherless

    The Bible teaches us that God is deeply concerned for vulnerable people, and especially widows and orphans. In the Law he commands, “Do not take advantage of the widow or the fatherless.” The book of Psalms says, “A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling.” The prophet Isaiah…