Since his election, the Pope has made noises about wanting to see a greater role for women in the Church. But for many of those hoping for change, this papacy has so far proved a bitter disappointment, with Francis talking the talk but failing to walk the walk

Former President of Ireland Mary McAleese recently denounced the Church’s teaching on homosexuality saying the doctrine “empowers the homophobic bully,” and that it is the church teaching, not homosexuality, which is “intrinsically evil.” Novena News reported that McAleese, who served as president from 1997 to 2011, made the remarks on a podcast entitled Dive Into Pride during Dublin’s Pride celebrations. McAleese holds a doctorate in canon law from the Pontifical Gregorian University, Rome. She currently serves as chancellor of Trinity College, Dublin.

Paul Vallely said in his article that "one thing that can be said in favour of Boris Johnson’s Government is that it is unafraid to change its mind when yet another of its strategies proves disastrously wrong."

Collections in churches are badly hit by the pandemic writes Catherine Pepinster in The Tablet with the RC Church experiencing a catastrophic drop in income after churches closed in March. The experience so far, Catherine Pepinster said, is that priests who rely on church collections for their livelihoods have endured a catastrophic drop in income after churches closed in March because of the coronavirus lockdown. Even as lockdown eases given the limited numbers of people who have returned to Mass, the financial situation still remains precarious. In some Southwark parishes income dropped by up to 70 per cent. In the CofE the Rt Rev Nick Baines, the Bishop of Leeds, told the Yorkshire Post that the finances of the diocese would take a “big hit” as rental income halted, donation plate giving stopped and other income streams, such as tourism and that gained through weddings and baptisms, dried up. “It won’t be until the end of the year when we know what the true impact will be.”

As the lockdown to combat COVID-19 eases, faith leaders are urging every sector of civil society to use this opportunity to work together to create a better world.

Giles fears that what is dangerous to the overall mission and credibility of the church is the fearful reaction that often accompanies reductions of clergy and closures. Financial pressure, he states, stimulates panicky missionary initiatives with inviting sounding names dreamt up in the religious PR department. Bishop Cedd managed with the Bible, faith in the living God and a good pair of shoes.

Radical Welcome: What does it mean to be an inclusive church? Open Table Network Coordinator Kieran Bohan was interviewed by Revd Phillip Johnson, vicar of the Parish of Malvern Link With Cowleigh in May. This parish is discerning whether to host an Open Table community. Watch on YouTube (24 mins).

The German bishops’ conference announced on Friday that a record 272,771 people left the country's Catholic Church in 2019. The number represented an increase of more than 56,000 on the 216,000 who left in 2018, and exceeds by a large margin the previous record of 218,000 leaving in 2014. The figures are part of a growing countrywide exodus from the Christian Churches. The German Protestant Church saw a similar loss of members, with 270,000 people ending their membership in 2019, an increase of 22 per cent on the previous year. The figures in Germany are easy to record, because those leaving officially opt out of the otherwise compulsory church tax.

I am delighted to let all PCN members know that the five short films commissioned by PCN are now available for you to see! You can access the films by using this website address : https://madeofstories.uk

The coronavirus pandemic means that many people in the UK and Ireland are experiencing new restrictions on their everyday lives. But for people in occupied Palestine, living with restrictions is a part of daily life, and human rights violations are common. Annexation of Palestinian lands, threatened by the Israeli government from 1 July, would make this situation permanent.

Peter Franklin says an essay by Bruno Maçães in Foreign Policy magazine argues that the response to the pandemic has revolutionised our understanding of the economy. In the light of this Franklin thinks a new era of politics is dawning.

Quakers in Britain are pleased to be co-launching Build Back Better, a new campaign for a green and just recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. The campaign says let's not go back to normal.

Covid-19 is showing that the Churches and other faith groups are on the front line supporting the most vulnerable. Now, the author of a new report by the think tank Theos argues, Church leaders must come together to challenge another social evil: the widening gap between rich and poor.

​Our chair Adrian Alker has started a discussion on the future shape of the society we want to see. It is an urgent discussion the necessity and urgency of which was brought home to me by an article in Prospect Magazine written by Herbie Russell ( May 30, 2020) To me it seems the scenario revealed in the 1930’s work by Steinbeck “Grapes of Wrath” was being lived out in 21st century England. Herbie records how Environment Secretary George Eustice launched the official “Pick for Britain” campaign, encouraging the population to take up work on farms across the country. The media had made bleak premonitions of “a disastrous situation” in which “mountains of food are left to rot”. These warnings could find themselves realised if the call failed and, Herbie says, signalling an intensification of the recruitment drive last week the government wheeled out Prince Charles donning his humblest, most rumpled coat,

This is an exciting time for the life of our community as we move to Validation by Durham University and can offer a greater range of course options for people to come and study with us, including the new shorter Foundation and Certificate courses.

1. The accounts mention the costs of PayPal, so is it necessary to offer payment that way? Can we advise everyone that it is less expensive for PCN to use card etc.? From PCN Treasurer Peter Stribblehill: The accounts show the amount we pay to PayPal so that members are aware that using the service comes at a cost. It is a convenient way for them to pay for membership, conferences, publications etc and so serves a useful purpose.

It is reported in The Guardian that the Rev Rosie Harper hit out at ‘micromanagement of buildings’ and calls for less elitism.

Stephen Bullivant, a leading RC theologian and sociologist believes that, when the dust has settled on the pandemic, dioceses in England and Wales that had been planning for a future with fewer priests and fewer laypeople are likely to find the shrinking in Mass attendance to have been accelerated.

Over its lifetime CRC mounted many interesting and stimulating day conferences and smaller evening seminars. However, over the last two years, and thanks to a grant from the Jim Cotter Trust, CRC has been able to build and launch an insightful and inspirational new website of theological and spiritual resources https://www.crconline.org.uk/ (accessible on PCs, tablets and smart phones). The website operates under three major groupings:

1. Questioning Church;
2. Deepening Spirituality;
3. World of Diversity.

Please take a look at what’s there. Contributions are also welcome – follow the Submit a Resource drop down tab. Thank you for your support of CRC over the years and we look forward to your continued interest via the website.

Chair Adrian Alker invites us to think about our future post Covid society. Interestingly it's not only on the left that the received wisdom of the last few decades is being challenged: