A new scheme will offer thousands of Methodist churches the opportunity to save money, time and energy on their electricity, gas and oil bills. The Methodist Church is recommending that all Methodist properties buy their energy through 2buy2. 2buy2 are the Church’s approved buying group, offering negotiated energy tariffs from suppliers that they manage on behalf of signed up member [...]

Methodist leaders have welcomed the appointment of Justin Welby as the new Archbishop of Canterbury. In a statement Church leaders praised Welby for his ‘spiritual depth and wisdom.’ Bishop Welby’s Methodist colleague in Durham, the Revd Ruth Gee, described him as a valued colleague and expressed her delight at his new appointment. The full statements follow:

The Methodist Church, the United Reformed Church and the Baptist Union of Great Britain have called on the Foreign Secretary to distance the UK Government from the United States Government’s practice of using missiles to target individuals suspected of involvement in terrorism. Church leaders have expressed their anxiety over the humanitarian and legal implications of the CIA-operated drone campaign, arguing [...]

As churches across Britain prepare to celebrate Peacemaking Sunday on 23 September, church leaders have written to William Hague, the Foreign Secretary, highlighting the importance of the recent United Nations negotiations over the Arms Trade Treaty and noting the government’s positive stance in the negotiations thus far. In the letter, Mrs Val Morrison, Moderator of the General Assembly of the [...]

The Methodist Church has launched a national consultation on evangelism, asking Methodists across Great Britain what the term means to them and what they find challenging about it. Through a simple online survey, people are invited to share their views on a range of questions about evangelism, including “What is the nature of the evangelistic task today for twenty-first century Britain?” [...]

Giving the go-ahead for more gaming machines on the high street threatens to trigger a surge in problem gambling, Church groups say as Parliament reveals its report into gambling. The report recommends scraping the upper limit of four high-risk B2 machines that betting shops are allowed to have on their premises. The report also expects local authorities to apply limits [...]

This week, Nicola Sturgeon, the Scottish Health Secretary, made the announcement that she plans to start to tackle the alcoholism and binge drinking endemic in parts Scotland by introducing a minimum price of 50p per unit of alcohol. This is even higher and more wide-ranging than the 45p previously indicated. Unveiling this radical health policy proposed by the Scottish National [...]

More churches than ever before are expected to give a BIG Welcome to visitors this September. The Methodist Church and Elim Pentecostal Churches are taking part for the first time, alongside Baptists in England, Wales and Scotland, in the Free Church initiative the BIG Welcome. The initiative encourages Christians to ‘invite someone they know to something they love’. This could [...]

As one of the founding fathers of Methodism, John Wesley is well-known throughout the world as a Christian evangelist. But his experiments into producing cures for the sick are not often talked about – until now. An exhibition revealing the surprising and illuminating history of Wesley’s wild and wonderful medical ideas will tour the country from 2 April until 30 [...]

The Methodist Council discussed the need for the Church to re-invigorate its engagement with the education sector when it met at Royal Holloway College in Egham, 24-26 March. Currently, 22,000 children attend the 65 state-funded and 14 independent Methodist schools in England and Wales. All the schools have a Christian foundation, serve their local community and are fully inclusive, welcoming [...]