Profile of Professor W Montgomery Watt, Islamic scholar and Episcopalian priest; born 14 March, 1909, in Ceres, Fife; died 24 October, 2006, in Edinburgh, aged 97. "Alongside his work on Muhammad and the Qur'an his work on the development of Islamic theology and philosophy has been hugely influential ... Few would deny the extent to which he succeeded in moving Christian discussion on, particularly with reference to the person of Muhammad."
Source: The Scotsman.

Richard Holloway, the former Episcopalian Bishop of Edinburgh, assesses the state of religion in Scotland today.
Source: The Herald.

William Ernest Davies, from Lanarkshire - a former meat inspector, a civil servant and Church of Scotland elder who died in 2002 - has left a multi-million pound bequest to the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow to further research and treatment of the killer disease. He discussed the matter with Rev Colin Westmoorland, a Church of Scotland minister in Malta, who in turn contacted the Very Rev Dr William Morris, then minister of Glasgow Cathedral.
Source: The Herald.

The Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, the Rt Rev Alan McDonald, has appealed to politicians to inspire young people to change the world in a special service delivered at the Houses of Parliament Wednesday.
Source: Christian Today.

Police are investigating a bizarre incident in which an irreplaceable prayer book was destroyed after being set alight on the altar of a church in Elgin. It is believed that someone sneaked into Holy Trinity Episcopal Church on Monday morning and deliberately targeted the leather-bound prayer book, which had been part of the church's history for more than 75 years. Holy Trinity rector Canon Mark Strange said the church had suffered vandalism and thefts in recent years, as well as severe damage as a result of the Elgin floods of 1997 and 2002, but the congregation was now more determined than ever to keep its doors open.
Source: Aberdeen Press & Journal.

Feature on anti-Catholicism in Edinburgh. 'Father Michael Henesey of St Patrick's Roman Catholic Church on the Canongate, says: "I'm not aware of any anti-Catholic feeling here at all – nobody has come to me at all about any ill-feeling." But according to Cardinal Keith O'Brien, leader of Scotland's 850,000 Catholics, anti-Catholicism is endemic in Scottish society, no matter the geography.'
Source: Edinburgh Evening News.

A minister is calling for a nationwide show of solidarity against British Airways' ban on crosses. The Reverend Jim Stewart, of Letham St Mark's Church of Scotland in Perth, angered by the airline's suspension of a cross-wearing worker, is urging supporters to wear the symbol of faith this Friday.
Source: Daily Record.

Church volunteer Philip Rooney, who stole £31,000 which parishioners at Our Lady of the Assumption in Troon had donated for a Peruvian orphanage and tsunami victims, faces jail despite repaying the cash. Deferring sentence at Ayr Sheriff Court until December 11, Sheriff Colin Miller said: "It is a very serious offence to take money from the parishioners' collections and custody is at the forefront of mind."
Source: Daily Record.

Obituary of Canon John Rand Rogerson; born June 9, 1923; died November 8, 2006. "Although he never held high office in the church, he said he had had a great life. His high office was having the privilege of being a priest."
Source: The Herald.

Police are investigating a wilful fire-raising attack at Holy Trinity Church, Trinity Place, Elgin. Grampian Police have appealed for information.
Source: BBC Scotland News.

THE belief that sectarianism is a "west of Scotland problem" associated with football has been confounded by a new report, which reveals acts of religious hatred are being reported in almost every part of the country. The first major study of new anti-bigotry laws in Scotland shows that 635 people were accused of religiously aggravated offences between January 2004 and June 2005.
Source: The Scotsman.

Hundreds of state schools [in England] may be teaching the Biblical story of creation in science lessons, a leading academic said last night. James Williams, head of science teacher training at Sussex University, said confusion over GCSE and A-level science syllabuses had "opened the door" to groups trying to widen understanding of creationism and its more recent off-shoot, intelligent design. In September, a coalition of academics and clergymen sent teaching materials to every secondary school science department in the UK, suggesting that pupils should be allowed to debate Charles Darwin's theory of evolution. The group - Truth in Science - mailed a booklet and two DVDs to 5,700 private and state schools as part of a £20,000 project personally funded by its backers, who include senior professors in engineering from the universities of Leeds, Bristol, Sheffield and Cardiff. The academics who preach intelligent design include Maurice Roberts, a former classics teacher and now a minister in the Free Church of Scotland [Continuing].
Source: Daily Telegraph.

Full text of Cardinal Keith O'Brien's statement in response to the publication today by the Scottish Executive of an analysis of Section 74 of the Criminal Justice (Scotland) Act 2003, which deals with religiously aggravated crime.
Source: Scottish Catholic Media Office news release.

Scottish Inter Faith Week 2006 was launched yesterday against a backdrop of high local and global religious tensions. It is being run by the Scottish Inter Faith Council (SIFC), which hopes to raise awareness and stop attacks such as the one on a young Sikh boy who had his hair hacked off by a gang of four white youths in Pilrig Park in the Leith area of Edinburgh.
Source: The Herald.

The majority of Scotland's religious crime takes place in the west of Scotland with a third linked to football, new Scottish Executive statistics have shown. It also centres around Catholic and Protestant sectarianism and is often fuelled by alcohol, the study revealed. But Cardinal Keith O'Brien condemned the Scottish Executive's tactics in the battle against religious sectarianism, pointing out the majority of the cases did not relate to either football or parades. He said: "I am forced to question the wisdom of numerous high profile initiatives focusing on football clubs or the constant marginalisation of sectarianism in Scotland as little more than drink-fuelled, post-match rivalry. It is not, poverty, alcohol or football which underpins most cases of religiously aggravated crime in Scotland, but blatant anti-Catholicism."
Source: BBC Scotland News.

Scottish courts are making increasing use of new laws that tackle religious hatred as an aggravated offence, according to research published today. The report, 'Religiously Aggravated Reported Crime: An 18 Month Review', finds that the number of offences reported by the police with a religious aggravation increased by 55 per cent when comparing June- December 2003 and June -December 2004.
Source: Scottish Executive news release.

The right of the Roman Catholic Church to veto the appointment of teachers in denominational schools in Scotland has been attacked as "un-Christian". Peter Quigley, president of the Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS), Scotland's largest teaching union, said the law "flies in the face" of Christian teaching because it discriminates against non-Catholics. His comments come only months after an employment tribunal ruled that an atheist suffered religious discrimination because he was prevented from applying for a promoted post at a Catholic school in Glasgow. However, Michael McGrath, director of the Scottish Catholic Education Service, said: "This is about ensuring that parents can be certain that their children will receive Catholic education when they choose to send their children to a Catholic school."
Source: The Herald.

A petition against Trident renewal will this week be handed to the Ministry of Defence by the Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, the Rt Rev Alan McDonald, together with the Primus of the Scottish Episcopal Church, the Most Rev Idris Jones, and Richard McCready of the Scottish Catholic Church.
Source: Christian Today.

A firefighter disciplined for refusing to hand out safety leaflets at a gay parade has spoken for the first time about his family's "terrible ordeal". Devout Catholic John Mitchell - who was hand-picked to be lead pall-bearer at the funeral of First Minister Donald Dewar in 2000 - objected to revellers at the march being dressed as nuns. But Mitchell, 38, was given a written warning by his bosses at Strathclyde Fire and Rescue for snubbing the Pride Scotia event in Glasgow in June. He was one of nine firemen who boycotted it. John is now going to an industrial tribunal to have the ruling overturned. He has the full support of the Catholic Church. Spokesman Simon Dames said: "People should have the right to object on the grounds of conscience."
Source: Sunday Mail.

Single women worried about their biological clock are for the first time in Scotland being offered the chance to freeze their eggs and preserve their fertility. The Glasgow Centre for Reproductive Medicine (GCRM), has opened in the city, promoting the option for females who plan to delay parenthood. The service is likely to cost around £3100. Simon Dames, spokesman for the Catholic Church in Scotland, said: "Putting careers before family is upside-down thinking. Money doesn't come before any relationship, especially family. In that sense, freezing eggs is a non-starter."
Source: The Herald.

Christians are being urged to contact their MPs over Government plans to rush through controversial sexual orientation regulations. Andrea Minichiello Williams, public policy officer of Christian Concern for our Nation, said: "After the recent news that the Government were delaying the England, Wales and Scotland Sexual Orientation Regulations by six months to deal with the ‘difficult issues’ which minister Ruth Kelly admitted had been highlighted by the response of faith groups to the consultation, it was a shock to find that behind the scenes the Government are rushing through identical Regulations in Northern Ireland using their direct rule powers, while the Northern Ireland Assembly remains suspended."
Source: Inspire Magazine.

Churches are being advised to protect congregations against paedophiles and rapists in their midst as The Times uncovers figures showing a clear link between religion and sex crime. The Home Office has disclosed statistics for the first time, showing the prison population according to their faith and type of offence committed. Two trends emerge: a strong tendency for prisoners who declare a religious faith to be serving time for sexual offences; and a large proportion of fraudsters from oriental faiths. Richard Foot, of the charity Sanctuary UK, said that some Christians used a warped theology to justify sex crimes and tried to get out of therapy programmes. Sex crime consultant Ray Wyre said there was a risk when offenders came to believe their wrongdoing was caused simply by having too little faith. He had known ministers who tried to cast out “rape demons”. One prisoner demanded to be given a Christian probation officer who, he wrongly believed, would accept that he no longer needed treatment since he had accepted Christ.
Source: The Times.

Rev John Ross, minister of Greyfriars Free Church in Inverness since 2002, has been names as moderator designate for the 2007 General Assembly of the Free Church of Scotland.
Source: Aberdeen Press & Journal.

The decision to return the Stone of Destiny to Scotland 10 years ago caused consternation among the Church of England authorities, it has emerged. The Stone, the ancient symbol of Scottish monarchy, had been in Westminster Abbey for 700 years. In 1996, the Secretary of State for Scotland Michael Forsyth pushed for the stone's return. In a BBC Scotland documentary, it is revealed that the Dean of Westminster Abbey was "livid" at the move.
Source: BBC Scotland News.

Parents in Buckie will gather tonight in the hope that the power of prayer will protect their children from the evils of drink and drugs. The prayer vigil has been organised following a recent series of deaths and tragedies involving young people in the town. The Rev Scott Middleton, of the town's Church of Christ, said: "We want to come together to pray for good things to happen to our young people, and pray against the bad things."
Source: Northern Scot.

Tribute was paid at Dumfries and Kirkcudbright Presbytery of the Church of Scotland to Dr Betty Cowan of New Abbey, who had been a missionary partner of the presbytery. Dr Cowan, who died recently at the age of 89, served as a doctor, teacher, director, professor, administrator and and innovator at the Christian Medical College, Ludhiana, in the Punjab.
Source: Galloway News.

In a major lecture given on Tuesday to invited guests and the community of Sant’Anselmo in Rome, the Archbishop of Canterbury argued that the Rule of St Benedict could provide a spiritual blueprint to bring together the diverse communities that make up the modern continent of Europe.
Source: The Tablet.

The bells of St Andrew’s and St George’s church in George Street, Edinburgh - which are the oldest peal in Scotland, dating from 1789 - have been restored and will be rung for the first time this weekend.
Source: Church of Scotland news release.

A proposed law aimed at protecting the vulnerable will frighten people from volunteering in the community, a cross-party group of MSPs said yesterday. The Vulnerable Groups Bill was meant to safeguard children following the Soham murders by introducing more checks on people who work with youngsters or vulnerable adults. The Executive estimates this would mean checking around a million people - or about a quarter of Scotland's adults.
Source: The Scotsman.

Hugh M Cartwright, minister of the Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland on Gilmore Place in Edinburgh, puts the argument for observing the Sabbath.
Source: Edinburgh Evening News.

World Emergency Relief has delivered urgently needed humanitarian aid to southern Sudan where hundreds of thousands of people in remote communities continue to live in conditions of extreme poverty, with little or no support from international aid agencies. Working in partnership with local development agencies Africa Inland Church (AIC) and All Nations Christian Care (ANCC), and with Scottish charity Glasgow the Caring City, WER last week donated essential medical supplies and equipment to communities in the Ikotos region of southern Sudan.
Source: Reuters Alertnet.

Nearly 300 people, including clergy and church members, have been arrested since the start of a protest campaign that began in October, aimed at a year-long, daily blockade of the Faslane Trident base in Scotland. Speaking on Tuesday, the Revd Ainslie Walton, a retired Church of Scotland minister and one of those arrested, said that members of three Christian campaigning groups had supported the blockade: the Scottish Clergy Action Group, Christians Against Nuclear Arms (CANA), and the Iona Community.
Source: Church Times.

Pastor Patricia Sawo, an African pastor who is herself living with HIV, will be in Scotland from November 24 to December 8 for a series of events to raise awareness of the plight of Africans affected by HIV. Patricia is visiting Scotland at the invitation of the Church of Scotland HIV/AIDS Project and Waverley Care, Scotland’s leading HIV care organisation.
Source: Inspire Magazine.

Reverend Neil Gardner of the Canongate Kirk helped launch Edinburgh's Winter Wonderland festival by recreating Sir Henry Raeburn's celebrated painting, 'Reverend Robert Walker Skating on Duddingston Loch', on Princes Street Gardens' festive ice rink.
Source: Edinburgh Evening News.

A special memorial service is being held on Sunday by Edinburgh's Royal Hospital for Sick Children hospital for Lothians families who have suffered the death of a child.
Source: Edinburgh Evening News.

A trio of Dunbar volunteers – including the minister of Dunbar Parish Church – are heading to Rwanda to give medical aid and train doctors in one of the stricken country’s over-stretched hospitals. The Rev Eric Foggitt and two church members, nurses Kirsty McArthur and Margaret Croft, will head to Africa in January for three weeks with the Christian charity, Crusaders Scotland.
Source: East Lothian Courier.

Anglican and Roman Catholic bishops warned student unions last night that they would be acting illegally if they banned Christian societies from campuses. They claimed Christian students were facing "considerable opposition and discrimination" at universities. The move followed decisions by student guilds and associations at three universities, Exeter, Birmingham and Edinburgh, to suspend Christian groups from membership or use of premises on the grounds that their constitutions or meetings are exclusionary and discriminate against non-Christians and particularly gay people. The 1986 Education Act imposes obligations on universities to safeguard the lawful exercise of freedom of speech and a universities' working party's guidelines for student unions, published in 1998, state that unions shall not harass, intimidate or threaten any member or group.
Source: The Guardian.

Scotland's business community reacted furiously last night to a "mad" decision by MSPs to ban major stores from opening on Christmas Day and New Year's Day - even though the latter measure is likely to be dropped later. Leaving January 1 out of the proposals is understood to be at the heart of a deal struck yesterday as the issue dominated cabinet. However, the heavy vote in favour of Karen Whitefield's member's bill - by 94 votes to four, with the 18 Tories abstaining -allowed the Airdrie MSP to savour the moment.
Source: The Herald.

The Rev Charles C Talley, a former ecumenical representative to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland from the Presbyterian Church (USA), has died at the age of 80 in Florida.
Source: Sarasota Herald-Tribune.

Celebrating a Mass in memory of Fr. Werenfried van Straaten, the Dutch Norbertine priest who founded international charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) in 1947, Cardinal Keith O’Brien reflected on the work done by the organization and recalled his recent trip to the Darfur region of Sudan. At the end of the Mass, parishioners of St Bride’s in Cambuslang presented a check for more than €13,500 Euros for the charity’s work in Vietnam.
Source: The Indian Catholic.

Profile of former chief inspector Tom Harrigan, who retired from the police last summer to become Glasgow City Council's inter-faith liaison officer, the first post of its kind in Scotland. liked the title of community relations officer - certainly more than race relations officer. Brought up a Catholic in the Gorbals, as a boy he helped out in the synagogue where his mother cleaned. Now he's at Glasgow Central Mosque most Fridays, and on Sundays is as likely to be at the Sikh gurdwara as in his local church. He explains: "I'm a Christian, but I'm also a member of the Confucius Temple in Glasgow. I follow the teachings of Confucius, but you can follow another religion at the same time."
Source: The Herald.

A series of events is set to take place in Edinburgh as part of Inter-Faith Week, which runs from Sunday until December 3 and includes the chance to learn more about the city's different faiths through lectures, screenings and conferences. Victor Spence, general secretary of Edinburgh Inter-Faith Association, said: "People of faith and of no faith have the opportunity this coming week to get to know each other better."
Source: Edinburgh Evening News.

A self-styled prophetess who is banned from entering all religious buildings in England and Wales yesterday pled guilty to breaching the peace in two churches in Oban. Mary Israel, 63, of no fixed abode, disrupted a Remembrance Day silence in the town's St John's Cathedral, on November 11, by calling those present "killers" and the women "lesbians". And Oban Sheriff Court heard Israel disrupted a Sunday service at Christ Church the next day, by shouting about war and killing. Procurator fiscal Clifford Most told the court: "She is on bail from Dunoon Sheriff Court and she is subject to three anti-social behaviour orders (ASBOs) in England, one of which prevents her from entering all religious buildings in England and Wales." Sheriff Douglas Small remanded Israel in custody and adjourned the case until December 18 for psychiatric and social inquiry reports.
Source: Aberdeen Press & Journal.

Obituary of Dr Betty Cowan, OBE, FRCP(E), pioneer in rural public health in Punjab and Church of Scotland missionary; born 10 May, 1917, in Dumfries; died 10 September, 2006, in Kilwinning, Ayrshire, aged 89. "Dr Betty Cowan OBE was a champion for the cause of the poor and, in particular, of the malnourished female children of the Punjab of north-east India. A woman of principle and firm Christian conviction, she refused to accept that nothing could be done to improve the lot of those imprisoned by the injustices of poverty and neglect."
Source: The Scotsman.

The row over Muslim women wearing a veil had a parallel in Scotland almost 300 years ago, according to a new book, The Scots and The Union, by Professor Christopher Whatley of Dundee University. He quotes an Englishman deriding Scottish women for hiding their faces with plaid like North Africans, while their church is disparaged as being too traditional. ""e shouldn't be too arrogant today about women in veils or other expressions of different faiths," he said. "Our society demanded much the same at the time of the Union. In fact, many of the opponents of the Union were extreme presbyterians who fought it precisely because they feared their near theocratic social control would be undermined by the Union ... that it would open Scotland up to lax practices of the Church of England."
Source: The Herald.

When do you draw the line between a baby who deserves a chance to live and one that compassion dictates should die? At the age of 22 weeks, according to new guidelines set down by the Nuffield Council on Bioethics last week. The council’s report into premature babies recommends resuscitation and intensive care should not be given to infants born at 22 weeks or less, as they are unlikely to live. Given the emotive nature of the subject, the report has been met with extreme and differing opinions. The pro-life Society For The Protection Of The Unborn Child (SPUC) backed disability campaigners. A spokesman said: “It is nothing short of eugenics to suggest because a baby has or will have a disability, or because the chance of survival is low, treatment should be denied.” The Church of Scotland raises another concern: with improvements in medical technology, increasing numbers of children are being born with disabilities, but not necessarily the resources and care to support them beyond the neonatal unit. The Catholic Church’s response to the guidelines is rather more surprising. Unlike the pro-lifers, they broadly welcome their core ethics. Simon Dames, spokesman of the Catholic Church in Scotland, says: “If a 22-week-old baby [disabled or not] is going through suffering and any treatment will be intrusive in the extreme, then it should be allowed to die. There is no compulsion to keep it alive against all odds. It’s not just about a love of life for the sake of a love of life.” Dames also raises questions around the implications of the report for the abortion debate. “It throws up the contradiction that on one floor of a hospital you could be giving birth to a 23-week-old baby, whereas on another, killing a 24-week-old baby,” he says.
Source: Sunday Herald.

Gay couples will only be allowed to adopt children who have failed to find a home with married heterosexuals if a proposal by MSP Paul Martin is approved at Holyrood. The Labour MSP for Springburn, who is the son of the House of Commons Speaker Michael Martin, is tabling an amendment to the Adoption and Children (Scotland) Bill that, he says, places “family values” at the heart of the system. A spokesman for the Catholic Church said Martin’s amendment was “a step in the right direction”.
Source: Sunday Times.

Church of Scotland leaders have joined the euthanasia debate, claiming doctors should be given the right to withhold treatment from seriously ill newborn babies in exceptional circumstances. Dr Sinclair Scott, a retired GP and a member of the Kirk’s influential Church and Society Council, said there was little point in continuing treatment for newborns with severe abnormalities.
Source: Sunday Times.

European football’s governing body, UEFA, is to monitor the behaviour of Celtic fans during the club’s Champions League match against Manchester United this week, following complaints of sectarian singing. Last week Celtic fans were censured by a stadium announcer for singing pro-IRA songs during the club’s SPL match against St Mirren at Love Street.
Source: Sunday Times.

Christian leaders have condemned Edinburgh University for banning students belonging to the Christian Union from teaching an abstinence course on campus. University chiefs said literature promoting the six-week course, entitled Pure, broke equality and diversity rules, following claims that it included stories from people who had been "cured" of their homosexuality. The Christian Union is considering legal action against the university under human rights laws.

Source: Sunday Herald.

An island minister stressed this week that the Lewis Presbytery of the Church of Scotland was 100 per cent against civil partnerships. He was commenting following remarks attributed to the Moderate Designate of the Church of Scotland, Rev Sheilagh Kesting that 'the time was right' for the church to bless same sex partnerships for the first time. Rev Andrew W.F. Coghill, minister of the Church of Scotland in Lochs (Crossbost), stated: "Miss Kesting's personal views come as no surprise to anyone."
Source: Stornoway Gazette.

A special mass took place at St Brigid’s Church last week to mark the end of Father Joseph Brannigan’s 10 years with the Newmains congregation. Fr Brannigan recently moved to St Mary’s in Lanark.
Source: Wishaw Press.

Plans to move BBC Radio 3’s Choral Evensong, usually broadcast from a cathedral or college chapel, to 4 pm on Sundays from its current Wednesday-afternoon slot have aroused a suspicion that the BBC aims at confining its religious programmes to Sunday.
Source: Church Times.

The Very Reverend Graham Forbes CBE, provost of St Mary's Episcopal Cathedral in Edinburgh, has been given an honorary doctorate by Napier University Business School.
Source: Edinburgh Evening News.

A Deeside charity dedicated to helping poverty-stricken families in Romania has been forced into a legal wrangle to ensure thousands of pounds of donations from the North-east public does not go to waste. Banchory woman Sandra Golightly, who set up Deeside Aid Romania Trust (Dart) in 2002, helped collect almost £2,000 to buy a piece of land to build a children's camp that would give some of the country's poorest youngsters the chance of a holiday. The Aletheia Church in Timisoara used £1,700 donated to Dart by North-east residents to purchase the land and a further £800 to create a well, but Dart claims it has failed to uphold an agreement to register the site in both the names of the church and Dart. The Romanian group is now claiming ownership of the land, which is understood to have trebled in value, and work on the camp has still not started.
Source: Deeside Piper & Herald.

Preview of Peter Howson's new exhibition - Andrew - Portrait of a Saint - which runs at the City Art Centre in Edinburgh from 30 November until 4 March.
Source: The Scotsman.

Award-winning Glasgow-based radio group GRF Christian Radio has made its latest audio production available for churches and Christian radio stations to download free of charge. Bond is a series of six short humorous MP3s produced to coincide with the release of the new James Bond film Casino Royale. These audio spots are ideal for including in a church service, playing in the classroom or broadcasting on the radio to get people thinking about the root causes of evil and suffering.
Source: The Good News.

Every footballer in the Scottish Premier League should be given anti-sectarian training, a leading academic claimed yesterday. In a report commissioned by the Scottish Executive, Professor Bert Moorhouse said that professional players needed to be taught about the dangers of stirring up religious hatred through their actions on and off the pitch.
Source: The Scotsman.

Chief police officers yesterday launched an unprecedented attack on a leading sociologist's attempt to tackle football club sectarianism. Professor Bert Moorhouse incurred the wrath of the Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland by suggesting they need to review their "style of policing". The Glasgow University academic also urged Old Firm rivals Celtic and Rangers to wage a single, united campaign against sectarianism.
Source: The Herald.

Rangers FC have unveiled a panel of experts to help tackle racisim and bigotry. The influential team include Glasgow-based entrepreneur Charan Gill, MSP Alasdair Morrison, former Herald editor Harry Reid and Jim Templeton of fans' group Rangers Assembly.
Source: Evening Times, Glasgow.

HM Treasury has announced the Pre-Budget Report will be delivered on Wednesday 6 December, with the issue of Alternatively Secured Pensions (ASP) expected to be on the agenda. Ed Balls, Economic Secretary to the Treasury, has already hinted the PBR will deliver some clarity on the issue, after Balls has made it clear ASP is not meant to be for widespread use and should be limited only to those with religious objections, such as the Plymouth Christian Brethren. Standard Life says as it would be illegal under religious discrimination laws to limit ASP to just one religious group, the government is left with three options...
Source: IFA Online.

The Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Revd Dr Rowan Williams has paid tribute to the outstanding ministry of the Most Revd Dr Robin Eames, Archbishop of Armagh at the thanksgiving service to mark the twenty-year Primacy in St Patrick's Cathedral Armagh. The Scottish Episcopal Church was represented by the Bishop of St Andrews, the Rt Revd David Chillingworth.
Source: Christian Today.

The pressure group Catholic Truth has accused former Glenrothes priest Father Jock Dalrymple of breaching his vow of celibacy during his time at the town's St Paul church, linked with the parish of St Mary's in Leslie. It is also alleged that Cardinal Keith O'Brien - the church's head in Scotland - broke a promise to a family who had complained about the priest's conduct by allowing him to take up a new parish in the archdiocese. In a statement, church spokesman Peter Kearney, said: "The Archdiocese of St Andrews and Edinburgh are aware of the allegations, which have been referred to their legal advisors."
Source: Glenrothes Gazette.

The Free Presbyterian Church yesterday won the support of a key parliamentary committee to continue their fight to reinstate Sunday as a day of rest. They asked the Scottish Parliament, through the public petitions committee, to encourage businesses to close on Sunday and to ask Westminster to bring in legislation. And MSPs, although they expressed reservations about the plan, agreed to write to both the Executive and Westminster government to ascertain their positions on Sunday working.
Source: The Scotsman.