A is for Alex Malarkey

After admitting making up his journey to heaven following a near death experience as a child, the now 20 year old decided to take action against the publishers of his book which told his story. He claimed they made “millions of dollars” while giving him, “a paralysed young man, nothing”.

B is for burka

The Muslim clothing was back in the spotlight after some controversial comments from former foreign secretary Boris Johnson. It seemed everyone in politics wanted a say on the matter. Ruth Davidson led the way, calling on Christians to defend the burka like you defend the cross.

C is for climate campaigners

They promised us a climate change “rebellion”. While maybe not as impactful as the wording suggested, these Christians certainly made their point made.

D is for Dutch church

If you’ve ever felt your church service was going on too long, check out the lengths this church went to protect an asylum seeking family.

E is for empty churches

Church attendance continued to decline through 2018. One woman claimed she knew why. Step forward X-Factor’s Sharon Osbourne

The cathedral was cited by Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov, the Russian suspects of the Salisbury spy poisoning, in an interview with RT (formerly Russia Today, you can view interview at bottom of this page) as the tourist attraction they claimed they had come over to see. 

When asked by the editor-in-chief Margarita Simonyan why they were in Salisbury, they replied: “Our friends had been suggesting for a long time we visit this wonderful town.

“There’s the famous Salisbury cathedral, famous not only in Europe but in the whole world, it’s famous for its 123 metre spire. It’s famous for its clock, one of the first [of its kind] ever created in the whole world which is still working.”

They also claimed they had come over to see Stone Henge. 

RT have now sent chocolate models of the city’s cathedral to news outlet TV Rain, a Russian independent network, who tweeted a picture of the gift and then commented: “Come for tea, we are afraid of it alone”.  

.@RT_russian прислали нам на Новый год шоколадный Солсберийский собор с тем самым шпилем! Спасибо! pic.twitter.com/oZLHrNtXu5

— Телеканал Дождь (@tvrain) December 27, 2018

The chocolate was in a plastic box and wrapped in RT ribbon. 

Local MP and Christian, John Glen responded:…

According to a YouGov survey commissioned by The Times newspaper, the proportion coming to church “several times a year” rose from six per cent last year to seven per cent in 2018.

But only five per cent this year said they go every week – a decrease compared to six per cent in 2017.

Graham Nicholls from Affinity, a national network of 1,200 evangelical churches across the UK and Ireland, said churches should help cultivate committed attendance.

He told Premier: “More people are attending church, so that’s got to be a good thing; there’s an opportunity for them to get saved, discipled and so on.

“So, there’s good news. Obviously, there’s bad news in the sense of the lack of commitment.”

The proportion of people who said they only attend church for weddings and funerals fell from 63 per cent in 2016 to 61 per cent in 2017 and to 56 per cent in 2018.

Asked about attitudes towards casual church attendance, Graham Nicholls added: “What is often modelled in churches is that Christianity is a lifestyle or pick-me-up.

Our Director is LIVE on @PremierRadio Inspirational Breakfast with John Pantry next! Listen here. https://t.co/JGriGJoFzE

— Affinity (@affinitytalks) December 28, 2018

“We need to think about whether we’re making sure we’re including the whole gospel, calling people under the lordship of Christ, teaching them how to be happy and holy even in trouble.

“I…

Suspected IRA quartermaster Father Patrick Ryan was the subject of a lengthy legal battle in 1988.

Fr Ryan was arrested by Belgian police at is home where they found large quantities of cash and bomb-making equipment.

The UK requested to have him extradited from Belgium where he was believed to have been involved in an IRA unit.

The Belgian authorities refused the UK’s request and later extradited him to the Republic of Ireland.

Fr Ryan, a former Pallottine priest from Tipperary, became the centre of a row between Irish and British authorities after the Republic refused to extradite him to the UK.

The rift caused tension between the British Prime Minister and Taoiseach Charlie Haughey which spilled into a meeting between the two leaders at the end of the European Council in Rhodes in December 1988.

Minutes of the “frank exchange” which lasted under an hour, reveals the PM’s frustration over the extradition process saying she felt “badly let down” over the matter.

Mrs Thatcher described Fr Ryan as a “really bad egg”.

“I and my soldiers – we are at the receiving end,” she told the Taoiseach.

“Ryan is a very dangerous man. Both the Belgians and our services know this. He is at liberty still.”

Thatcher and Charles Haughey

Mrs Thatcher pressed the then Taoiseach on why the Irish government failed to arrest him or…

The then prime minister felt “sufficiently strongly” about the case of Visions of Ecstasy, an erotic art-house movie about Christ, he inquired about the possibility of Britain being exempted under the European Convention on Human Rights if that proved necessary.

The controversial 18-minute video depicted Carmelite nun St Teresa’s sexual fantasies about Jesus on the cross.

It was judged unfit for distribution by the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) because of its treatment of a “sacred” subject.

When director Nigel Wingrove applied to take the case before the European Court of Human Rights, arguing it breached his freedom of expression, Mr Major described the state of affairs as “wholly unacceptable”.

In a document dated August 1994 sent to senior government figures including the Foreign Secretary and Lord Chancellor, Mr Major writes: “I must make it clear that I would not tolerate a position which required the Government or the BBFC to grant a certificate to this film or to others of a similar type.

“This is a matter on which I feel sufficiently strongly to be prepared to consider a derogation from the European Convention on Human Rights if that were to be necessary in the final analysis.

“I must say I find the position in which we find ourselves wholly unacceptable.”

In a reply, then Foreign Secretary Douglas Hurd warned about doing anything “likely to…

Pollsters at the Washington DC-based company noted how the US evangelist featured in their top ten lists a record 61 times – more than any other person

Publishing the new findings, they said: “The top ten list this year is notable for the absence of two men who often ranked high but who passed away in 2018, Senator John McCain and Rev Billy Graham.”

Former US President Barack Obama topped Gallup’s 2018 most admire men list, while incumbent US President Donald Trump and former leader George W Bush came second and third, respectively.

The pollsters continued: “Rev Graham was in the top ten every year from 1955 through 2017, with the exception of 1962. Graham never finished first, but he was second eight times, most recently in 1999.”

Barack and Michelle Obama are Gallup’s Most Admired Man and Woman for 2018. https://t.co/KBsQCUDIUH pic.twitter.com/1fN1DKmULQ

— GallupNews (@GallupNews) December 27, 2018

Rev Graham died at his home in North Carolina in February 2018 – aged 99.

Gallup asked Americans earlier this month which living man and woman they most admired anywhere in the world. Pope Francis was voted the fourth-most admired man.

Former US First Lady Michelle Obama topped the females list, unseating Democrat politician Hillary Clinton from the number one spot for the first time in 17 years.

Queen Elizabeth II…