Sue East died at a hospice aged 58 on 19th December last year following a short battle with cancer.

On the day she died, she wrote to students at St Andrew’s Church School in Bath to tell them “she was ‘going to die soon’ and to thank them for their “joy and friendship”.

Quoting a passage from C.S. Lewis’ 1952 novel, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, the mother-of-three wrote: “Never forget there is fairy dust to be found in every situation, no matter how difficult.”

Almost 700 pupils, parents, ex-pupils and staff members attended her funeral at Bath Abbey on Thursday.

Mrs East’s coffin was adorned with drawings of fairies, butterflies, love hearts, rainbows and ‘fairy dust’.

Her three children, John, Susannah and Josiah East, all read tributes to their mother, alongside readings from staff members and close friends.

Her daughter Susannah highlighted how her mother’s faith that enabled her to not fear death.

“She said that death is not to be feared, for it is only coming home,” Susannah said.

“She said how even in the most difficult situations, you find fairy dust.”

The diocese of Bath and Wells has also paid tribute to Mrs East.

David Williams, School Effectiveness Advisor at the diocese, who worked closely with Sue and the team at St Andrew’s, said in a statement: “We were…

World Vision says storms, snow and flooding have lefts many refugees exposed to the elements in Lebanon. 

The charity’s Operations Director for Lebanon, Rami Shamma, says sub-zero temperatures at night time  have increased the suffering of refugees from the conflict in Syria.

“They’re living in severe, hard conditions. You’d only anticipate that such storms and such severe winter weather would lead to casualties.”

World Vision estimate that there are up to 1.5 million refugees living in Lebanon. The country’s population was previously only 4.5 million and so the number of refugees is putting a strain on the country’s resources and infrastructure.

For Rami Shamma it’s the scale of individual human suffering that need to be brought to the world’s attention.

“Imagine a person who has been living in a tent for the past eight years, you would get half a metre of water in your tent. 

“You either freeze to death because of the cold weather or you actually have to search for a relocation to another place temporarily.”

World Vision workers are seeking to bring aid to the refugee camps which have been worst hit by the extreme weather. Rami Shamma is appealing to Christians in the UK to pray for the Syrian refugees.

“In the last weeks we have had about 70,000 refugees who were at risk. The people are still in need and there are still people who…

Second Lady Karen Pence previously taught art at Immanuel Christian School in northern Virginia for more than a decade while her husband Mike Pence was a member of Congress.

The school requires job applicants to agree that marriage can only be between a man and a woman.

Applications for employment state: “I understand that the term ‘marriage’ has only one meaning; the uniting of one man and one woman in a single, exclusive covenant union as delineated in scripture and that God intends sexual intimacy to occur only between a man and a woman who are married to each other and that God has commanded that no intimate sexual activity is engaged in outside of marriage between a man and a woman.”

The form adds that: “Moral misconduct which violates the bona fide occupational qualifications for employees includes, but is not limited to, such behaviours as the following: heterosexual activity outside of marriage (e.g., premarital sex, cohabitation, extramarital sex), homosexual or lesbian sexual activity, polygamy, transgender identity, any other violation of the unique roles of male and female, sexual harassment, use or viewing of pornographic material or websites, and sexual abuse or improprieties toward minors as defined by Scripture and federal or state law.”

News of her return to the Christian school sparked sharp criticism over her affiliating with it while serving as…

Badly injured people streamed into a hospital in the capital Harare after alleged assaults by security forces.

“Our country is going through one of the most trying periods in its history,” the Zimbabwe Catholic Bishops’ Conference said in a statement lamenting the government’s “intolerant handling of dissent” and its failure to halt economic collapse.

Media group MISA-Zimbabwe shared a text message from the country’s largest telecom company, Econet, calling the government’s internet order “beyond our reasonable control”.

The High Court will hear a challenge to the shutdown on Monday, the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights said.

A prominent pastor and activist who faces a possible 20 years in prison on a subversion charge arrived at court, one of more than 600 people arrested this week.

Evan Mawarire (pictured below) has called it “heartbreaking” to see the new government of President Emmerson Mnangagwa acting like that of former leader Robert Mugabe.

Mawarire is accused of inciting civil disobedience online. “It’s a shame what’s happening,” the pastor said.

International calls for restraint by Zimbabwe’s security forces are growing, while Mr Mnangagwa prepares to plead for more investment at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

He announced the fuel price increase on the eve of his overseas trip, leaving…

Marie Jean Pierre sued the Conrad Hotel in Miami, Florida – accusing bosses of breaking discrimination laws by dismissing her when she missed six shifts.

Commenting on her victory at a federal court, the 60-year-old told NBC 6 Miami: “I love God. No work on Sunday, because Sunday I honour God.”

The mother-of-six, who attends the city’s Bethel Baptist Church, claimed she had informed her employer when she was hired in 2006 that she could not work during Sundays.

The court heard how Ms Pierre was forced to swap shifts with colleagues when, in 2015, a manager began ordering her to come in during Sundays anyway to wash dishes.

Despite the efforts of co-workers, she was dismissed on the grounds of misconduct, negligence and “unexcused absences”.

The jury ordered Conrad Hotel, which is owned by Hilton Worldwide, to pay Ms Pierre $21 million in punitive damages, $500,000 for emotional anguish and $36,000 for lost earnings.

Hilton said it was “disappointed” by the verdict and it intended to appeal against it.

A statement said: “We were very disappointed by the jury’s verdict, and don’t believe that it is supported by the facts of this case or the law.

“During Ms Pierre’s ten years with the hotel, multiple concessions were made to accommodate her personal and religious commitments.

“We intend to appeal, and demonstrate that the Conrad Miami was and remains a welcoming place…