The 69-year-old prince was full of praise for Durham Cathedral’s £10m Open Treasure exhibition where the priceless St Cuthbert’s Pectoral Cross is on view.

The bejewelled artefact was thought to have been buried with Cuthbert in the 7th Century and laid untouched for 1,200 years until it was found hidden in his robes in 1827.

Charles walked through the 14th Century Monks’ Dormitory, beamed with 21 oaks, and which would once have accommodated 40 monks.

He praised the cathedral authorities, sponsors and fundraisers for their efforts in preserving their “great treasures”.

There was laughter as he spoke of their hard work “maintaining a cathedral and stopping the bits falling off it, which, as I reach an increasing age…”

The Prince of Wales (centre) walks with the Dean of Durham Cathedral, Andrew Tremlett (left), as he leaves following a visit to the Open Treasure visitor experience at the cathedral.

Earlier, he was given a card for Prince Harry and his fiancee Meghan Markle by pupils from The Chorister School, which featured a flower made from the children’s thumb-prints.

Before a concert in Durham Cathedral, the prince joined around 300 people inside in marking the tragic death of student Olivia Burt, who died in an incident outside a nightclub last week.

The flag of University College, where the…

Speaking in an interview with with Axios, Mr Pence said he had been made aware of the accusations made about him by Comedian Joy Behar.

“I’d like to laugh about it but I really can’t,” Mr Pence said in the live stream interview.

“I’m a believer like tens of millions in America today will have Ash on their foreheads to mark the beginning of Lent.

[An] overwhelming majority of Americans cherish their faith and we have… different types of faith in this country.

“But I have to tell you, to have ABC maintain a broadcast forum that compared Christianity to mental illness, is just wrong. And it’s an insult not to me but to the vast majority of the American people who like me cherish their faith.

“My Christianity is the most important thing in my life. I try and start every day by opening the good book, my wife and I try and have a prayer together before I leave every morning. I can honestly tell you that my faith sustains me in all that I do.”

Comedian Behar attacked Mr Pence’s faith on ‘The View’  after a clip was played with former White House adviser Omarosa Manigault Newman claiming on a reality programme that “Jesus tells him to say things”.

Behar said: “That’s called mental illness… if I’m not correct, he’s hearing voices.”

Mr Pence disputed the accusation and said his faith wasn’t “unusual”.

“I think I’m a very typical American – whatever your faith traditions,…

Church Mission Society (CMS) published a list of Thursday which revealed the top four mission myths are “mission means we have to save the world”, the belief that “mission is mainly about doing things for people in need”, “mission is primarily a Western thing” and the view that “mission is only for extraordinary people”.

Naomi Steinberg, head of communications at CMS, said: “There are many myths about mission out there; we know that today, mission is a little word with a lot of baggage.

“Having taken time to listen to people’s impressions of mission, our task now is to clarify what mission is – and isn’t. The goal is to make mission easier for people to understand, and ultimately, be part of.”

The organisation questioned more than 2,000 Christians about their perceptions of mission in the 21st century.

In an effort to dispel the misconceptions many people have about getting involved in mission, CMS has produced a Bible study series called ‘What is Mission? A Myth-busting Bible Study for Small Groups’.

Biblical reflections, activities and suggested prayers will be used in the four-part series to untangle fact from fiction.

Videos featuring interviews with a variety of people involved in mission either in the UK or overseas will also be included.

Steinberg added: “The people in mission in the videos are all highly relatable and we think they show that everyone can be…