Edinburgh Pentlands MSP, Gordon Macdonald, tabled a motion praising leaders at St Nicholas Church in Sighthill for “being a positive and welcoming presence for all in the community.”

The motion was signed by 12 other cross-party MSPs in August.

There will be month-long celebrations including a service led by Rt Rev Colin Sinclair, the Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland.

Rev Dr Tom Kisitu, the minister at St Nicholas Church said it’s a momentous year for the church.

“It is a time to give thanks for our 80 years of life and work, as a local parish church.

“I know some might ask why we celebrate, especially at a time when our church, the Church of Scotland, struggles in many ways to remain relevant and unmistakably visible in a fast-moving nation and on an evolving Scottish ‘landscape’.

“Our response is, why not celebrate? Why not celebrate God’s mighty hand on, in and through a community of faith and action like St Nicholas Church, which only 50 years ago, had the largest Sunday school in Scotland, peaking at just over 1000 children!

“As we celebrate 80 years of existence as a local parish church, we’re following the practice of looking back to see, understand and appreciate God’s footprints in our life, and our work must enrich (and indeed be followed by) the living of our lives together, forwards – as we break new ground, take new actions and…

Family and friends of Nora Quoirin gathered in Belfast to say farewell in the church where she was baptised as a baby, St Brigid’s.

The body of the 15-year-old from London was cremated earlier on Tuesday morning.

Nora was found dead after a 10-day search around the Malaysian jungle resort of Dusun last month.

The teenager – who was born with the brain defect holoprosencephaly and was described by her family as “vulnerable” – disappeared on August 4.

Nora lived in London and was the daughter of French-Irish parents Sebastien and Meabh Quoirin.

Unidentified mourners arriving for the funeral mass of Nora Quoirin at St Brigid’s Church, Belfast. The 15-year-old died after disappearing from the Malaysian jungle resort of Dusun during a family holiday in August

The principal celebrant for the funeral service was parish priest Fr Edward O’Donnell, who was joined by Fr Pat Kelly, Nora’s great uncle.

Addressing a packed church, Fr O’Donnell reflected on the girl’s baptism as he told mourners of the joy Nora had brought to her family in her short life.

He described her as “gentle and innocent”.

Meabh Quoirin arriving for the funeral mass of her daughter Nora at St Brigid’s Church, Belfast.

“Nora was very special, she brought so much joy to Meabh and…

The role of speaker’s chaplain involves saying daily prayers in the chamber, conducting a weekly service in the parliament’s chapel and taking pastoral care of MPs and their staff.

Rev Preb Rose Hudson-Wilkin has been the chaplain since 2010 but in November she will become the Bishop of Dover.

The Speaker, John Bercow MP, whose role it is to chair Commons debates, announced on Monday that he will be standing down as speaker and MP at the next election, or on 31st October if that comes first, which lead to a series of tributes to him by MPs.

However, it was a point of order by David Lammy MP that prompted the speaker to turn the House’s praise to his chaplain when he said: “Thank you also for appointing Rose Hudson-Wilkin as chaplain when the establishment might have preferred a different choice”.

Mr Bercow responded: “I want to endorse in triplicate what he’s just said about the Rt Rev Rose Hudson-Wilkin, Chaplain to the Speaker of the House of Commons, great servant to parliament, in her place in the under gallery now – the source of comfort and inspiration to me for the last nine years.”

She shook her head bashfully as he continued: “There has not been a single day, when I have not felt delighted and reinforced in my insistence – and it was my insistence – my insistence, that Rose would be appointed to that role. There is always scope for legitimate difference…

Mr Trump meant to mention ABC World News reporter Jonathan Karl in a tweet criticising his reporting of his response to hurricane relief efforts.

Instead he mentioned Rev Jonathan Carl, a pastor from Kentucky.

Rev Carl lead pastor at South Fork Baptist Church in Hodgenville, said that at first he laughed it off, but after he received many hateful comments from Trump’s supporters he felt “wounded and hurt.”

Rev Carl wrote an open letter to the president explaining how the consequences of his tweet made him feel.

“Although I was an accidental casualty caught in the cross-fire of your ‘lightweight’ tweet, your attack was very purposeful and hurtful,” he said.

“Our words overflow from our hearts and can quickly evidence the health or sickness of our souls. Your heart must be in a dangerous place to have such a consistent flow of defamation and disrespect towards so many.”

He also urged the president to be slow to tweet, apologise more, choose kindness and exercise humility.

“It is wonderful that you want to communicate frequently with your constituency and the world. Exercise self-control and be more patient and selective with your correspondence,” he said.

“You called an experienced reporter a ‘lightweight’. Let’s be honest, you are a lightweight too. We all are.

“God is the only heavyweight who knows it all and gets…

Christian research organisation Barna Group partnered with international Christian children’s charity World Vision to survey more than 15,000 young adults across 25 countries.

The report, ‘The Connected Generation’, found that the extent of anxiety and uncertainty are often related to finances and vocation, and only one third of respondents say they feel deeply cared for by those around them.

The survey also looked at young people’s attitude toward religion and faith and its role in their lives.

It found that levels of loneliness, isolation and anxiety were fairly high across all participants, but those who are engaged in a religion had key mentors and friends which could help keep combat loneliness.

The survey found that only 19 per cent of those with a faith felt lonely and isolated, as opposed to 31 percent of those with no religious affiliation.

Tim Pilkington, CEO of World Vision UK said, “It is great to see a young generation who feel connected to the world around them and care about what is going on in the world.

“But the high levels of anxiety facing this generation is deeply worrying. I hope this report will help individuals, churches and communities find ways to establish better, meaningful connections and make a tangible difference.”

Barna Group and World Vision will unpack key findings from the study at the Faith for the Future webcast (featuring…

Francis spent the final day of his week-long trip to Africa in the Mauritian capital Port Louis, celebrating mass before an estimated 100,000 people and meeting with government leaders.

The trip fell on the feast day of one of Mauritius’ most important figures, the 19th century French missionary the Reverend Jacques-Desire Laval, who ministered to freed slaves.

While Catholics represent less than a third of Mauritius’ 1.3 million people, Father Laval is seen as a unifying figure for all Mauritians, most of whom are Hindu of Indian descent.

Francis’ visit also came just months after Mauritius scored a major victory at the UN, with a non-binding resolution calling on Britain to return the Chagos Islands, home to the US military base at Diego Garcia, to Mauritius.

Mauritian leaders thanked Francis for the Vatican’s “moral support” in the dispute.

In his speech to government authorities, Francis praised the ethnic and religious tolerance that has long characterised Mauritian history, which saw a series of European powers, Dutch, French and finally British, import African and Indian labourers to work the sugarcane fields before the country gained independence in 1968.

Faithful wave palm leaves as Pope Francis arrives to celebrate Mass at the Monument Mary Queen of Peace, in Port Louis, Mauritius, Monday, Sept. 9,…