Church Issues

• Debate re-ignites over gay marriage in church: Both the House of Commons Speaker John Bercow and the Prime Minister have commented this week that churches should reconsider their position on performing same-sex wedding ceremonies. Read more here and here. Meanwhile, St Mary's Cathedral in Glasgow has become the first British cathedral to offer same-sex wedding ceremonies.
  
• 93% Christians feel their faith is marginalised in Britain: 12,000 respondents to Premier’s State of the Faith survey revealed widespread experience of prejudice. Read more here.

World Scene

• Journalist loses job for reporting anti-Semitism at LGBT march: An LGBT journalist has been sacked for reporting that Jews were thrown out of a pro-LGBT Chicago march. Read more here.
• Sweden withholds foreign aid from pro-life groups: In response to US President Trump’s decision to halt US foreign aid to pro-abortion groups, Sweden has done the opposite, joining eight other countries trying to offset the US policy. Read more here.

Israel and Middle East

• Temple Mount tensions rise: Palestinians continue to riot in Jerusalem in response to stepped-up Israeli security at Temple Mount entrances, following last week’s shooting of two Israeli Druze policemen. Read more here and here. Friday (21 July) prayers are expected to become a focal point for protests.
  
• Israeli legislation to protect Jerusalem unity moves forward: The bill, now approved in its preliminary format, would require a 2/3 Knesset majority on any future decision to divide the capital, such as might be made in an international diplomatic deal. Read more here.

Upcoming Events

• Welsh mountain run for Israel (6 August): Join the Father’s House Congregation and runners from around the UK to show your support for Israel. Part of a weekend of worship, prayer and teaching. For more information and to register your interest, call Mike Fryer on (01244) 823378.
• Foundations South (11-13 August): High Leigh Conference Centre, Herts. Weekend conference of Hebraic teaching, worship and fellowship, on the theme of 'controversy'. Featuring teaching from Prophecy Today's Resources Editor Paul Luckraft. Click here for more information and click here for an introduction from Paul.
  
• National Day of Prayer for Britain (8 September): Emmanuel Centre, Westminster, 10:30am-8pm. David Hathaway, together with Brenda Taylor and Dennis Greenidge, are calling a day of prayer for Britain’s Government, Brexit, and for the nation to turn back to God at this critical time. Free, but registration required – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to register by email.
• Feast of Tabernacles celebration (20-21 October): Emmanuel Centre, Westminster. Join Barry and Batya Segal and Vision for Israel for their annual Sukkot celebration. Click here for more information and to book tickets.

Recommended Sources

At Prophecy Today UK we are aware that the world is moving very quickly and it is difficult to keep up with all the latest developments – especially when the material circulated by our mainstream media is increasingly far from reality and definitely not devoted to a biblical perspective!

Though we are not a news service, we want to help keep you informed by passing on updates and reports as we are led. This will be a selective, not an exhaustive, round-up, which we hope will be helpful for your prayers. Click here to browse our News archive.

We also recommend the following news services for regular updates from a Christian perspective:

• Christian Concern (UK)
• Christian Institute (UK)
• JNN News (Barry and Batya Segal, Israel)
• Family Watch International
• Barnabas Fund
• Kehila News (Israel)