Pray for the Murderers of Woolwich as well as the Victim.

That's the hard message of the Faith of Jesus. Even in the horror of so cowardly and unprovoked an attack we have to pray for those two deeply damaged young men. That does not excuse them in any way. It simply is the challenge of the Man who said "Father forgive them for they know not what they do." He is our model and our guide. 

The scandal of Bishopless dioceses.

We believe in the Apostolic Succession and the three great orders of Bishops Priests and Deacons. We are not Protestants but Catholics, yet we condemn our dioceses to continue without a pastor for years on end as if it didn't matter. What is wrong with the system. Looks like incompetence to me and it wouldn't be tolerated in any human institution, except perhaps the Belgian Parliament. Does it happen everywhere or has England and Wales been singled out? 

Greeks really do Lent

I'm in Greece for the Greek Easter and my Greek friends are keeping Lent as only they do. No alcohol, no milk, no dairy products, no meat - they are seriously prepared for the last few days of Holy Week in a monastery near Athens. Makes my Lenten fast pretty pathetic. 

Hypocritical Canada attacks Sri Lanka

Canada has no right to criticise Sri Lanka for its record on human rights when Ottawa's repudiation of Kyoto is condemning states in the Pacific to annihilation as they sink beneath the rising sea water. Canada's refusal to help combat climate change makes her complicit in driving Bangladeshis from homes, threatened by the rising water; in the melting of the Arctic ice ; and in desertification in Europe and Africa. Yes, Sri Lanka has much to answer for but Canada has no right to criticise while she betrays many of the worlds most vulnerable people.

Sun at last!

Isn't it remarkable that, however urban we become, we are still creatures of the weather. After the long, cold, wet winter the sun has brought a new spring to our steps. There's nothing virtual about the weather - its influence is still direct and real and reaches even into the most dismal city street.

Teachers want to teach walking instead of reading, writing, maths, and religion

The Teachers Unions completed their disastrous conferences wingeing and blaming everybody else. When questioned about his objections to Mr Gove's determination to teach fundamentals, the deputy secretary of the ATL told the Guardian that children should have lessons in walking! Evidently being literate or numerate is much less important than knowing the difference between strolling and walking fast. Heaven help our children!

The rich and famous are braced for more revelations

Next week the Guardian and Le Monde will reveal more names of tax dodgers. Already the information is shaking the French government where top Socialists who have been inveighing against tax evasion have been caught with off shore bank accounts. Hypocrisy is specially hateful. Paying your fair whack towards the state's cost is a Christian as well as a social duty. However, sensible societies do not demand so much of a person's income that he sees no point in working. Get much above 40% and you begin to stifle enterprise and reduce the tax take. Evasion is never justified but governments that overdo their demands can't be surprised if people up sticks and move elsewhere. Hence 200,000 French people in England!