The November issue of the NW NJPN E Bulletin leads with resources and prayers for Advent and offers links to poems, podcasts as well as book recommendations. In a compassionate article written for Advent 2025 for the Bishops’ Conference, James Gordon Reid Haveloch-Jones speaks about parental language and the divine, and how this can be difficult for many people who have had issues with parents – see pages 3-4.

You may have seen a photo of 12 Catholic bishops who posed for a picture praying over President Donald Trump. The Sisters of Charity of New York have published a comment in response to this photo-op and the troubling message it sends – see page 5.

Some positive news – an award to renowned journalist and activist Ellen Teague who has inspired many with her dedication to Justice, Peace and the Integrity of Creation as well as involvement in her parish community – details on page 5.

On pages 6-8 Rachel Arnold asks what is Christian social action achieving? Where should our efforts go?  And what should the future of church-based projects be? To help explore these questions in depth she describes a new initiative: Standing at the Crossroads: Rethinking Christian Social Action.

Professor Ian Linden looks at issues of security and peace-making with a well-argued article called ‘The Voice of Reason in a Secular Age’ – see pages 8-9.

New initiatives to the National Curriculum are discussed on pages 10-11 looking at the introduction of vocational courses within the existing GCSE structures and the progress of the proposed GCSE in Natural History campaign championed by Mary Colwell of Curlew Action.

Friends of the Holy Land have a litany for the West Bank and Gaza and Sabeel-Kairos share a moving reflection from a Palestinian participant who joined their Wave of Prayer at Greenbelt. Fr Joe Ryan (Acting Chair Pax Christi) announces the new General Secretary of Pax Christi England and Wales, Anna Blackman, who will take up her appointment in January 2027 – see page 12.

In a separate mailing there are 2 Advent resource booklets for parish and individual use: reflections and prayers and a suggested service. These will also be available shortly on the NJPN website.

Anne O’Connor

NW NJPN Justice and Peace E Bulletin October 2026