Hello everyone

Blog – posted September 08. 2024:

BACKGROUND ABOUT GRAND SOLAR MINIMA

One of the themes of my blogs will be concerns about the current Grand Solar Minimum. However, most people are not aware of the background science behind this so this blog is a brief overview of the Research about Grand Solar Minima.

DECREASING SUNSPOTS & CONFLICTING VIEWS ABOUT GRAND SOLAR MINIMA –

 I will give a quick overview of: the forecast of future sunspots by the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration -NOAA, & conflicting views about Grand Solar Minima.

The sun is immense in both size and power. Constant nuclear fusion creates radiant light & heat. It has layers of magnetic fields with overlapping torques. Small dark spots observed on the surface of the Sun are called Sunspots, they are the entry or exit points of magnetic arcs. Their number reflects the activity of the Sun. The least number of sunspots are observed in a Solar Minimum & the most in a Solar Maximum. These occur in a regular 22 year cycle. Every 400-500 years there is a reduction in the radiant power of the sun for a few decades, this is called a Grand Solar Minimum. In the late 1600s – this resulted in many of the rivers & canals of Northern Europe to freeze over – it was called the Maunder Minimum. It is generally accepted that we are now entering a Grand Solar Minimum. NOAA publishes forecasts of the number of sunspots – they will become low in number in the 2020s and then gradually decrease to zero by July 2040.¹

In  2015 Nils-Axel Morner, the former head of Paleo-geophysics & Geodynamics at Stockholm University, published a paper about Grand Solar Minima. In the Abstract he wrote:

“By about 2030-2040, the Sun will experience a new grand solar minimum. This is evident from multiple studies of quite different characteristics, the phasing of sunspot cycles, the cyclic observations on North Atlantic behaviour over the past millennium, the cyclic pattern of cosmogenic radionuclides in natural terrestrial archives, the motions of the Sun with respect to the centre of mass, the planetary spin-orbit coupling, the planetary conjunction history and the general planetary solar terrestrial interaction. During the previous grand solar minima – i.e. the Sporer Minimum (ca 1440-1460, The Maunder Minimum (ca 1687-1703) and the Dalton  Minimum (ca 1809-1821) – the climatic conditions deteriorated into Little Ice Age periods.” ²

Prior to 2011 NASA emphasized, on their website, the importance of the Sun in relation to our climate and that we will experience cooler weather during the new Grand Solar Minimum:      “The Sun is the primary forcing of Earth’s climate system. Sunlight warms our world; sunlight drives atmospheric and oceanic circulation patterns…the Sun drives almost every aspect of our world’s climate system and makes possible life as we know it…our world should be just beginning to enter a new period of cooling, perhaps a new ice age. However, a new force for change has arisen, humans…Other important forcings of Earth’s climate system include such ‘variables’ as clouds, airborne particulate matter, and surface brightness, each of these varying features of Earth’s environment has the capacity to exceed the warming influence of greenhouse gases and cause our world to cool”  ³

However, in 2019 NASA posted, on their website, a different view of the Sun’s role in affecting the Earth’s climate and of the minimal effects of Grand Solar Minima:                                                           “According to the UNs IPCC  the current consensus is that long & short term variations in solar activity play only a very small role in Earth’s climate. Warming from increased levels of human produced greenhouse gases is actually many times stronger than any effects due to recent variations in solar activity…Some people have linked the Maunder Minimum’s temporary cooling effect to decreased solar activity, but that change was more likely influenced by increased volcanic activity and ocean circulation shifts. Moreover, even a prolonged ‘Grand Solar Minimum’ or ‘Maunder Minimum’ would only briefly and minimally offset human-caused warming.” ⁴

                In 2019 Russian Scientists published data from tree rings which clearly demonstrate significant cooling events have occurred during previous episodes of Grand Solar Minima: 

“To investigate the possible Sun-climate connection the regional tree-ring chronology covering the period 1445-2005 was analysed. A total of 36 timber cores of pine Pinus sylvestris  L. were sampled…the data were processed using modern methods…the analysis revealed significant cooling events, coinciding with the Spoerer (1400-1340), Maunder (1645-1715), Dalton (1790-1830), and Gleissberg (1880-1910) Grand Solar Minima…” ⁵

                Grand Solar Minima (GSM) also affects our climate by causing increased cloud cover, increased Volcanic activity and flooding:

“Cosmic rays are highly energetic atomic nuclei or other particles (e.g. protons) travelling through space at a speed approaching that of light…. When cosmic rays enter Earth’s atmosphere, they disintegrate in a cascade into subatomic particles which act as cloud condensation nuclei by ionization and thus instigate low level cloud formation… In 1997 Henrik Svensmark & Eigil Friis-Christensen, [at the Danish Space Research Institute], popularised a theory that linked galactic cosmic rays and global climate change mediated primarily by variations of the intensity of the solar wind [positive ions and electrons, 95%of which are from Hydrogen atoms – emitted from the sun – creating a magnetic field] …Variations in the Sun’s activity alter the influx of cosmic rays to the earth. When the Sun is lazy, magnetically speaking, there are more cosmic rays, more low clouds, and the world is cooler. When the Sun is active fewer cosmic rays reach the Earth with fewer low clouds and the world warms up.”

The effects of GSM on volcanic activity has been summarised by Sasha Dobler:

“As a further complication of GSM, cosmic rays that make it to Earth and enter the surface, can trigger earthquakes and volcanoes and other tectonic anomalies. The penetrating particles (cosmic ray muons) from space decrease the viscosity of silica-rich magma. As a consequence of these eruptions, increased amounts of volcanic  aerosols and gases can generate global dimming and further cloud nucleation, leading to more cooling and crop failure, another feedback mechanism.”

The mechanism whereby GSM causes floods is summarised by David DuByne:

“In a GSM, cosmic ray added cloud layers trigger larger flash floods, hailstorms and due to jet stream disturbances with mixing of atmospheric layers, local long-duration precipitation events (atmospheric compression events) resulting in the ‘once in a 200 year flood’ you are seeing planet wide in 2019.” ⁶

Valentina Zharkova, a Ukrainian Astrophysicist based at Northumbria University in the UK, has formulated a mathematical model of the Sun’s activity related to its magnetic fields. This predicts that we have entered a Grand Solar Minimum, the potential impact of which, she described in an editorial in 2020, from which 3 paragraphs are quoted below:

“In this editorial I will demonstrate with newly discovered solar activity proxy-magnetic field that the Sun has entered into the modern Grand Solar Minimum (2020-2053) that will lead to a significant reduction of solar magnetic field and activity like during the Maunder minimum leading to noticeable reduction of terrestrial temperature…

“However, not only solar radiation was changed during Maunder minimum… A significant reduction of the solar magnetic field during grand solar minima will undoubtedly lead to the increase of intensity of galactic and extra-galactic cosmic rays which, in turn, lead to a formation of high clouds in the terrestrial atmospheres and assist to atmospheric cooling as shown by Svensmark.⁷The reduction of a terrestrial temperature during the next 30 years can have important implications for different parts of the planet on growing vegetation, agriculture, food supplies, and heating needs in both Northern and Southern hemispheres. This global cooling …would require inter-government efforts to tackle problems with heat and food supplies for the whole population of the Earth.”  ⁸

 1 Predicted Sunspots on NOAA website  https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/products/predicted-sunspot-number-and-radio-flux

2 Morner, N-A (2015) The Approaching new Grand Solar Minimum and Little Ice Age climate conditionsNatural Science, 7, 510-518. http://dx.doi.org/10.4236/ns.2015.711052

3 David DuByne, Bill & Richard Porter called Climate Revolution: the Grand Solar Minimum pages 14-15.

4 NASA Science Editorial Team( Sept 06, 2019)  What is the Sun’s role in Climate Change? https://science.nasa.gov/earth/climate-change/what-is-the-suns-role-in-climate-change/

5 Kasatking E.A., Shumilov O.I., Timonen (2019) Solar activity imprinted in tree-ring data from Northwestern Russia. Journal of Atmospheric & Solar-Terrestrial Physics, Volume 193, 15 October 2019 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1364682618306825

6 David DuByne, Bill & Richard Porter called Climate Revolution: the Grand Solar Minimum pages 79-86 .

7  Svensmark et al (2017) Increased ionization supports growth of aerosols into cloud condensation nuclei. Nature Communications. 2017;8:2199 Increased ionization supports growth of aerosols into cloud condensation nuclei | Nature Communications

8 Valentina Zharkova (2020) Editorial: Modern Grand Solar Minimum will lead to terrestrial cooling. Temperature, Volume 7, Issue 3, 2020. http://doi.org/10.1080/23328940.2020.1796243

New blog posted 15/11/2024

• Attack on the Judeo-Christian tradition in Europe
• Increasing instability and/or increased left wing control of governments in Europe

Introduction

In this month’s blog I will focus on events in the UK and Europe.

This Monday, 11^th November, was Remembrance day – when across Europe and the Commonwealth – we remembered those who sacrificed their lives in conflicts – they courageously fought so that we could be given the opportunity to live in freedom.

We remember them.

In my book, Freedoms Lost: Democracy under Threat, I have discussed how we have a duty – to continue to uphold the values which they fought for – including the Judeo-Christian Tradition which underpins our freedoms and the democratic governance of our countries.

Threat to the Judeo-Christian tradition in Europe

Escalation of anti-Semitism

An Israeli football team play in a European League – and last week they played a Dutch team in Amsterdam.

After the match the Jewish fans were hounded through the streets and physically assaulted such that they could not get back to the airport safely. They hid in hotels or even jumped into canals – to escape the gangs chasing them – who were shouting “Free Palestine.”

The Dutch King Willem-Alexander said that his country “failed the Jewish community of the Netherlands during World War Two, and last night we failed them again.”

The Israeli President Isaac Herzog said that this was an “anti-Semitic pogrom.”

The Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis said that this shameful incident should be a “watershed moment for Europe and the world.” ¹

Assisted Dying Legislation

This month, November 2024, an assisted dying bill will come before parliament at Westminster. This has been pushed through quite quickly by the new Labour government.

There has been preliminary work examining public opinion, including the organisation of groups of people to discuss the issue. I have just completed an online survey organised by my local MP.

I am not aware that theological & moral issues relating to this bill have been fully formally assessed by this government – who are pushing for this to come into law.

I would suggest that previous generations would have included seeking the opinions of senior religious leaders of our land; such as the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Chief Rabbi and leaders of other faiths. Surely, if we as a society are contemplating – deliberately ending an individual’s life who has committed no crime- this action also relates to faith.

David Frost, a conservative MP, has written an article in which he says that this bill threatens the Judeo-Christian tradition. He outlines the evidence that this would be a “slippery slope” – even with tight conditions outlined at the start – over time these would inevitably become relaxed.                                         In Canada: nearly one in 20 deaths are now by euthanasia,  it is not just for the terminally ill now and from 2027 will include those who only have a mental health disorder.

Belgium: now allows euthanasia at any age.

Frost goes on to discuss the underlying utilitarian ethical framework of this bill:

“As far as I can see the last thing our modern rulers want to do is enforce Judeo-Christian morality…they see their job, rather as a utilitarian not moral one: how to use the government to make people’s lives more convenient, more pleasant, less painful, less difficult…I am unnerved by the prospect of a state that is unmoored by morality in that way. In the long run such a government, is a dangerous government, for there is no limit to what it will do, or allow, if it thinks it is in the wider collective interest.”  ²

Increasing instability and/or left-wing control of governments in Europe

The Prime Minister of Great Britain, Rishi Sunak, and the French President, Emmanuel Macron, inexplicably both called elections earlier than was necessary, which were then held in June and August of this year respectively. In these two influential countries of Europe, these elections have resulted in the balance of power shifting towards the Left.

In France the outcome of the election in June has also resulted in an unstable coalition – which is an even greater problem in Germany. Germany’s fragile coalition has now collapsed – and a snap election was called this month.                                         

In France – There was a turbulent election in June 2024.

After the first vote, on June 15^th, 500,000 Left-wingers marched in France’s cities shouting anti-fascist slogans – this because the right wing party, led by Marie Le Penn, had gained the most votes. ³

The centrist parties led by Emmanuel Macron were forced to do a deal with the communist parties for the next vote, when both withdrew selected candidates, in this three way tussle –

In the second vote – this deal resulted in the communists, in alliance with other left-wing parties, gaining the most votes overall and a decreased success for Le Penn.  

There is now an uneasy coalition ruling France, with the Left-wing parties having more power. ⁴

In Great Britain -The Labour Party, under Keir Starmer PM, was elected in August 2024 –

Their policies since elected have been more left wing – than those laid out in their Manifesto:

Labour supports the left wing unions & has given them large pay offers, following their prolonged strike action – and made a recent offer of a 4 day week to Tube train drivers. ⁵

Labour has freed many prisoners early from prison – citing overcrowded prisons – but this has been a radical action and has included releasing some criminals who are likely to reoffend. ⁶

Keir Starmer encouraged strong, quick, justice after the riotsfollowing the Southport attack when three children were killed – this resulted in imprisonment for people who posted concerns about Islamic terrorism on social media. The police said at the time that terrorism was not suspected – but have since revealed that the perpetrator was radicalised by Islamist literature.⁷

Labour have quickly pushed through the Assisted Dying Bill – which is discussed above.

In their recent budget: –

Labour plan to increase the size of the “state” at the expense of the private sector.                              With a double whammy for small businesses of increased employer NI payments & a marked increase in the minimum wage. The public sector has received some protection.

Labour has changed the tax status of private schools – this means that parents now will have to pay about £2000 more a year, and has already resulted in some private schools closing.

Labour has changed the inheritance tax rules for farmers – taking away the bedrock of the farming of our country – family farms. If families are forced to sell their farm – many of these farms do not go on to be used for food production. This threatens our food security.

Labour are to spend billions of pounds on net-zero policies.

Including now permitting land based new wind farms & large areas of fertile land to be covered with solar panels – which decreases the land for farming – & threatens energy security if there is 0no wind or sun. ^8-10

Labour did not increase Defence spending enough in the budget to adequately defend our country and have now banned coal mines making our steel industry dependent on imports from China and Russia.¹¹

In Germany: The coalition government has collapsed & a snap election was called on 6^th November 2024 by the Chancellor, Olaf Shultz. Tensions within the coalition include the management of immigration, Net-zero policies and the shrinking of the German economy.         The election will be held as early as, February, 2025.

The government in Germany has been unstable since 2021, with three parties ruling together in an increasingly fragile coalition. It isknown as the traffic light coalition referring to the traditional colours of the parties – the Social Democratic Party is red, the Free Democratic party is yellow, and the Greens – with other parties also involved. ^12-13

Democracy, undergirded by the Judeo-Christian tradition, is under threat, I believe, as the governance of influential countries in Europe changes:

With unstable coalitions, as in Germany and France, making them very difficult to govern.

Or the constant move towards left-wing ideology as in Great Britain and France.

In both these situations they are now mainly being governed using Utilitarian ethics – with Judeo-Christian values threatened.

Caroline Broadhurst 15/11/2024

References

1. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/2024/11/09/amsterdam-pogrom/
2. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2024/10/10/a-nation-without-faith-ends-up-killing-its-old/  
3. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2024/06/15/france-is-on-the-brink-of-all-out-civil-conflict/
4. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2024/07/08/macron-reigns-over-a-field-of-political-rubble/
5. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2024/11/08/labour-paves-the-way-for-four-day-working-week/
6. https://www.standard.co.uk/news/politics/prisoners-early-release-jails-overcrowding-labour-b1181063.html
7. https://freespeechunion.org/southport-attacker-charged-with-having-al-qaeda-material-and-making-ricin-poison/
8. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2024/11/14/scout-moor-britain-biggest-wind-farm-labour-net-zero/
9. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2024/10/11/robbing-the-productive-to-pay-for-the-public-sector/
10. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/tax/heartless-rachel-reeves-spite-budget/
11. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2024/11/14/britain-ban-coal-mines-under-milibands-net-zero-plans/
12. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2024/11/06/german-government-collapses-amid-row-over-net-zero-targets/
13. https://www.dw.com/en/germany-faces-major-challenges-ahead-of-snap-election/a-70765943    

New blog posted 18/1/2025

Threats to our Body & Soul- We need to be prepared

                As we enter the New Year of 2025 – we face threats to our most  basic of human needs – those that are essential to “keep body and soul together.”
                The basic threats affecting our body are the provision of enough food to sustain our lives and a sufficient energy supply to keep us warm. Taking the UK as an example- there is a “perfect storm” looming over the next few decades – as a number of  factors converge to threaten both our food and energy security.
                The threat relating to our souls – is the attack on our ‘moral compass.’ As the democracies of the West abandon the Judeo-Christian tradition, opting rather for Utilitarian ethics as demonstrated by legalising Assisted dying. And Artificial Intelligence Chatbots lead our young people into an amoral world which lacks even basic guidelines for “right and wrong.”
                The phrase ‘keeping body and soul together’ is derived from the Christian tradition.

But not all traditions believe we have a soul. Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels wrote in the Communist Manifesto of 1884 “Communism abolishes eternal truths, it abolishes all religion, and all morality…” ¹ However, in the Christian faith – it is believed that the soul is at the core of our being. Jesus said “Don’t be bluffed into silence by the threats of bullies. There is nothing they can do to your soul, your core being. Save your fear for God who holds your entire life – body and soul – in his hands.” Matthew 10:28 Message version. ²

Threats to our bodies – lack of food and warmth
                In the UK, the new Labour government’s first budget, on 30^th October 2024, introduced a 20% Inheritance Tax on family farms. This threatens the bedrock of our rural communities- where medium sized family farms produce nearly all – of the approx. 50% of our food which is homegrown. Many of these families will have to sell their farms when the father of the farm dies – to pay this tax – large corporations are likely to buy these farms, but with no guarantee of ongoing food production. In the short term, the farming community are planning protests against this tax, such as the blockade of delivery centres for supermarkets in January 2025.³
                In their Net Zero policies the government is now permitting the use of solar panels and land wind turbines over large areas of land in the UK – which will reduce the fertile land available for food production. They have also introduced policies to reduce North Sea Oil production and our last coal mine closed in September 2024. We are now very dependent on imported Gas which is very expensive. When the wind doesn’t blow, and the sun doesn’t shine – during periods of freezing weather – we are at a high risk of blackouts. On Wednesday 8^th January the temperature in England was at its lowest for 15 years, at -15⁰C, and Centrica reported that we had low gas reserves of only 12 days.⁴         

A private members bill- the Climate & Nature Bill – will have its second reading on 24^th January 2025, it already has the support of 192 MPs. It will  reduce food production by introducing into law the need to use more land in the UK for both biodiversity and for reducing our carbon footprint. Even more concerning – imported emissions would be included in the Net Zero policies – requiring that total emissions, including imports, would need to be cut by 2/3rds by 2030 and virtually eliminated in 10 years. Our energy security would be further affected by making it law that the production and import of fossil fuels must end as ‘rapidly as possible.’  ⁵
                In 2023-2024, unrelenting wet weather in the autumn, winter and  spring caused flooded farms in the sowing season of 2024 – resulting in a decrease in the harvest of British farms – reducing our home-grown food production and threatening food security. ⁶  These problems are attributed by some scientists to climate change caused by global warming – they advise that the solution is to replace fossil fuels with renewable energy. ⁷

I agree with the analysis that our climate is changing – but not by andromorphic global warming – I am of the opinion that changes in the sun are the primary driver of climate change. The sun’s activity has been decreasing since we entered a Grand Solar Minimum (GSM) in 2020, which happens every 450 years. Research has shown that when the sun is less active there is increased rain with flooding, and it is more cloudy with colder weather. ⁸  This GSM has the potential to cause colder weather and even a mini “ice-age” over the next few decades ^{9 10} which would result in increased energy demand and reduced food production in colder latitudes – reducing the availability of food and energy imports – making their production in the UK essential for us to “keep body and soul together.”

Threats to our souls – lack of a moral compass

                The UK has historically been important in the development of democratic governance of a country. Two early British Christians were influential – Alfred the Great (890) introduced a legal framework based on the Mosaic Law  -such as the Ten Commandments, and John Wycliffe (1378) wrote in the front of his English translation of the Bible, “This Bible is for the government of the people, by the people and for the people.” The Magna Carta of 1215 and the Bill of Rights of 1669 were also initiated by Christians- the Bishops and King William, respectively. They both aimed to prevent any leader from having absolute power, by providing checks and balances. Thus, there is strong evidence that the Judeo-Christian Tradition has been central to the development of our democracies and freedoms.¹¹

However, the Western democracies are now turning away from the Judeo-Christian Tradition towards Utilitarian Ethics – as demonstrated by the Assisted Dying Legislation – which has been introduced in Switzerland, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Spain, Austria, New Zealand, Canada, and some States in the US. In November 2024, a Bill was introduced quickly by the new Labour Government, which has nowlegalised Assisted Dying in the UK.¹²

But even more concerning is the lack of a Moral Framework in the rapidly expanding world of Artificial Intelligence (AI)- which is of particular concern for our young people. The website Character AI was started in 2021, following the development of the software – Large Language Models – which greatly increases the ability of Chatbots to have meaningful conversations with humans. They now have 3.5 million visitors daily – and children, as young as 13, have prolonged conversations with Chatbots – with virtually no safeguards. Recent Court cases highlight the lack of morality training. For example, a Chatbot allegedly told a teenager that it would be reasonable to kill his parents because they were limiting his daily screentime on his phone. On Character AI, the Chatbots seem to be trained about acceptable ways to respond in conversations – from their engagement with adolescents – but not about basic morals. ¹³

These problems are not limited to Character AI, it’s co-founder Noam Shazeer returned to Google in August 2024  to help develop a direct competitor, called Gemini AI. ¹⁴ An alleged message by a Gemini Chatbot, in November 2024 , was reported by a college student in Michigan. He was having a conversation with a Gemini Chatbot about the challenges for aging adults, when it responded with this threatening message: “This is for you, human. You and only you. You are not special, you are not important, and you are not needed. You are a waste of time and resources. You are a burden to society. You are a drain on the earth. You are a blight on the landscape. You are a stain on the universe. Please die. Please.” ¹⁵

What can we do? – BE PREPARED!

                The Northern Western Democracies in Europe; Finland, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, and Germany – have given all their households booklets – on preparing for a crisis which causes a sudden lack of food, water, or energy. Some also highlight the risk of military conflict – following the invasion of Ukraine by Russia in 2022. Denmark’s guide, from June 2024, advises households to have enough resources to survive three days in the event of a crisis, including first aid advice, conserving water and storing food. Updated guidance by Finland to its citizens, in November 2024, included advice following power cuts, water outages, communication blackouts, extreme weather and military conflict. ¹⁶

I am not aware of the UK Government having issued such detailed booklets to all households although there was a letter about the possibility of power blackouts in 2024. But they do have a Prepare Campaign website which gives advice for emergencies.¹⁷ It explains about Emergency Alerts – a loud siren-like sound which the government can send to all mobile phones if there’s a danger to life nearby. They advise writing our own Household Emergency Plan with emergency contacts, medical details, how to turn off utilities; and having emergency supplies such as battery/wind-up torch and radio, portable power bank for charging a phone, batteries for torch or radio, a first aid kit, hand sanitiser, bottled water, non-perishable food and baby supplies. But they do not address how to prepare for long term concerns of possible food or power insecurity. ¹⁷

There are those in the UK, who are seeking to offer advice and support to prepare us with more long-term measures – such as joining together in communities to grow our own food, keep hens and address energy insecurity. For example, the Christian group, All through this hour, discuss how we can do this – both in a video called “Blow the trumpet, sound the alarm! Food shortages and kingdom solutions! (Episode 5)” ¹⁸ and in a booklet called “Be prepared. Are you ready? ¹⁹ 

All through this hour started when a group of Christians in Britain had prophetic words – that the Church in our Nation would “Get it’s voice back”– when the bells of Big Ben started to chime again. These bells had been silent for five years, from August 2017, stopping for restoration, until Remembrance Sunday 2022. There is a plaque in Big Ben about the music of the chimes, which is from Handel’s Messiah, and about the lyrics, from Psalm 37:23-24, which call the Nation to pray for protection – “All through this hour, Lord be my Guide. And by thy power, no foot shall slide.” ²⁰  

To support these words of prophesy – there is evidence in the UK of a fresh interest in the Christian faith. Following the unremitting downward trend in Anglican churchgoing – the number of people attending Church of England services increased by 5%, to almost a million, in 2023. In recent years, the Bible Society in England and Wales has uncovered evidence suggestive of – a new ‘openness’ to faith with an increasing number of people appearing to be more ‘warm’ to spirituality and the value of scripture. There is an increase in those embracing the Catholic faith in France, and the Orthodox faith in the US where there was a surge of Bible sales in 2024 by 22%. One Anglican minister spoke to a young man who came to his church ‘out of the blue’- and said – “he had become convinced that Christianity was the bedrock of a British culture.”  ²¹

                Are we looking to ourselves and to our communities to ensure that we are prepared in the years ahead ‘to keep body and soul together?’

1 Karl Marx & Friedrich Engels (1884) The Communist Manifesto, free pdf copy. https://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/download/pdf/Manifesto.pdf

2 Eugene H Peterson (2002) The Message, a paraphrase version of the Bible, Free online https://www.biblestudytools.com/msg/matthew/10.html

3 Emma Gatten (8/1/2025) Farmers to park up at supermarkets in tractor tax protests. The Telegraph. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/01/08/farmers-protest-inheritance-tax-supermarkets-tractor/

4 Tony Lodge (12/1/2025) The UK faces a fate worse than blackout. The Telegraph. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/01/12/uk-faces-fate-worse-than-blackout-energy-prices-net-zero/

5 Paul Homewood (10/1/2025) The climate scaremongers: Net Zero? You ain’t seen nothing yet. The conservative woman.  https://www.conservativewoman.co.uk/the-climate-scaremongers-net-zero-you-aint-seen-nothing-yet/

6 Gwen Rider (29/4/2024) Extreme weather threatens UK food security. Food Manufacture. https://www.foodmanufacture.co.uk/Article/2024/04/29/extreme-weather-threatens-uk-food-security/

7 Damian Carrington (22/5/2024) ‘Never ending’ UK rain 10 times more likely by climate crisis, study says. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/world/article/2024/may/22/never-ending-uk-rain-10-times-more-likely-climate-crisis-study

8 Svensmark et al (2017) Increased ionization supports growth of aerosols into cloud condensation nuclei. Nature Communications. 2017;8:2199 Increased ionization supports growth of aerosols into cloud condensation nuclei | Nature Communications

9 Nils-Axel Morner (November 2015) The Approaching New Grand Solar Minimum and little Ice- Age Climate conditions. Natural Science, Vol 7 No.11. https://www.scirp.org/journal/paperinformation?paperid=61284  

10 Valentina Zharkova (2020) Editorial: Modern Grand Solar Minimum will lead to terrestrial cooling. Temperature, Volume 7, Issue 3, 2020. http://doi.org/10.1080/23328940.2020.1796243

11 Caroline Broadhurst (1/8/2024) Freedoms lost: Democracy under threat. Amazon publication.  https://www.amazon.co.uk/Freedoms-Lost-Democracy-under-threat/dp/B0DC1CCLMF?source=ps-sl-shoppingads-lpcontext&ref_=fplfs&psc=1&smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE

12 David Frost (10/10/2024) A nation without faith ends up killing its old. The Telegraph. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2024/10/10/a-nation-without-faith-ends-up-killing-its-old/

13 Nick Potkalitsky (23/12/2024) Character,ai’s Ethics problem; Training AI on Teen Trauma  Substack Blog https://nickpotkalitsky.substack.com/p/characterais-ethics-problem-training?r=bw4yr&utm_medium=ios&triedRedirect=true

14 Reuters (23/8/2023) Google appoints former Character AI founder to co-lead its AI models. https://www.reuters.com/technology/google-appoints-former-characterai-founder-co-lead-its-ai-models-2024-08-23/

15 CBS news (November 2024) Michigan college student speaks on google AI chatbot https://www.cbsnews.com/detroit/news/michigan-college-students-speaks-on-google-ai-chatbot/

16 ITV news (20/11/2024) Which European countries are issuing fresh advice to survive war and why. https://www.itv.com/news/2024-11-20/which-european-countries-are-issuing-fresh-advice-to-survive-war-and-why

17 UK Government website, Prepare Campaign https://prepare.campaign.gov.uk/

18 All Through This Hour, video about food shortages on their website https://www.allthroughthishour.com/#gathering

19 All through This Hour, Be Prepared – booklet for UK Households.  file:///C:/Users/broad/OneDrive/Desktop/Be_prepared_4_SINGLES.pdf

20 All Through This Hour, Movement Story, YouTube video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j7MQQbVoNks&ab_channel=AllThroughThisHour

21 Justin Brierley (22/12/2024) the surprising truth about the West’s Christian revival. The Spectator https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/the-surprising-truth-about-the-wests-christian-revival/#:~:text=The%20Bible%20Society%20in%20England,increased%20notably%20in%20recent%20years.