2024 has been a year of politics, Olympics and truth coming to light. Here are the Christian stories which got us talking the most.
1. Pastor’s eerie Trump prophecy
In a video from US Pastor Steve Cioccolanti, Brandon Biggs foretold an attack on Donald Trump. The original video is dated 14th March.
On Sunday 14th July, Trump was struck by a bullet fired by a would-be assassin. His ear was grazed, and he was escorted away by secret service personnel.
The assailant, 20-year-old Thomas Crooks, was shot dead by Secret Service snipers at the scene.
In the interview, Biggs also claimed Trump would win the presidency "through the patriots coming out and voting", and a subsequent crash in the economy would be "worse than the Great Depression".
On the 5th November, it was announced that Trump had secured a second term as president.
2. ‘Faith is a verb’: What does Kamala Harris think about faith?
In August, it was out with the old, and in with the new(ish), as Kamala Harris took over from Joe Biden as the Democrat’s front runner.
Hailing from both Black Baptist and Hindu roots, she had frequently expressed understanding of the Christian faith.
Young Kamala and her sister Maya were frequently taken to Oakland’s 23rd Avenue Church of God by a neighbour, Regina Shelton. Harris said: “I sang in the children’s choir. That’s where I formed some of my earliest memories of the Bible’s teachings. It’s where I learned that ‘faith’ is a verb and that we must live it, and show it, in action.”
Harris has much interfaith overlap in her life. As a child she visited a temple, as well as church. Married to Jewish lawyer, Douglas Emhoff, she has embraced Jewish festivals and traditions. The couple smashed a glass in celebration at their wedding reception.
3. ‘I’ve forgiven Mike’: Matt and Beth Redman speak out on abuse they experienced at Soul Survivor
In April, Grammy-award winning worship leader Matt Redman and his wife Beth spoke out about the abuse they suffered under Soul Survivor founder Mike Pilavachi.
The couple released a 30-minute documentary, ‘Let There Be Light,’ in which they exposed the spiritual abuse they experienced at Soul Survivor Watford.
Redman revealed that he met Pilavachi at 13 years old, having experienced sexual abuse in childhood. Pilavachi was his youth leader and helped him report the abuse to police.
However, he disclosed an uncomfortable nature to their relationship, in which Mike would wrestle him a side room of the church.
Matt said: “Looking back I don’t feel great about that. It didn't feel good at the time – I didn't really like physical touch that much because of what had happened to me.”
Reflecting on spiritual abuse, he said: “It feels like he would bring you in, but then it would go to the complete opposite, where you would be completely shut out…
“I think this is Jesus cleaning up his Church and bringing something into the light that needed to be in the light,” said Redman.
4. A mockery of the Christian faith’: Believers outraged by Olympics Opening Ceremony act
As the opening ceremony of Paris 2024 floated down the Seine, the eyes of the world were fixated on the City of Love.
But one performance struck a chord of disharmony among many: a drag queen banquet scene, which resembled Leonardo Da Vinci’s painting of Christ and the Disciples, The Last Supper.
Gavin Calver, leader of the Evangelical Alliance, described it as “appalling to see Christianity so openly mocked,” calling it “utterly insensitive, unnecessary, and offensive.”
Bishop Robert Barron, a Catholic leader in the US, also condemned the act on social media, labelling it a “gross mockery of the Last Supper.”
Olympic organisers claimed the scene was not intended to offend, and was instead in reference to The Feast of Dionysus from Greek mythology.
5. ‘Chaos’ at one of the biggest UK Christian charities as founders suspended
Patrick Sookhdeo, the founder of anti-persecution charity Barnabas Aid, along with 3 other key figures from the charity, were suspended in August following allegations of financial mismanagement and toxic work culture.
Sookhdeo stepped down as leader of the charity in 2015 after he was found guilty of sexual assault and intimidating witnesses in which he was given a three-month community sentence.
However he later returned to the charity in different roles including adviser and most recently international director.
Barnabas Aid was set up to provide aid for the persecuted Church across the world. With a turnover of over £20m a year, it’s one of the largest Christian charities in the UK.
Colin Bloom was appointed CEO by the global board which is said to be run by an organisation called Nexcus International. This group is responsible for the working of the regional offices across the world which include the UK, US, Australia and New Zealand.
Yet in a confusing twist of events, the Chair of Barnabas Aid UK, in a letter to supporters has claimed that Bloom’s appointment has not been approved by the Barnabas Aid UK board of trustees.
In a statement to Premier, Barnabas Aid said: “Sadly, we have identified examples of serious and repeated contraventions of internal policies; policies that were established to ensure the proper distribution of charitable donations.
“It further appears that the founders, and others, are identified in the interim report as having failed to comply with those policies. Moreover, objectively the founders created a toxic work environment which resulted in staff feeling entirely unable to routinely voice concerns.”
6. The Church must not be ‘politely silent’ over CofE breakaway
In August, there was yet more tension over the Church of England’s Living in Love and Faith guidance.
A rift opened up over the commissioning of ‘overseers’ for churches who no longer felt able to be led by their bishops, should they disagree with their bishop’s stance on same-sex blessings.
This prompted Rev Lucy Winkett, rector of St James’s Piccadilly, to voice her opposition to evangelicals in the Diocese of London who considered breaking away from the Church of England due to their objections to same-sex relationships.
St Helens Bishopsgate and All Souls Langham Place held services to commission men as leaders in a separate church structure, which they claimed was necessary because bishops have abandoned biblical teachings.
Holy Trinity Brompton has also expressed support for the creation of an alternative structure with different bishops.
In a recent sermon, Lucy Winkett declared: "We cannot, we must not remain politely silent in the face of this." She argued that such actions would institutionalize inequality.
7. Adam Peaty credits Christian mentor for changing his perspective on life
Olympic swimming champion Adam Peaty revealed more about journey of his Christian faith.
Peaty described how months before the Paris Olympics, he was battling depression and searching for balance in life. Speaking of the moment that “broke” him, he said: "It started in the water... I was crying as I was swimming.”
Yet through this ordeal, he found Jesus. He turned to Ashley Null, chaplain to the GB Olympic team, for help. Null encouraged Peaty to go to church.
"A big moment came when I went to church with Ashley and we sat at the back,” Peaty told The Guardian.
“People are more lost than ever as it takes huge wisdom to feel grateful for what we have. We’re programmed to always want more.
“The hardest thing is to put your pride aside and say: ‘It doesn’t matter what you earn or what you’ve accomplished.’ We should all be equal. But I never push [my faith] on people.”
8. Christians demand Debenhams apology
Many Christians were outraged when Debenhams listed a jumper emblazoned with the words: ‘A gay in a manger’.
Pastor Rikki Doolan from Spirit Embassy church publicly condemned Debenhams on social media, while former MP Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg remarked that Islam would not be treated similarly. Andrea Williams of Christian Concern advocated for a boycott of the product’s manufacturer.
In response, Debenhams stated it was reviewing its marketplace products and had temporarily removed the items pending an investigation.
9. MP invites colleagues to knock on his door to ask about Jesus
At Easter, Nick Fletcher, the Conservative MP for Don Valley, took a stand in Parliament to underscore the importance of the Christian faith to the UK's spiritual life.
Speaking at an Easter Parliamentary debate, he said: “We celebrate on Easter Sunday the resurrection of Christ, giving us not just a God but a living God to believe in, to worship, to help us and to make us right with him, with the promise of eternal life. What a wonderful gift.
"I want the people of this nation to fix their eyes on heaven, not on themselves or their earthly desires. I want them to believe in a living God, not fashionable ideologies.”
Fletcher concluded his speech with a call to action for both the government and citizens: "This Easter will our Government promote celebrating what Christ did for us on the cross?
"Please, if anyone wants to know more about Christ, come and knock on my door. I would love to tell as many people as possible about him".
10. ‘Church should be fun’: Pastor kicks Bible off stage
An Ohio church divided opinion in February, when a pastor kicked a Bible off the stage as part of its ‘Superbowl Sunday’ service.
In a spectacle reminiscent of a football game, Senior Pastor Brian Tome and Pastor Alli Patterson, dressed in football tops, engaged in a "pregame" coin toss.
After Tome won the flip, the 'referee' asked, "Would you like to kick or receive the Bible?"
"I will receive," Tome replied.
Patterson then took a few steps back as another pastor squared up the Bible, which had a football-style book cover, before kicking it off the stage and into the crowd.
While some found it entertaining, others expressed concern over using such symbolism in a sacred context.
Andy Reider, the church’s community pastor, acknowledged concerns but said: "we believe that church can and should be fun".