My challenge to Christians this year is this: have a holy and thoroughly worldly Christmas

A post in one of the Christian Facebook groups I belong to really got my back up this week. It read thus: “Jesus gave us Good Friday. The world gives us Black Friday. Take your pick!” That quote could easily be substituted with these words: “The Bible gives us the Christ child. The world gives us Santa. Take your pick!”

Poem: A trip on the tube

When you hop on to the tube, what plays upon your mind?

Is there something to be glad about, or only ills to find?

Can we take the gloomy view and leave it all behind,

And train our thoughts on things unseen, and a world that seems more kind?

More students are studying Spanish than French, but which should you learn?

This is the first year that Spanish has overtaken French as the most popular A-level language. As uptake of French fell by 4.1% (8,355 entries), Spanish rose by 4.5% (8,625 entries).

I have studied both languages, French through the formal route in school, and Spanish in my own time. Learning a language is no small commitment. We learned our own mother tongues through a process of memorisation, refinement and correction that we weren’t even conscious of, and we essentially have to force ourselves to do the same thing again. Yet it can be thoroughly rewarding too. If you are thinking that French or Spanish might be for you, here’s my personal take on the advantages and disadvantages of each.

Noah and the great flood: the story of an evil god?

A friend of mine, firm and devout in her Christian faith, asked my view on a tricky moral dilemma, relating to the biblical story of Noah and the great flood.

I found the question so fascinating, and indeed hard to answer myself, that I’ve decided I would rather share it, and the answers I’ve come up with, for anyone interested in Christianity, or simply debates and arguments about religion.

Poem: The cannon was fired! The dogs barked!

Boom! The cannon was fired! The dogs barked!
The men and women stood around,
Stilled and pledged to make no sound,
A sombre silence there to tell,
Today they remembered the men who fell.

A church that safeguards children can never justify an unconditional seal of confession

Sometimes it’s worth reminding ourselves that God is infinitely better than his supposed representatives on earth. The Catholic church, my own denomination, is one of the most striking cases in point.

The frightening potential of genetic editing goes well beyond rogue science

The BBC has featured an interesting story about the work of Chinese professor He Jiankui, who has produced the world’s first genetically edited people.

Remainers now have a chance to go for gold, so why should they settle for Theresa May's booby prize?

Even by her pitifully low standards, Theresa May’s last attempt to drag her Brexit withdrawal agreement through the Commons smacks of desperation. She has tried everything, throwing every tactical manoeuvre she can no matter how much it deduces and poisons British politics.

Opponents of abortion need to show people that you don't need God to see why it is wrong

The US state of Alabama has become the latest to pass a bill banning abortions in all cases except where the mother’s life is at serious risk. This is, of course, to be welcomed. Abortion is one of the most grave evils of our day, but it is hard to be an opponent of abortion. I think that is because the topic is so bound up with religion, and opposition to abortion is always assumed to be motivated by religious beliefs, and grounded in religious arguments.

Poem: A bird in a graveyard

High up above I watch them,
Knelt on the ground below,
Some in calm and peacefulness,
Some with faces filled with woe.

A letter to my dog

Phoebe,
10 days since we said goodbye and I miss you more and more with every passing day. Whenever I would tell people about you, I would refer to you as my dog. You weren’t so lucky, and did well not to have an identity crisis with all the affectionate and ridiculous names I had for you, each one lovingly treasured in my heart. In that heart, which hurts so much for you now, you will always be alive and present.

There could yet be a Lazarus moment for a second referendum

A few short weeks ago, it looked like the prospect of a second referendum was well and truly dead in the water.

Matt Hancock's prostate cancer pickle shows why genetic testing for the healthy must be approached with caution

When he announced in January that the NHS will offer a paid genetic sequencing service for healthy people in England, Health Secretary Matt Hancock must have known he was venturing into controversial territory. Only a couple of months later, Mr Hancock himself has unwittingly exposed the very real drawbacks and challenges that this presents.

The Tory quitters walked away and made a no-deal Brexit that little bit more likely

Who would have guessed that Heidi Allen, Anna Soubry and Dr Sarah Wollaston would quit the Tory party? They have sounded off, voted against the government and openly criticised virtually everything the party has done for ages.

The TUC's stance on zero-hours contracts is stuck in the past – a ban is bad for everyone

Frances O’Grady, General Secretary of the Trades Union Congress (TUC), has written an impassioned piece in today’s Times, outlining why so-called ‘zero-hours contracts’ should be banned. The arguments are not new, with Labour regularly politicising this issue in recent election campaigns.

There's a special place in hell for the intolerant, arrogant politics that Donald Tusk represents

I wonder if it has ever occurred to European Council president Donald Tusk, that the brexiteers, who he has today claimed should have a special place in hell, didn’t have to have a plan. A referendum is just a campaign. The EU membership referendum of 2016 was an advisory referendum that asked the public one simple question: did we want to leave or remain in the European Union. That’s it, plain and simple.

Social networking sites can't shoulder the responsibility for our kids' mental health

Social media companies have become the latest target of public hand-wringing, even prompting Instagram’s head to agree to meet the health secretary, signalling a greater willingness to engage than the platform’s owner Facebook has ever shown before to talk with politicians. Probably a smart move if your company’s products are to be scapegoated for all the ills of our young people.

Domestic Violence legislation makes a big stride in the right direction

It’s not often you hear a charity welcoming a bit of draft government legislation as a “once in a generation opportunity.” But that’s exactly what Sandra Horley, Chief Executive of the charity Refuge, said on the BBC’s Woman’s Hour this morning, in response to draft legislation that would signify a major overhaul in the treatment of domestic abuse.

There's no alternative to Theresa May's deal – we're going to find that out the hard way

Last night, the government experienced the worst defeat since the 1920s, as 432 MPs voted against the EU’s withdrawal agreement. Be in no doubt, this throws the Brexit process in to absolute chaos and makes the bleak prospect of leaving the European Union without a deal a stark and very real one.