There are times when the world feels too loud. The news is heavy, our homes are busy, and our minds can become crowded with responsibilities, griefs, decisions, worries, and questions we do not quite know how to answer. Even prayer can feel difficult when we are tired. We may want to be faithful, hopeful, and brave, but inwardly we feel scattered and small. Pentecost Sunday meets us in that place. Before Pentecost became a feast of fire, courage, and proclamation, it began with waiting. The...

Whether they are setting off on pilgrimage, leaving home for university, driving alone for the first time, taking a long-awaited holiday, or crossing the world for work or family, we want to send them with more than practical things. We want them to be safe. We want them to be protected. We want them to remember that they are loved. For generations, Christians have turned to St Christopher, the beloved patron saint of travellers, as a companion for the road. A St Christopher medal, rosary,...

Bees are far more varied than many of us realise. When we say “bee”, most people picture either the familiar honey bee or a soft, stripy bumblebee moving sleepily from flower to flower. But the bee world is much wider than that. There are mining bees, mason bees, leafcutter bees, furrow bees, carpenter bees, flower bees, nomad bees and many more. Some live in hives. Many do not. Some nest in the ground, some in hollow stems, some in old walls, and some cut perfect little circles from rose...