Introduction
March 2007 marks the bicentenary of the Abolition of the Slave Trade Act of 1807. This was championed by William Wilberforce, MP for Hull, and supported by many including ex-slave Olaudah Equiano. With the legacies of the Slave Trade still evident after all these years, there are frequent calls for reparations, for justice. This article suggests that an act of 'atonement' may be the most appropriate response by today's British government and people for the Transatlantic Slave Trade in Africans as chattel.

This may sound like a strange question for a bishop to ask. It is nonetheless a very serious question, and one that many people ponder. They may not externalize this in words, but they act upon the answers they give themselves. So, whilst for some, church remains an uplifting and fulfilling place, Christians had better face up to the reality that many people have concluded that some churches are not healthy places and they avoid them like the plague, except for special occasions like christenings, weddings, funerals, Christmas and Easter.

This theological reflection is about one of the key aspects of the Christian life: prayer. What is prayer? What does it mean to pray?

In a biblical sense, 'Prayer' can be summed up in three words: 'entreat', 'intercede' and 'worship'. Let me break it down a little more. To entreat means to 'ask earnestly, beg, implore'. Sometimes the word 'supplicate' is used instead of 'entreat', and that means to 'beg humbly'. To intercede means to 'plead in favour of, to mediate'. To worship means to adore, love and admire.