A Pilgrimage on Two Wheels

Revd Marcus Collie, vicar of Midhurst and Rector of All Hallows, Woolbeding, has completed an extraordinary five‑day motorbike pilgrimage, praying in 100 churches across Sussex and raising vital funds for Ride + Stride and the Sussex Historic Churches Trust.

Starting on Monday 24 August at the 12th‑century parish church of St Mary’s in Rye, Marcus rode his Suzuki V‑Strom east to west, finishing at Chichester Cathedral after visiting a century of historic churches in just five days. The journey took him through towns and villages across the Diocese of Chichester, pausing at churches that have long been at the heart of local community life and in many cases, beneficiaries of the Trust’s grants for repairs and restoration.

Marcus undertook the pilgrimage under the banner of Ride + Stride, our annual event that encourages people to travel by bike, foot, or other human power to visit churches and raise money for their upkeep. Nationally, Ride + Stride raises more than £1.5 million each year, with funds split 50:50 between participating churches and their county Historic Churches Trust. In Sussex, that money supports everything from urgent roof repairs and bell restoration to conservation work that keeps these buildings open and usable for worship, events, and community activities.

By choosing an ambitious, high‑profile challenge, Marcus has helped draw attention to the importance of these historic buildings and the ongoing need for support. His ride also ties directly into the Trust’s work: many of the 100 churches he visited have previously received grants for vital repairs, making his pilgrimage a rolling celebration of the very projects Ride + Stride helps to fund.

Marcus, who became vicar of Midhurst and Rector of All Hallows, Woolbeding in 2023, is no stranger to creative fundraising. After breaking his foot in 2024, he organised a “Ride and Hobble”, leading a group of parishioners who use mobility aids on a gentle route through Midhurst, finishing with refreshments in church. This year, he swapped walking aids for a motorbike, but kept the same spirit of community, prayer, and practical support for local churches.

Kim & I can totally get behind doing a motorcycle pilgrimage. Back in 2016 (10 years ago!) we did the Camino de Santiago on my last bike - Holly the Honda Crosstourer. A wonderful way to travel the pilgrims path - especially if you really cannot allocate the time. We would one day like to walk the Camino de Santiago - but you really need to allocate a minimum of 6 weeks. With Kim's work for Parkinsons' UK & me running Donline - that's just not possible. Perhaps when we retire? God willing...

www.chichester.anglican.org

Motorcycle exhaust modifications face ban

Riders who have fitted an aftermarket exhaust, remapped their bike’s ECU, or removed emissions hardware could be committing a criminal offence for the first time, if a Department for Transport (DfT) proposal makes it into law.

In simple terms, the plan says a bike’s emissions control system has to keep working exactly as well as it did when new, for its entire life. If it doesn’t – whatever the reason – riding it, letting someone else ride it, or making the change yourself could all become prosecutable offences, with fines from £1000 up to unlimited in a magistrates’ court.

Crucially, this isn’t just about new bikes. The rules would apply retrospectively to every motorcycle, moped and scooter registered since January 1, 2001.

Most of the changes being targeted are already technically illegal or restricted to track use, but this would be the first time they would become prosecutable on the road. Type approved end cans would not be affected.

www.motorcyclenews.com

Anthropic researcher quits with warning AI ‘could kill us all’

Safety boss endorses expert’s claims, saying there is a 10pc chance humanity could be wiped out.

A researcher at Anthropic has resigned, warning that AI labs are developing technology that could “kill us all” by the end of the decade.

Jacob Coxon, who specialised in training new AI systems for both Anthropic and its rival OpenAI, said he feared the two companies were locked in a dangerous race to develop bots they could not control.

He said: “They are racing straight to self-improving superintelligence and gambling with our lives.

“Do not underestimate the power of this technology. These will soon be superhuman systems that can hack anything, revolutionise any field overnight, and acquire real power and resources.”

www.telegraph.co.uk

Why you can’t save yourself: what the Bible says about Grace and Salvation

BibleGateway: For years I thought I could save myself. Nominal Christianity had trained me to trust in myself, to lean on my own goodness, my own discipline, my own hard work.

Sometimes it looked like trying to be a “good person.” But according to Scripture, none of us are good (Romans 3:12). Other times it looked like trying to control my life through planning, preparing, and protecting. That didn’t work either (of course). And in the end, both are the same lie: self-salvation.

The Gospel tells a better story. Grace is not God mopping up the messes I can’t handle. Grace is God saving me when I can’t handle anything (Romans 3:23). Salvation is not the reward of my effort; it’s the gift of Christ’s finished work (Ephesians 2:8). He saved me; apart from Him I could do nothing (John 15:5).

What about you? Maybe you’ve been living like I was, trusting in your goodness, your planning, your hustle, your ability to hold it all together. Maybe you’ve dressed it up in religious language, so it sounds like faith, but underneath it’s still just you trying to save yourself. Friend, that doesn’t work. READ MORE & REFLECT...

www.biblegateway.com

Jonathan Pageau asks the question: AI - who does it serve?...

 

Jonathan Pageau closed out Day 2 of ARC 2026 with a keynote that left the whole room speechless. Amidst the many voices surrounding the global AI debate, Pageau offered a simple question that stopped us in our tracks: "Who does it serve?"

Jonathan Pageau is an artist, writer and public speaker. He is a pioneer in the revival of Liturgical Art for the 21st century. Through his podcast, The Symbolic World, and publishing company, Symbolic World Press, he fosters the rediscovery of symbolic thinking and a vision for re-enchantment in the world.

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www.youtube.com

How's Theo doing - I hear you ask...

 

Our dear little Theo is loving life, thanks for asking! This is a picture of him just before everyone turned up for a family BBQ yesterday. He's been with us now for just under a year, and is believed to have been born mid April 2025 - so will be 1 1/2 years old next month. His health is good, weighs about 10.5Kg. He's got a good spread from the gene pool, but we believe there is a sizable dollop of Kokoni in there. Theo loves his grub & is happy to eat just about anything - Greek rescues are famously non-fussy eaters. Loves his home & walks in Denmead. Really loves going to the (any) pub! Loves other dogs & cats (though the felines generally aren't too sure about it LOL). Also really good with kids including the grandsons.

 If you are considering bringing a furry friend into your home & family, PLEASE consider rehoming / adopting.

www.healingpawsanimalrescue.com

What if the AI Bubble Bursts (Day by Day)

The AI boom has created trillions of dollars in market value, but underneath it sits a web of debt, expensive GPUs, concentrated stock indexes, and companies betting that future AI revenue will eventually justify everything being spent today.

This video follows what could happen day by day if that bet suddenly fails. It starts with a missed payment at a heavily leveraged AI infrastructure company like CoreWeave. Lenders seize NVIDIA GPUs used as collateral, secondhand chip prices collapse, and investors begin questioning whether billions of dollars in AI debt can ever be repaid. Within days, NVIDIA and other major tech stocks begin falling, dragging the heavily concentrated S&P 500 down with them. Retirement accounts shrink, AI startups lose funding, layoffs spread through the tech industry, and the shock eventually reaches ordinary businesses that never invested in AI at all.

Artificial intelligence itself wouldn’t disappear. The internet survived the dot-com crash, and AI could survive its own bubble bursting too. But before the next generation gets built, millions of ordinary investors and workers could end up paying for the excesses of this one.

www.youtube.com (The Infographics Show)