The
Church Times was founded on 7 February 1863 by
George Josiah Palmer, a printer. It fought for the
Anglo-Catholic and
high church cause in the
Church of England at a time when priests were being harried and imprisoned over such matters as lighting candles on altars and wearing vestments, which brought them into conflict with the
Public Worship Regulation Act 1874, intended to "put down"
ritualism in the Church of England. The paper defended the spiritual independence of the Church of England in spite of the Church's
Established status; many of the ceremonial and doctrinal matters that the paper championed are now accepted as part of mainstream Anglicanism. Its views were opposed by the
Church of England Newspaper, which supported
evangelical and
low church positions. It was previously (mainly among Anglo-Catholics in the 1970s and 1980s) nicknamed "Jezebel's Trumpet" (alluding to
Jezebel, the wife of King Ahab of Israel in
II Kings). The paper's sympathies have broadened since the mid-1950s, embracing the principle of diversity of practice in the worldwide Anglican Communion, and looking more favourably on other Christian denominations. The paper has always been independent of the church hierarchy. From its foundation until 1989 it was owned by the Palmer family, ending with Bernard Palmer, who combined the tasks of owner and editor for the final 20 years. He sold it to the charity
Hymns Ancient and Modern, then chaired by
Henry Chadwick. Throughout its life, it has scrutinised the actions of the church hierarchy, as well as covering the work of the parishes. It has provided coverage of meetings of the Church of England's central bodies, including the Archbishops’ Council and the
General Synod. Its published annual Indexes have always described it as an "ecclesiastical and general" newspaper, and it has always included world events in its coverage. This includes book reviews, coverage of the arts, and more recently, TV, radio, and podcasts. The paper's regular columnists include
Paul Vallely, the former associate editor of
The Independent, the poet and priest
Malcolm Guite, and the priest and broadcaster
Angela Tilby.
Giles Fraser, the priest and media commentator, was a regular columnist from 2004 to 2013. The author
Ronald Blythe wrote the "Word from Wormingford" column from 1993 to 2017.
Edward Heath was the paper's news editor from February 1948 to September 1949. From 1951 to 2019, the paper hosted an inter-diocesan cricket competition, the
Church Times Cricket Cup. The paper was named Niche Newspaper of the Year at the 2009 at the national Newspaper Awards, and won the award for Best Use of Colour in 2010. In February 2013, the
Church Times marked its 150th anniversary. In April 2014, the paper published an article by
David Cameron. He wrote: "I am a member of the Church of England, and, I suspect, a rather classic one: not that regular in attendance, and a bit vague on some of the more difficult parts of the faith. But that doesn't mean the Church of England doesn't matter to me or people like me: it really does." In the run-up to the
2017 general election, the leaders of the three main political parties wrote for the paper on the importance of international development. A weekly podcast was launched in March 2017. In November 2017, the paper's then deputy news and features editor, Madeleine Davies, received an award from the Awareness Foundation for "her extraordinary work in the Christian media; her great courage and integrity as a source of inspiration and encouragement to people of faith everywhere." The award was presented by
Sophie, Countess of Wessex. Previous winners have included the BBC's Middle East Editor,
Jeremy Bowen and
Baroness Berridge. In April 2018, the Archbishop of Canterbury awarded the paper's former Education Correspondent, Margaret Holness, the Canterbury Cross for Services to the Church of England, "for sustained excellence as Education Correspondent of the Church Times for over twenty years". In 2025, the paper’s staff writer Francis Martin was jointly awarded Young Journalist of the Year by the Religion Media Centre for his investigative report which challenged the conclusion of the Makin review about the responses of the diocese of Ely, and of Lambeth Palace, to the abuse perpetrated by John Smyth. The
Church Times also holds several festivals and events. This includes the now annual
Church Times Festival of Faith and Literature, the
Church Times Festival of Poetry, and the
Church Times Festival of Preaching. It also organises the
Church Times Green Health Awards[34] and hosts regular webinars on key topics of debate with the Church. More recently this has included: Independent Safeguarding; Can a ‘good death’ be assisted?; Church growth under the microscope; and Keeping Faith in Journalism: Why it matters. In 2024, Paul Handley retired after 29 years as Editor. Sarah Meyrick, a former features editor at the paper and latterly assistant editor in charge of events, was appointed his successor in September 2024. She is only the second woman to edit the paper, after Rosamund Essex (1950–60). == Editors ==