‘A Fight for the Soul of the Nation’ as communities rebuild relations
Conversations between Jews and Muslims in Britain have been “very difficult” over the past two years since the Hamas attack on Israel on 7 October 2023. But community leaders taking part in a Religion Media Centre briefing said that two years on, there is a desire to rebuild good relations, despite continuing anxiety and mistrust. The renewed dialogue comes after the ceasefire in Gaza and amid rising Islamophobia, antisemitism, and attacks on synagogues and mosques. New structures have been created to support local discussions, while at grassroots level, Imam Qari Asim said “brave souls and heroes” continue to meet and encourage small, informal groups that help people to “disagree well.” The task was described as urgent, by the president of the Board of Deputies, Phil Rosenberg. He said it was “a fight for the soul of the nation”, and he appealed to the government to “lean into this” by offering consistent support for interfaith initiatives. View the briefing here
Moderator of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland steps aside over safeguarding report
The Moderator of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland has stepped down after “serious and significant failings” in safeguarding. In a statement, the Rev Trevor Gribben said there were failings between 2009 and 2022, when he was general secretary. People had been placed at risk and harmed and the church apologised unreservedly. The incidents included failure to make referrals to statutory authorities when required, failure to respond adequately to concerns expressed about individuals in congregations, failure to respond to people harmed who sought help, failure to monitor offenders returning to church. He said: “Although not directly responsible for the professional delivery of safeguarding within the church”, the cases happened while he held a senior role. and he sought and had been given permission to retire. He said: “I have made these decisions and taken these steps with the deepest personal regret that our central failings have caused such harm to those who deserve our protection the most.”
Bishop Sarah Mullally opposes move to block conversion-based asylum claims
The next Archbishop of Canterbury, Dame Sarah Mullally, has criticised a “deeply problematic” amendment to the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill, which would prevent asylum seekers from raising the risk of religious persecution in their homeland if they are found to have converted to Christianity only after their arrival in Britain. Dame Sarah, currently the Bishop of London until she takes on her new role in January, told the Lords that many migrants are unlikely to publicly declare their desire to become Christians in their homeland for fear of reprisals and might wait until they arrive in the UK. Although she imagined that there were some asylum seekers who might well believe that converting to Christianity would help their asylum claim, she said there was no evidence that the system is being abused by fake conversions. She said clergy should not feel anxious about baptising migrants, as they are not naive and are trained to “discern” genuine faith commitments. Premier Christian News report here
Pew Research publishes five facts about religion in Nigeria
Pew Research Centre has published an article listing five facts about religion in Nigeria, following President Trump’s announcement that he was preparing military action against Islamist militant groups in the country. He accused the government of failing to protect Christians, a charge it disputes. The Pew article outlines the difficulty in assessing numbers, with incomplete data. But it estimates that as of 2020, Muslims made up a majority of Nigeria’s total population at 56.1 per cent, while Christians made up 43.4 per cent. It says Nigeria is one of seven countries with “very high” levels of social hostilities involving religion as of 2022, with both Muslims and Christians having been attacked, kidnapped and killed by armed gangs. “In the middle belt region separating largely Muslim northern Nigeria from heavily Christian southern Nigeria, tension between predominantly Christian farmers and Muslim herders has produced violent conflict over land and resources.” The article is here
Swiss guard investigated for antisemitic spitting gesture
A member of the Swiss Guard is under investigation after allegedly making an antisemitic remark and a spitting gesture to two Jewish women visiting the Vatican. The soldier is accused of hissing “les Juifs” (“Jews” in French) and making a spitting gesture towards two visitors, Prof Vivian Liska, the director of the Institute of Jewish Studies at the University of Antwerp in Belgium, and Michal Govrin, an Israeli writer and theatre director. The professor said a Vatican security official “apologised profusely” and she was told the soldier would face consequences.
Woman in Italy facing fraud charges over Virgin Mary statue ‘weeping blood’
The Guardian reports that Gisella Cardia, a mystic who claimed a statue of the Virgin Mary in a town near Rome wept tears of blood, will stand trial with her husband, on charges of fraud. Hundreds of pilgrims visited the statue in a makeshift shrine, to pray, and they donated more than £300,000 for a centre for sick children. Lawyers started investigating in 2023, after a private investigator claimed the blood on the statue came from a pig. The story is here
Our reporter Maira Butt wins ‘Rockstar Award’
Our reporter Maira Butt has won the Aziz Foundation “Rockstar Award” for outstanding qualities among the interns that Aziz supports. Maira reports for the Religion Media Centre on British Muslims and Islam, and also works at The Independent on the world news desk. The founder and chair of the Aziz Foundation, Asif Aziz, told last night’s award ceremony that the award is for someone who has “drive, focus, ambition, a loud voice, determination, resilience” and shows they can persevere and are hungry to succeed. Maira thanked the Aziz Foundation for the award and shared another note of recognition, this time from the former Faith Minister Lord Khan, who comes from her home town and said she’d done “really well” coming from Burnley.
[email protected]
+44 (0) 203 970 0709