Conservative party Islamophobia reforms delayed due to party turmoil
An independent review has found that reforms to tackle Islamophobia in the Conservative party have been delayed because of the chaos that has engulfed the party in the past two years. Professor Swaran Singh who conducted the initial review suggesting reforms, has just produced an update and said progress had been slow. Change had taken longer than expected. There had been a delay in appointing an external auditor of the complaints process and financial constraints. The Guardian reports that there have been 212 complaints relating to 137 incidents in the three months up to June 2022. The professor has issued new recommendations, including reviewing whether complaints against the most senior members should be handled independently.
Bishop warns of escalating housing crisis in rural and coastal communities
In one of the last debates in the House of Lords before recess, and in his last speech in the House before retirement, the Bishop of Exeter, Robert Atwell, has called for the government’s housing policy to be reshaped to stop “the spiral of deprivation”. He told the Lords that there was an escalating housing crisis in rural and coastal communities, compounded by second home ownership, holiday rentals and Airbnb lettings. There are fewer than 700 properties to rent in Devon, compared with more than 15,700 holiday lets; and in Cornwall, the numbers are 208 rental properties compared with more than 19,000 holiday lets. He said: “Without systemic change, including regulating the Airbnb industry, our rural and coastal communities will be hollowed out”. The demand for social housing in rural areas is growing at 10 times the rate of that in towns and cities and at current housebuilding rates, it will take 32 years to clear the backlog. He approved of the government’s commitment to achieve the housing target of one million homes by the end of 2024, but said “the focus is on cities and, once again, there is no recognition of the scale of the housing crisis in rural and coastal communities”. He called for a coalition of goodwill with cross-departmental working to forge a coherent long-term strategy for good housing and the flourishing of rural and coastal communities.
World Economic Forum initiative on faith in society
Three members of the Coalition for Faith and Media, a project run by The Radiant Foundation based in Salt Lake City, are advising the World Economic Forum on the initiative “Faith in Action!”, charting the contribution of faith organisations in public life. They are Mark Vlasic, professor of law and public policy law at Georgetown university; Brian Grim, president and founder of the Washington based Religious Freedom and Business Foundation; and ·Simran Jeet Singh, Executive Director of the Inclusive America Project at the Aspen Institute which works towards a free and equitable society. They are advising the WEF on “the contribution faith communities provide and a roadmap for business, government, and philanthropic engagement”. News of this development came from the Faith and Media Initiative, run by the Radiant Foundation, which says “Faith in Action!” is “an effort to accelerate the prosocial impact of religion, spirituality and values toward public-private cooperation”. Its report highlighting key contributions from faith groups in public-private partnerships, will be launched at Davos in 2024. The Radiant Foundation is managed by the Deseret Management Corporation, a global operating company, managing for-profit entities affiliated with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Christian Aid ditches Barclays over fossil fuel finance policy
Christian Aid has issued a statement saying it is moving its banking from Barclays to Lloyds because of Barclays’ record on fossil fuel finance. It says that Barclays’ “weak commitment to future improvements in this area meant that we had to seek a more suitable provider”. Chief Operating Officer Martin Birch said: “Christian Aid has ambitious environmental commitments over the next few years, as set out in our recently launched environmental policy. The transition to Lloyds will take place over the next few months.” The Church Times quotes a spokesperson for Barclays saying it can make the greatest difference to emissions “by working with customers and clients as they transition to a low-carbon business model, focussing on facilitating the finance needed to change business practices and scale new green technologies. This includes many oil and gas companies that are critical to the transition, and have committed significant resources and expertise to renewable energy”.
Another Quran burning incident in Denmark provokes Muslim response
Protesters have burned a copy of the Quran in front of the Iraq embassy in Copenhagen. The men, from a group called “Danish Patriots”, stamped on it and set it alight in a tin foil tray next to an Iraqi flag. A similar demonstration was held last week in Denmark and live streamed on Facebook, while others have taken place in Sweden. Iraq and other Muslim-majority countries have strongly condemned the acts saying they allow extremism and hate to pose a threat to the peaceful coexistence of societies. The actions have inflamed protests outside the Swedish and Danish embassies in Baghdad, caused a rally in the Yemeni capital Sanaa, and engendered angry responses from Turkey and Iran.
“Miracle” of monastery saved from Rhodes fire
An abbess and eight sisters have been hailed as heroes after refusing to leave their monastery as fire swept around it on the east coast of Rhodes. The Times reports that they doused surrounding grass woodland with buckets of water while volunteers ran garden hoses from a 1,000 litre water tank. The heat forced them inside the church where the abbess led chanting and prayers, but the Panagia Ipseni monastery was saved and they survived. The report quotes the abbess saying it was a miracle and she would rather die than see the monastery burn.
Catholic society in Peru under investigation over sex abuse allegations
The Vatican has begun an investigation into a secretive Roman Catholic society in Peru, with chapters across South America and the USA, following allegations that its founder sexually molested young recruits. The Associated Press reports that the Maltese Archbishop Charles Scicluna and Monsignor Jordi Bertomeu, from the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, are in Lima to question the society’s spokespeople, alleged abuse victims and journalists who have written about the case. The “Sodalitium of Christian Life” was founded in 1971, has a presence in schools and runs retreat centres. The allegations concern physical, psychological and sexual abuse.
Five convicted of murder following funeral in Coventry mosque
Five men have been convicted of murder after a man was stabbed following a funeral at a mosque in Coventry. Haji Choudhary Rab Nawaz attended the funeral with his brother, but as they left they were followed by a group of men and attacked. They sought help back inside the mosque but Mr Nawaz died in hospital. His brother suffered injuries which were not life-threatening. The court heard that the violence followed a feud between two families. Although one person stabbed the brothers, all five were jointly involved and each was sentenced to between 22-27 years in prison.
John Brierley who made pilgrimage routes famous through guidebooks, has died
John Brierley, whose guidebooks on pilgrimages have become best sellers, has died aged 75. He recounted his spiritual experiences while following pilgrimage routes and believed that everyone was on a pilgrimage, an inner or mystical path. An obituary in The Telegraph, says that numbers on the Camino in Spain increased sixfold after one of his guidebooks was published. A chartered surveyor by training, he resigned aged 39 and moved with his family to Findhorn, the spiritual retreat centre in Scotland, from where he embarked on numerous pilgrimages.
Ancient cave in Israel was magical portal to the underworld
A study in the Harvard Theological Review puts forward the theory that a cave in the Jerusalem Hills may have been an “oracle of the dead”, a ritual centre for communicating with the dead. Two archaeologists, Eitan Klein and Boaz Zissu, discuss why ancient skulls, weapons, lamps and coins have been found in the The Te’omim Cave, and why they have been arranged in clusters. The artefacts go back to 2,000 BCE but the theory about communicating with the dead relates to the Greek / Roman era. The authors examine evidence of how magic was practised in this period and draw conclusions that the items found in the cave, and its spring with healing qualities, mean it was a place of magic ritual, a possible portal to the underworld.
