US churches promote “Hate Divides, Love Unites” campaign
On the final weekend of electioneering in the US presidential race, Kamala Harris once more spoke at a Black Christian church, this time in Detroit, quoting Jeremiah and heralding a country which turns the page on hate and division. Later she told a rally at Michigan State University that she would do everything in her power to end the war in Gaza. The state is home to America’s largest Arab-American, Muslim population. Meanwhile Donald Trump was in North Carolina and Pennsylvania, speaking of ushering in a golden age, rehearsing arguments about criminal migrants and repeating unfounded allegations that the last election was stolen and that there is election fraud this time. Churches anticipating unrest because of the close polling, are taking part in a “Hate Divides, Love Unites” campaign, promoting “a spirit of love, unity, and understanding during a time when tensions are high”.
“The Vote is Sacred” bus tour draws into its final stop in Pennsylvania
The Interfaith Alliance in America has taken a bus on a journey across several swing states, with the campaign slogan “The Vote is Sacred” on its side. The journey began in Omaha, Nebraska and has travelled through Iowa, Wisconsin, Michigan and Ohio, ending in Philadelphia today and tomorrow. The Alliance was founded in 1994 to show that the “Religious Right was not the only authentic voice of faith in the USA”. It campaigns for freedom of religion and belief and supports democracy. Its CEO, Baptist minister the Rev. Paul Brandeis Raushenbush, said: “America is at a crossroads, and now is the moment to repair our moral commitment to one another and build a better, more inclusive future.” Report by Bob Smietana for the Religion News Service here
US election campaign targeting Mormons
Mormons – members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints – are being courted by the Democrats in the US presidential election, amid growing evidence that many are turning away from their traditional Republican support. Their home state Utah is a Republican stronghold, but they make up 6 per cent of the population in neighbouring Arizona, which Biden won in 2020, the first ever Democrat presidential election win, and Democrats are aiming to consolidate and increase the vote there. There is evidence that more than 50 per cent of genZ LDS young people voted for Biden in 2020. There are substantial numbers of LDS members also in Nevada, a swing state, and other states in the region around Utah in the west. Anna Betts, writing in The Guardian, reports that Republicans have moved away from Trump because of his character and values, which do not align with the LDS community. LDS is politically neutral but encourages civic participation.
Pope calls Valencia’s Archbishop, expressing deep sorrow over unfolding tragedies
The Archbishop of Valencia, Monsignor Enrique Benavent, has described how he has tried to meet and support priests throughout the flood affected region in Spain. The Pope called him to offer support and find out about the situation on the ground. Interviewed by the Spanish broadcaster “Cope”, the Archbishop gave dramatic details of terrible grief and despair as bodies are found and the stories of those who died begin to be told. He said: “We must find a word of hope because this tragedy will take years to be forgotten”. He said one of the parish churches has been set up as an emergency centre for food and basic necessities. Priests have been dealing with “a truly dramatic situation”. He had heard of a mother and five-year-old son rescued from the top of a wall by neighbours; a family in a car, where the father opened the door to take his son to safety but the car was swept away and now his son and wife are missing; and a disabled man stuck on the ground floor of his apartment block who drowned. He said the Pope had been deeply affected by the personal stories: “There are many stories of simple people, humble people, and deep down, behind every death there is a drama”. The Archbishop made clear that the job of the church was to be at the side of people in distress and to offer hope.
Kemi Badenoch – cultural Christian and honorary Catholic
The story of religion in the life of the new leader of the Conservative party, Kemi Badenoch, has been researched in various publications this weekend. Her grandfather was a Methodist minister and she describes her family background as “sort of Anglican and Methodist”. Born in Wimbledon to a Nigerian GP and professor of physiology, she lived in Nigeria and America before returning to England aged 16. She has described herself as an agnostic, a “cultural Christian”. Her husband, Hamish Badenoch, is Catholic and attended Ampleforth College where he was head monitor – head boy. The couple married at Farm Street church in Mayfair. Their three children are being raised as Catholic, and she calls herself an “honorary Catholic.” Christian Concern has charted her votes and opinions on moral issues and, two years ago at the last leadership election, it said Kemi Badenoch was their preferred candidate.
Prince William ‘unlikely to become a regular worshipper’
Robert Hardman’s biography of the King, “Charles III: New King. New Court”, sheds light on the religious inclinations of Prince William. While the King is known for his deep interest in religion and spirituality, the same has not been noticed in the Prince. The book, being serialised in the Mail on Sunday, says that the cancer diagnosis of Prince William’s father and wife has not drawn him closer to God. Although it is said that he will “observe all his constitutional obligations to the Church of England” when the time comes, he is not going to “suddenly become a regular worshipper or feign an enthusiasm for something that he does not feel personally”. A source is quoted saying: “He is a modern young man and I think he gets embarrassed by certain aspects of ceremonial and religion”. However, the book says that Catherine has become “more interested” in faith since her cancer diagnosis. Robert Hardman has covered the monarchy as a journalist for more than 25 years and has been trusted by them with interviews. His books are considered well sourced and authoritative.
Jewish buildings defaced across England on anniversary of Balfour declaration
Police are investigating after a series of hate crimes by Palestine Action on the anniversary of the Balfour Declaration. The Jewish Chronicle reports that the headquarters of the Britain Israel Communications and Research Centre, a pro-Israel advocacy organisation, and the Jewish National Fund, were sprayed with red paint in London. In Manchester, two people wearing balaclavas used hammers to smash open a glass cabinet and steal a sculpture of Chaim Weizmann, a Russian-born biochemist said to be key in persuading Britain to back the Declaration. In Cambridge where Lord Balfour was a student, his portrait at Trinity College was slashed and sprayed with red paint, and the university’s Senate House and the Institute of Manufacturing were also painted in red. red paint. Phil Rosenberg, the president of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, said the action was intended to harass and intimidate: “The environment it creates serves to make many Jews feel targeted and unsafe in this country and ruins the public realm for the law-abiding public. These actions must be punished with the full force of the law”.
Birmingham event in memory of India riots
An event has been held in Birmingham to remember 3,000 Sikhs killed in riots in India 40 years ago, following the assassination of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi by her Sikh bodyguards. Kuldeep Singh Deol, one of the organisers, told the BBC that survivors and families were still seeking justice, with many not knowing the whereabouts of their relatives. The assassination followed the storming of the Sikh Golden Temple in Amritsar, when some reports indicate thousands died.
New leader of the Episcopalian church in USA
Bishop Sean Rowe, aged 49, has been installed as the presiding bishop of the Episcopalian Church USA in a service at a chapel in New York rather than the usual Washington National Cathedral. Instead of thousands attending a service, they watched instead in their own churches, dioceses and homes across America. ECUSA has to cut its staffing budget by 5 per cent, saving $3.5 million over three years. Bishop Rowe told the congregation that the church must come together: “Dioceses and congregations and institutions of our church can just go it alone and do it their own way. For we must acknowledge our mutual interdependence, our need to do ministry together, to share what we have and to sustain one another”.
Comment: can the church ever change its teaching and if so how?
Miranda Threlfall-Holmes, Archdeacon of Liverpool and a member of General Synod, has written for Modern Church on the debate engulfing the CofE on sex and marriage. It follows an interview given by the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, in which he says that his views on same sex marriage have changed in recent years, an observation that has brought fierce criticism from conservatives. Miranda Threlfall-Holmes lists the occasions when doctrine changed for Jews and Christians as outlined in the Bible, and then in early church councils when the idea of the Trinity took 300 years to determine. She says that as every major Christian tradition is currently debating sexual identity and sexual ethics: “In that context, it would seem to me to be deeply inappropriate for an Archbishop of Canterbury not to be thinking about how our doctrine and teaching might develop in this area”. Her comment is here
