Chief Rabbi: Glastonbury chants ‘grotesque expression of mass hatred‘
The Chief Rabbi has joined criticism of the Glastonbury festival, where UK punk duo Bob Vylan led chants of “death, death to the IDF” in a session broadcast live on the BBC. Sir Ephraim Mirvis called it “a grotesque expression of mass hatred… The scenes of hateful rhetoric and glorification of violence seen at Glastonbury yesterday should be deeply disturbing for our entire society”. Culture secretary Lisa Nandy phoned the BBC Director General asking for an explanation about due diligence carried out before the performance. The Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer, said the BBC had questions to answer. The BBC said some of the comments made were “deeply offensive”, a warning had been displayed on screen, cautioning the use of “very strong and discriminatory language”. The session is not available on demand. Festival organiser, Emily Eavis, said “Their chants very much crossed a line and we are urgently reminding everyone involved in the production of the Festival that there is no place at Glastonbury for antisemitism, hate speech or incitement to violence”.
Bob Vylan was followed on the West Holts stage by the Belfast band Kneecap, one of whose members, Mo Chara, is facing terrorism charges for allegedly waving a Hezbollah flag at a 2024 concert. During this session, one band member urged fans to “start a riot” outside a court hearing. Avon and Somerset Police are reviewing footage of both Kneecap and Bob Vylan to determine if any criminal offences occurred.
Israeli writer Hen Mazzig, writing in the Jewish Chronicle, said “There is a dangerous trend taking root in Britain, where hatred towards Israel, often poorly disguised as activism, is morphing into open hostility towards Jews”. Article is here
Archbishop of Wales retires with immediate effect
The Archbishop of Wales, Andrew John, has announced his retirement “with immediate effect”, after damning reports of excessive alcohol abuse and inappropriate sexual behaviour at Bangor Cathedral. The Archbishop, who is also Bishop of Bangor, faced calls to resign and issued an unreserved apology for “shortcomings and poor organisational practice which should not have occurred”. He had appointed Sion Rhys Evans to be acting dean of the cathedral, while also being the diocesan secretary, positions he has now left. The reports outlined financial errors where diocesan funds had been used to buy cathedral chairs and pay for staff overseas trips. Later it was revealed that six incident reports had been made to the Charity Commission on safeguarding and record keeping. Andrew John resigned as a meeting took place of the church’s Representative Body, whose chair is overseeing urgent changes at Bangor Cathedral. Andrew John will stay in place as Bishop of Bangor until 31 August. Among the articles: Tim Wyatt’s substack “Errors of Judgement” here; Church Times here; and BBC Wales article by Gwyn Loader, Chief correspondent, Newyddion S4C here. S4C is broadcasting a programme about the story on Thursday this week.
Catholic Lib Dem MP denied communion after supporting assisted dying
Chris Coughlan, Liberal Democrat MP for Dorking and Horley, has revealed that his local Catholic priest publicly denied him Holy Communion after he voted in favour of assisted dying. Mr Coughlan said the priest warned him in an email four days before the vote that supporting the bill would make him “an obstinate public sinner” and complicit in “a murderous act,” adding that Communion would be withheld if he went ahead. After the bill passed, the priest announced at Mass, in front of children who knew Mr Coughlan’s own children, that the MP could no longer receive the sacrament. Mr Coughlan, a practising Catholic, condemned the move as “utterly disrespectful” to his family and the democratic process. He argued that MPs must vote according to conscience and constituents, not religious instruction, and warned of the chilling effect such pressure may have had on other faith-based MPs facing similar interference. In the Observer article here, he said: “I am a member of parliament. I am also a Roman Catholic. One is my professional role, which I am proud to uphold so long as my constituents support me at the ballot box. The other is my personal faith, which is profoundly important to me, but which does not – and will not – have any relevance to my parliamentary responsibilities.”
Stampede at Rath Yatra festival in India kills three
Three people have died and 50 have been injured in a stampede at the annual Jagannath Rath Yatra in Puri, in the state of Odisha, east India. It’s reported that there was a crowd surge near the Sri Gundicha Temple, where the three chariots of Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra, and Goddess Subhadra are placed. Millions gather in the city as massive, ornately decorated chariots carrying the images are pulled through the streets by devotees, amid processions, singing and dancing which lasts for three days. The crowd is reported to have panicked when two trucks carrying ceremonial garlands drove into the area. An investigation has been launched into what happened. The festival venerates Lord Jagannath a form of Lord Krishna, Balabhadra his protective elder brother, and Subhadra their sister, symbolising harmony. Their chariots symbolise their journey from the temple to their aunt’s home, fostering community devotion. At Neasden Temple, in north London, similar processions have taken place alongside reflection and readings.
Global conference in Liverpool on CofE’s role in slavery
Around 150 people from around the world gathered in Liverpool for a three-day event confronting the Church of England’s role in transatlantic slavery and its enduring legacies. Hosted by the Church’s Racial Justice Unit and Dr Leona Vaughn of the University of Liverpool, the “Truth Telling” conference featured speakers from the UK, US, Africa, Europe, and the Caribbean. Liverpool was Britain’s main slaving port in the 18th century, with ships carrying around 1.5 million Africans across the Atlantic. Attendees toured Liverpool’s historic slave trade sites near the port, including a churchyard where Abell, an enslaved man buried in 1717, is memorialised. The Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell, described the church’s involvement in slavery as “shameful,” urging the institution to be humbled by the truth.
File on Four report on stalking case in Leicester
File on Four, on BBC Radio 4, has investigated the story of Jay Hulme, a trans man in the Leicester diocese, who was subject to a campaign of stalking and harassment by a leading lay woman in the church. Jay Hulme, who is exploring ordination, took his complaint to the Bishop of Leicester, Martyn Snow, but said he wasn’t believed and was asked questions about an acquaintance who used Tarot cards. Eventually the police took action, and last year, Venessa Pinto, a young woman who was on the general synod and the Crown Nominations Commission to appoint bishops, admitted stalking, involving serious distress or harm and was given an 18-month community order and banned from contacting Jay Hulme for a year. Her lay ministry license was revoked, and she resigned from the general synod and the Commission. The Diocese of Leicester has issued a statement saying it took the complaint seriously, had sought legal advice and was “confident that it followed HR practice and due process in handling the complaint. Pastoral support and counselling were offered to those affected throughout the process”.
CofE Bishop move – Stepney to Suffolk
The Bishop of Stepney, Joanne Grenfell, who is also the lead CofE bishop for safeguarding, has been appointed as the next Bishop of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich. She said: “I am honoured to be called to this role, this is a beautiful diocese, with truly lovely people, and a grounded Suffolk sense of service and humility”.
Pope elevates eight new US archbishops on course towards unity
Pope Leo XIV has conferred the “pallium”, a woollen band symbolising metropolitan authority and unity with Rome, on eight new US archbishops. The recipients were Cardinal Robert McElroy (Washington) and Archbishops W. Shawn McKnight (Kansas City), Michael McGovern (Omaha), Robert Casey (Cincinnati), Joe Vásquez (Galveston-Houston), Jeffrey Grob (Milwaukee), Richard Henning (Boston), and Edward Weisenburger (Detroit). Their appointments are significant in a US church deeply divided between conservative and progressive factions. None of the eight are known to be arch-conservatives. Most are viewed as moderate to progressive, aligning with the pastoral tone of Popes Francis and Leo, emphasising compassion, synodality, and social justice over culture-war rhetoric. These archbishops now lead major provinces, shaping how US Catholicism responds to political, ethical, and spiritual challenges in an era of internal tension. They join a wider group of US archbishops who already wear the pallium. NCR story here
Gay widower sacked from US Catholic school after 21 years
A music teacher at a Catholic school in Louisiana has been sacked after a parent reported that he was the widower of another man. Mark Richards, who taught music at St Francis Xavier School in Metairie for 21 years, said he was dismissed on 25 June after a parent shared the obituary of his late husband, John Messinger, with school officials. In an email to the school community, Mr Richards said the Archdiocese of New Orleans terminated his employment under a morality clause that forbids same-sex marriage and “homosexual activity.” He acknowledged signing the clause each year “with a wink and a nudge,” noting it had never been strictly enforced and that staff had previously shown support after his husband’s death in 2023. Parents have started a petition, saying his sacking was unjust and praising him as “a beacon of kindness and understanding in students’ lives”, but the school says its decision is final. Guardian story here
How grassroots interfaith activity helps refugee communities to heal
A Baha’i academic who works with refugees, writes in The Guardian about initiatives in communities in the Middle East, where grassroots interfaith efforts help displaced people from opposing religious backgrounds begin to heal. Kat Eghdamian describes how in one camp in Jordan, Christian and Muslim women began cooking together during Ramadan and Easter, eventually hosting communal feasts for the wider community. Another example was among Syrian religious-minority refugees in Berlin, where “secular integration policies often failed to account for the central role religion played in people’s sense of identity, belonging and healing”. She appeals for religion to be seen not as rival ideologies, but reflections of one truth. Article is here
