Bishop: deal in Iran that brings peace and justice ‘to be welcomed’
The Iranian-born Bishop of Chelmsford, Guli Francis-Dehqani, said a deal in Iran that brings peaceful solutions to the people of Iran as well as relieving economic challenges on the rest of the world is obviously to be welcomed. She was speaking in a BBC Radio 4 Sunday programme interview, broadcast hours before the news broke that a deal to end military operations had been reached. She said that she hoped any deal would bring justice and peace for people in the region. Earlier, Bishop Guli was interviewed for the House of Lords podcast “Lord Speaker’s Corner”. Here she said that she believed the regime in Iran is “in its death throes, but death throes can last for quite a long time… They are fighting to survive, and what we need is an effective resistance movement around which people can coalesce which will eventually bring freedom”. Bishop Guli’s father was the Anglican Bishop of Iran, and in the podcast she re-tells the story of how her mother and father survived an assassination attempt in 1979 shortly after the revolution, and how the family sought refuge in England. Asked about the US / Israel attacks on Iran, she said she had quite a strong sense that “this is not how things are going to change in Iran”, and that President Trump had underestimated the Iranian regime and the Iranian people. The podcast is here.
Assisted Dying bill will be re-introduced in the Commons
Lauren Edwards, the Labour MP for Rochester and Strood, will bring forward a private members bill on assisted dying, identical to the one which recently failed in the House of Lords. The MP came second in the ballot for MPs to introduce private members bills on a subject of their choice. Last night Ms Edwards announced she chose assisted dying. The fact that the bill will be presented in identical form surprised Lord Mark Harper, who told the BBC that the last bill had failed after substantial flaws were identified by the Lords. The bill ran out of time, but proposers were clear they would bring the bill back and this time invoke the parliament act so that the Lords could not block a measure which had Commons support. Ms Edwards said she was asking MPs to ‘finish the job’ and get the bill through. Humanists UK have welcomed the move saying it will “give terminally ill people choice and compassion at the end of their lives”.
Catholic Archbishop of Ireland’s ‘shock and horror’ at violence towards migrants
The Catholic Archbishop of Ireland, Eamon Martin, has said the past “traumatic” week of violence towards migrant communities after the stabbing attack on a man in Belfast, was outrageous and orchestrated. In a homily during Mass at Portadown and Lurgan on Sunday, he said: “On behalf of the many good people in our communities, I want to express our shock and horror at the hatred and violence that has been shown on our streets to friends and neighbours who have come from around the world to live, work and pray among us here in Ireland.” He said migration has been a feature of Irish history for generations, praising the “tremendous gifts” brought to sectors like the health service, retail, construction and technology, by people from other countries: “Let me be very clear today: racism is a grave sin and Christians like us must stand strongly against it.”
Leaders serving faith groups awarded honours in King’s Birthday Honour list
The chair of the Anglican Consultative Council Margaret (Maggie) Swinson; Caroline Boddington, a former Archbishops’ secretary for appointments; and the Revd Elizabeth Carnelley, director of partnerships for Near Neighbours, have been awarded the OBE for services to the Church of England and social cohesion. Other awards to members of the Church of England are listed on the Church Times here. More names and round up via Premier Christian News here. Raymond Simonson, the chief executive of JW3, has received an MBE for services to Jewish communities and to community cohesion. Honours to other members of the Jewish community are listed in the Jewish Chronicle here. The full list is here.
Art dealer ‘offers Banksy exhibition’ to save St David’s cathedral
The Telegraph reports that John Brandler, 71, an Essex-based gallerist specialising in work by Banksy, has written to St David’s Cathedral in Wales, offering to loan works of art to help save the cathedral from bankruptcy. He said he was mortified to read reports that the Cathedral faced insolvency within two years, and wrote to them 10 days ago offering not only 28 Banksy works, but four of his paintings on walls, and other works by Damien Hirst, Tracey Emin, John Constable and Thomas Gainsborough, for a temporary exhibition. He told The Telegraph that he had not yet received a reply, and the paper has asked the Cathedral to comment.
Islamic gardens in Britain with fountains, mosaics and geometric shapes
Hyphen Online has a feature on Islamic gardens in Britain, with mosque courtyards, roof terraces and public parks adopting ancient traditions. The gardens featured include the Islamic Gardens, in the Aga Khan Centre, near King’s Cross, with fountains, Moroccan courtyards, geometric patterns, and trees including olive, date, fig and pomegranate. throughout the year. Cambridge Central Mosque garden has a courtyard with four pathways representing the rivers of Jannah. And Lister Park, Bradford’s Mughal Garden, features long water channels, a central fountain, walkways and planting with Mughal and Asian influences. The article with pics is here
