Profound impact of Soul Survivor on contemporary evangelicalism
As the impact of the crisis surrounding Soul Survivor plays out, our explainer pulls together information on the movement and its founder Mike Pilavachi who has stepped aside while a safeguarding inquiry takes place into allegations of inappropriate relationships with young men. Aside from the emotional impact on people converted through his ministry, his influence has spread widely among charismatic evangelical churches where individuals and organisations liaise on events and strategy. Commentators say Soul Survivor had a “massive influence” on Anglican youth work, church planting, networks and leadership. They say Mike Pilavachi’s impact on contemporary evangelicalism in the UK is profound and the story of his “stepping down” is of huge significance to the church. Read our explainer by Lianne Kolirin here >>
CAFOD calls for G7 leaders to grip climate crisis before it’s too late
As world leaders gather for the G7 summit in Japan this weekend, the Catholic aid agency CAFOD has appealed to them to grip the climate change crisis before more lives are lost. Independent Catholic News reports their demand that world leaders phase out fossil fuels, stop opening new oil and gas fields and invest in clean and green energy. They also want more funding to stop famine in east Africa and the cancellation of debt for poorer countries. Graham Gordon, head of public policy for CAFOD, said: “While world leaders have their heads buried in the sand, lives are being lost”.
National Conservatism: “Britain is a Christian nation–or it is nothing at all”
A debate on God and Country kicked off the final day of the National Conservatism Conference in London. Journalist Sebastian Milbank said the Christian nature and origins of the British people are inescapable: “Britain is a Christian nation–or it is nothing at all”. Father Benedict Kiely, a Catholic priest attached to Walsingham, said that without God, a house is built on sand: “If we don’t “do” God then we won’t “do” country and we won’t “do”. The conference was organised by the Edmund Burke Foundation, whose chair is Dr James Orr, associate professor of philosophy of religion at the faculty of divinity, University of Cambridge. It was born out of the Christian Conservative movement in the US and has held events for the past four years in Britain, but this conference achieved notoriety because of the number of government ministers and MPs who spoke raising issues of morality, immigration, national identity and heritage. Evangelical Christian MP Daniel Kruger’s comment that marriages between men and women were “the only possible basis for a safe and successful society” was held at arms length by the Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. His spokesman said although some ministers had chosen to speak at the event, that did not mean the government endorsed its agenda. In closing remarks, Dr Orr said the impact of the conference had gone well beyond their expectations: “We’ve got truth on our side. We’ve got youth on our side. We can do this again. We must do this again”.
Guardian editor’s “constructive meeting” with Board of Deputies over antisemitic cartoon
Jewish News reports that the Board of Deputies of British Jews had a “positive and constructive” meeting with the Guardian newspaper and its editor Katharine Viner, over the publication of an antisemitic cartoon. It depicted the BBC chair Richard Sharp, who is Jewish, shortly after he resigned, but the drawing contained classic antisemitic tropes and it was withdrawn after complaints. The Guardian and cartoonist, Martin Rowson, have apologised. The Board said the Guardian re-iterated its apology and there would be a further meeting in a month as a follow up.
US religious affiliation shows little change despite pandemic and political upheaval
A survey of religious affiliation in the United States during the pandemic and a period of political upheaval, shows it has remained steady. Over the past five years, the number of white Christians has remained at 42 per cent and black Christians at 25 per cent. This follows a long decline in the preceding 25 years. Also in the last five years the number of white evangelicals has gone down 2 per cent, the non-religious rose by 1 per cent and other faiths remained static at 6 per cent. Religious attendance for all Americans fell from 54 to 43 per cent in this period. The survey by the Public Religion Research Institute is based on responses from almost 6,000 people in August last year. Only 13 per cent thought the church was more politically divided than five years ago.
Ancient Biblical manuscript sells for $38 million
One of the world’s oldest surviving biblical manuscripts has sold for $38 million at a Sotheby’s auction in New York. The Codex Sassoon, a leather-bound, handwritten parchment volume containing a nearly complete Hebrew Bible, was bought on behalf of the American Friends of the ANU museum in TelAviv where it will be displayed. ANU is the Hebrew word for we. The Associated Press reports that the manuscript dates from between 880-960 CE and was once owned by an Iraqi Jewish business magnate, David Solomon Sassoon, hence its name. A Sotheby’s spokesperson said it would make a grand and permanent return to Israel, displayed for the world to see.
Priests in France told to wear ID card with Qcode to check they are not sex abusers
Catholic priests in France will be required to wear ID cards with a QR code so that the public can check if they are imposters who have been struck off for sexual abuse. The Catholic Herald and several other publications explain that the wallet-sized cards will bring up a green, orange or red light depending on the priest’s status and career history. It will show whether a priest is qualified to lead Mass or hear confession, and whether the priest has been stripped of clerical status and may have faced sex abuse charges. The system was announced at the French Bishops’ Conference to replace the papers that priests usually carry showing their qualifications. In 2021, a report found that 216,000 children, mainly boys, had been abused by the clergy since 1950. François Devaux, spokesman for an abuse survivors group said: “It’s quite an exceptional measure which, in my opinion, is one of the Catholic Church’s top three most stupid ideas”. France 24 report with longer explanation here.
