Burnley vicar says CofE should follow Jesus and appoint working class apprentices
The vicar from St Matthew’s Burnley, Fr Alex Frost, who is well known for his podcast the “Godcast” and for featuring in a BBC news film about feeding people in the town from the back of a van during Covid, has won support for a plan to attract more working class people into the Church of England. He told the general synod that his experience of running a multi-million pound Argos store, counted for nothing because he had left school at 15 with no qualifications. He said people in the Church of England “speak a completely different language” of snobbery and elitism. Many speakers agreed, telling how they felt different with northern accents, or having been brought up on council house estates. But Fr Frost said there is outstanding church work going on in vulnerable communities, and as Jesus had chosen working class disciples, fishermen and tax collectors, so the CofE should encourage people from working class backgrounds to enter the ministry, clergy and lay. The synod agreed and gave him a standing ovation. Press Association report here
New rules for holding CofE clergy to account over their conduct
The general synod approved an overhaul of the Church’s disciplinary process for clergy, including the sack for serious misconduct, known as “deposition from Holy Orders”. Changes follow criticism that the current system takes too long and treats all complaints, including minor grievances such as failure to visit a sick parishioner, as though they are serious misconduct cases. The system causes stress, long investigations leaving clergy in limbo for months or years, and high legal costs. The new Clergy Conduct Measure aims to be more pastoral, with independent external assessors handling misconduct cases, instead of more senior clergy, though serious cases will still go to an independent Investigation and Tribunals Team. Complaints will be categorised according to their severity and minor grievances will be addressed locally through informal resolution. There will be a new way of dealing with “vexatious complaints”, where false information is weaponised against vicars, leaving them to prove their innocence, at personal and financial cost. Canon Kate Wharton told the general synod that clergy at the coal face can be very vulnerable. She said the new system must be fair and proportionate, so that clergy and complainants can have confidence in it. The measure has to go before parliament and have Royal Assent to become law.
The CofE safeguarding version of “see it, say it, sorted”
The Church of England has approved new processes for reporting and dealing with safeguarding complaints, with the mantra “responded to, reported, and recorded”, not quite as snappy as “see it, say it, sorted”, but designed to improve a system which is in the headlines for its spectacular failures in Liverpool, Lambeth Palace and historically, Chelmsford. The Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell, told the General Synod that the new processes would have helped in the past and will help build a better safeguarding future. Allegations will be “triaged” into categories of risk, depending on the nature of the complaint and person involved, clergy or lay. People at all levels will be required to comply with the rules. Lead safeguarding bishop, Joanne Grenfell, said church rules need to be updated, despite the fact that a new independent safeguarding organisation is about to be set up.
Faith groups take Trump to court over immigration and refugees
The Religion News Service has a comprehensive round up of court cases brought by faith groups, working together to challenge the Trump administration. On 27 January, a group of Quaker congregations sued the Department of Homeland Security for allowing immigration operations in houses of worship. A Sikh Temple and Jimmy Carter’s Baptist church have since joined the action. On Tuesday this week, 27 religious groups including larger denominations, filed a similar lawsuit on the same policy, saying they have already seen smaller congregations as people live in fear of being rounded up during a service. On Monday this week, the Church World Service, HIAS and Lutheran Community Services Northwest, which re-settle refugees, sued the administration over the halting of the U.S. Refugee Admission Programme, saying it infringes the Refugee Act and was thus “outside the President’s authority.” The RNS article is here
Jewish and Muslim leaders call for dialogue to confront hate
Three of the faith leaders who signed the Jewish-Muslim declaration of reconciliation presented to the King, have written an opinion piece in Jewish News calling for dialogue, unity, and action against extremism. Rabbis Josh Levy and Charley Baginsky, alongside Chief Imam Dr Sayed Razawi,say the surge in hate and increasing polarisation, forces communities apart. But their two religious traditions “share a profound spiritual heritage rooted in the belief in one God, the sanctity of life, and a commitment to justice. These foundational values, found in both the Torah and the Qur’ān, provide a framework for cooperation and peace”. Differences, they say, should not be a source of division but rather a source of richness. Article is here
Conservative MP resigns from APPG on British Muslims, over criticism of Badenoch
The co-chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims, Conservative MP Robbie Moore, has resigned after he was not consulted on a statement that criticised Kemi Badenoch. She had criticised the definition of Islamophobia which was proposed by the APPG and has been widely accepted, saying it barred discussion of grooming gangs. The APPG hit back, saying it did no such thing and she should read their whole report, adding that there was nothing Islamophobic about addressing a crime. Mr Moore said the statement undermined the “all party” position of the APPG and resigned straight away, but his resignation only came to light in The Telegraph yesterday. He said he was the only Conservative member of the APPG and his role was “being used more as a vehicle for political messaging than cross-party collaboration”. Story is here
The hijab: symbol of piety, a bringer of joy and a target of prejudice
The hijab, a headscarf worn by Muslim women, the centre of cultural debate, domestic and foreign policy decisions, hate crimes, spiritual contentment and political resistance. While head coverings have been considered a symbol of piety and holiness in many religious traditions, for Muslim women, it has become a battleground. It is 12 years since World Hijab Day was founded by a Bangladeshi-American woman, Nazma Khan. She had become sick of the scarf being synonymous with being a “terrorist”. Mandated by the Quran, every Muslim woman who wears (or does not wear) it has a deeply personal journey with it. But Maira Butt reports on the sheer exhaustion of wearing something that brings so much joy, so much spiritual solace and comfort, so much clarity of identity, yet attracts so much prejudice and abuse. Read her article here
Christian school worker wins appeal against sacking over sex education posts
A Christian pastoral worker and administrator at a primary school in Gloucestershire, who was sacked over social media posts questioning the appropriateness of showing young children books on gender identity and sex education, has won her claim for unfair dismissal, on appeal. Kristie Higgs, supported by the Christian Legal Centre, raised her concerns in a Facebook post, which was shown to the headteacher, and she was sacked for bringing the school into disrepute. Her six-year legal battle ended in the Appeal Court yesterday, where judges said her sacking was a disproportionate response. Her lawyer said the ruling confirmed “that the Equality Act protects traditional Christian beliefs on social issues”. Christian Concern report here
Renegade traditionalist Bishop Richard Williamson has died in Margate
The renegade Catholic priest, Bishop Richard Williamson, who was excommunicated twice, a holocaust denier and member of Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre’s “irregular” Society of St Pius X, has died aged 84 in Margate. Richard Wiliamson was born in Hampstead, studied at Winchester College and Cambridge and was ordained and made a bishop by the traditionalist Archbishop Lefebvre. But his episcopacy was never recognised by the Vatican, and he went on to consecrate several men as bishops without Vatican approval. He was rector of the Society of Saint Pius X seminary in the US for 20 years until 2003. He continued to make public statements that outraged church and state alike, denying gas chambers killed six million Jews, and saying the 11 September attack was an inside job. Eventually the Society expelled him from a seminary in Venezuela and he was expelled from the country. He died after a period in hospital for a serious condition, surrounded by clergy and faithful friends. Catholic Herald article here
Methodist volunteers to ‘be a blessing’ at festivals across Britain
The Methodists are looking for volunteers to pull up a sofa, have coffee with strangers or offer a space for contemplation, at festivals across Britain this summer. They say: “It’s not about converting people and it’s not about judging anyone. It is about being a blessing, loving and listening, and unashamedly as a group of Christians witnessing to your faith”. The project has been going for sic years and the team of volunteers has shipped up at local village fetes, music festivals, the RHS Tatton Flower show, the British Grand Prix at Silverstone and the Edinburgh fringe, creating spaces for people to meet, talk and perhaps “explore matters of faith in safe, creative and spiritual ways”. In Edinburgh, a team sets up on the Royal Mile with a sofa offering space to pause and chat, and in the evening they are at Nicolson Square Gardens with a space to explore spirituality. Volunteer Rob Wylie said: “It seemed to me that spirituality sat very close to the surface. I would say it was one of the most profound weeks I have experienced in a long time”.
