Antisemitism campaigner angered at withdrawal of online safety bill
Danny Stone, director of the Antisemitism Policy Trust, has criticised the government for pulling the Online Safety Bill, which would have addressed antisemitic abuse. The Conservative leadership candidate Kemi Badenoch said she was pleased the bill was withdrawn, as it was in no fit state to become law. Some MPs believed it was an attack on free speech. But her comments angered have Danny Stone who said the bill tackled anti-Jewish racism and demanded that she clarified her position. The government said it was pulled because it ran out of time to push it through before the summer recess. Suggestions that it would come back in the autumn are disputed.
Muslim leader says next PM should deal with Tory Islamophobia
Zara Mohammed, the secretary-general of the Muslim Council of Britain, has told Metro that the next prime minister must tackle Islamophobia within the Tory party. She said Boris Johnson should have apologised in his resignation speech last week for letting down the Muslim community, as he had taken no concrete steps to deal with the problem.
Religious orders must have zero tolerance for abusers
Pope Francis has told members of three religious orders that they must have zero tolerance for sexual abusers and they must report them, not cover up their crimes by transferring rapists to other countries. In his address to the Order of the Mother of God, the Basilian Order of St Josaphat, and the Congregation of the Mission, he urged them to stay true to their calling and evangelise. The Associated Press reports that religious orders have had some of the worst records on abuse, with abusers moving easily to different countries rather than face justice at home.
Appeal for Lambeth Conference to reaffirm opposition to ‘homosexual practice’
Archbishop Justin Badi, of the Episcopal Church of South Sudan, has issued a call for the Lambeth Conference of bishops to reaffirm its opposition to homosexual practice as incompatible with scripture. The statement was in resolution 1.10 passed at the Lambeth Conference of global Anglican bishops in 1998, but it is not on the agenda this summer. The archbishop is also chairman of the Global South Fellowship of Anglican churches, a traditionalist group that has not broken away from the Anglican Communion. In a video message, he says they are the holy remnant that God has preserved in the church. The Lambeth conference takes place in Canterbury from 27 July to 7 August.
Read our explainer on the Lambeth Conference here
Bishops’ wives run global reconciliation programme
Caroline Welby, wife of the Archbishop of Canterbury, has been working with women in public roles on a global peace and reconciliation project. Joining Jane Namurye, wife of Anthony Poggo, the former Bishop of the Diocese of Kajo-Keji in South Sudan now working in London, they started the Women on the Frontline project, running programmes in South Sudan, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Solomon Islands. In partnership with churches, they train women to deal with multiple trauma, learning from others who have witnessed violence and war and dealt with its aftermath. The story is featured by the Lambeth Conference, where a parallel gathering for bishops’ spouses is planned throughout the conference diary.
Career civil servant to oversee Church of England governance
Simon Gallagher, director of planning at the Department for Levelling up, Housing and Communities, has been appointed director of the Archbishops’ Council central secretariat and clerk to the synod. His 30-year civil service career included positions in the Treasury and as deputy head of mission at the British embassy in Berlin. In his new role, Simon will lead a team overseeing policy and governance with the Archbishops’ Council, General Synod and the House of Bishops.
Ancient mosaics of Deborah and Jael uncovered in Israel dig
An archaeological dig in Huqoq, within Israel’s Lower Galilee region, has discovered a mosaic of the prophet and judge Deborah, and the heroine Jael, which is believed to date from 500CE. The team from universities in Malta and North Carolina found it on the floor of an ancient Jewish synagogue. The Christian Post says it depicts stories from the book of Judges, where Deborah and military commander Barak led the Israelites in victory over the Canaanites. One image has Barak with a shield while Deborah gazes at him from under a palm tree. And another has Jael striking the Canaanite leader Sisera to death. These are the latest in a series of mosaics of Biblical stories uncovered at the site.
Reawakening ancient view of nature as sacred
The Guardian carries a review of Karen Armstrong’s book Sacred Nature, which argues that belief systems must change so that nature is treated with reverence. She describes how ancient spiritual traditions can help regain a sense of the sacredness of nature, which may lead to an awareness of the damage and harm inflicted on the natural world.
Relics of St Bernadette come to Britain in the autumn
The relics of St Bernadette will journey on pilgrimage to England, Scotland, and Wales in September and October this year. Bernadette’s visions of the Virgin Mary in a cave on the outskirts of Lourdes led her to build a chapel there. Since then 70 miracles have been associated with prayers and Lourdes has become a huge pilgrimage centre. Bernadette died in 1879 and became a saint in 1933. The church hopes that the relics will inspire conversion, healing and awakening of vocation.
