Day of protests and demonstrations against Middle East violence
Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem took part in a general strike to protest against attacks on Gaza and there were clashes in several locations. In several cities, the charity Standing Together organised joint protests against all violence, with Jews and Arabs uniting in demonstrations of support. They say: “If we want to build a future here in the region without fear, a future comprised of security, freedom, and peace, we must create a true Arab-Jewish partnership here, not one of words only, but of action … We must not accept or tolerate violence committed by Jews against Arabs, nor of Arabs against Jews.”
The new leader of Progressive Judaism, Rabbi Sergio Bergman, says the movement will stand with Israel and Israelis. He will be installed as President of the World Union for Progressive Judaism at its virtual conference starting today (19 May). The union represents 1.2 million Jews in more than 50 countries. He says: “I am currently in Jerusalem and, like everyone here … I am scared and fearful of what each day will bring and of what lies ahead. And in the diaspora, our members are also suffering. We are seeing an increase in antisemitism in our cities around the world.” He goes on to say that the conference will discuss “how Progressive Judaism can be a voice of reason and peace at this time”.
President Joe Biden and US officials have encouraged Israel to “wind down the bombardment of Gaza”, according to a report by the Associated Press. But prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said operations would continue until calm was restored for all Israeli citizens. Airstrikes on Gaza have killed 215 people and rocket attacks on Israel have killed 12.
In Jerusalem, Sami El-Yousef, chief executive of the Latin Patriarchate, a church in the Roman Catholic tradition, says only a miracle can save the Holy Land from the next looming disaster. In an online reflection, he reports that the Rosary Sisters Convent and Kindergarten in Gaza were damaged with repeated bombing on the street outside, but the sisters refused to leave their building in order to protect the school. He paid tribute to the parish priests for heroic work in ministering to people despite the danger. But he says the worst development is the violence between Arabs and Jews in many Israeli cities, where lynching is becoming a daily event. His online reflection is here
Habib Karam, who belongs to the Catholic Catenian lay order in Nazareth, says attacks by local institutions and Jewish extremists do not distinguish between Christians and Muslims in the current wave of violence. In a filmed message, he said “our hope is education” and his desire is that when young people work in the medical and technical fields, or with international organisations or the government, they will be able to make a difference.
Top crown prosecutor to lead Catholic safeguarding agency
Nazir Afzal, the former chief crown prosecutor most responsible for bringing down the Rochdale grooming gangs, has been appointed as the chairman of the Catholic Safeguarding Standards Agency. During a 24-year career, he has led on cases involving violence against women and girls, child sexual abuse, and “honour”-based violence. The deputy chairman is Stephen Ashley, a former assistant chief constable who wrote a Home Office report on the conduct of the police during the Jimmy Savile investigations. The appointments are part of wide-ranging reforms to safeguarding structures, enabling greater regulatory powers across the Catholic Church of England and Wales.
Local authorities failing to fund religious education adequately
New research suggests that only eight per cent of local authorities provide the recommended funding for Sacres — the organisations that oversee religious education and collective worship for schools in their area. RE must be taught in all schools, but it is not part of the national curriculum, so responsibility is with the local authorities and the National Association of Sacres advises this should cost two per cent of the budget. But only 12 authorities provided this. A further 25 allocated no funding. More than half said they did not use any funds to support RE in schools. Sacres (Standing Advisory Councils on Religious Education) provide a curriculum tailored to an area, but one authority confessed their syllabus had not changed since 2000.
Time to take back ‘evangelical’ label from white nationalists
A leading Christian theologian has called for the term “evangelical” to be reclaimed and not be used as a form of name-calling. Dr David Muir, head of Whitelands College at Roehampton University, said that evangelicals were part of mainstream Christianity, but unless they “thought beyond their own little theological tribes, started to think about the common good and asked what they could do as citizens that benefited everyone else”, they were “going to be in a pretty awful place”. Read our report of his comments at the recent Religion Media Festival, Exploring Belief here
Mosque in northern India bulldozed despite court protection
A mosque hundreds of years old in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh has been bulldozed after officials claimed it was built illegally and was an obstruction. The Masjid Gareeb Nawaz Al Maroof, in Barabanki district, was demolished on Monday following a legal tussle with the local administration, but the action defied a court order that delayed demolitions until the end of this month. The Uttar Pradesh Sunni Central Waqf Board condemned the demolition, calling it “patently illegal and high-handed” and demanding the mosque’s restoration. The local government is controlled by the BJP, whose chief minister has been accused of Islamophobia and discriminating against Muslims. A local Imam said Muslims were living in fear and hiding away from their homes. This is the worst attack since the Babri mosque in the adjacent district of Ayodhya, was demolished by a mob in 1992. A Hindu temple is being constructed on that site.
Research shows how faith groups trust media in America
The Public Religion Research Institute in the United States, has published research into the media habits of American faith groups. It found the majority in most faith communities trusted mainstream news outlets such as CNN, NBC, ABC or CBS. The highest support (79 per cent) came from black Protestants, followed by Catholics, Jewish Americans and the religiously unaffiliated. But white evangelicals (30 per cent) and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (28 per cent) are the least likely to trust mainstream news. Support for Fox News was highest among white evangelicals, white Protestants and white Catholics.
