Pope commits to Christian unity and interfaith dialogue
Pope Leo XIV has greeted delegations from a wide variety of Christian denominations and other faith traditions, saying the pursuit of full and visible communion of all Christians is one of his priorities. He promised to follow Pope Francis in taking forward the Document on Human Fraternity promoting dialogue, and “promoting the synodal character of the Catholic Church”. He also promised to pursue the “common path” followed by people of all faith traditions, which must be understood “in a spirit of human fraternity”, building bridges and making time for dialogue. He expressed gratitude to other faith traditions for their contributions to peace “in a world wounded by violence and conflict” and hoped that together they would say no to war, the arms race and an unjust economy, and yes to peace, disarmament and development.
Vatican may host peace talks between Ukraine and Russia
Donald Trump said The Vatican is interested in hosting negotiations for peace between Ukraine and Russia. This followed his two-hour phone call with Putin. Earlier, the Pope met the US vice president JD Vance and the US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio. He was presented with a football shirt and invited to the White House. Then JD Vance went on to meet Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, secretary for relations with states and international organizations, exchanging views on international issues.
Pope Francis’ message to church in London three days before he died
In one of his last actions, Pope Francis sent a letter of support to the organisers of a joint service being held today at Temple Church in London, and the Catholic Co-Cathedral in Jerusalem, marking the 1700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea, the historic gathering that formulated an understanding of Jesus as God, which has lasted through the centuries. Three days before Francis died, he assured those taking part of his spiritual closeness to them and his prayers for peace in the Holy Land. The service is organised by the Friends of the Holy Land, which supports Christians in the region.
Call for antisemitism training at the BBC after Lineker’s departure
The Board of Deputies of British Jews vice president, Andrew Gilbert, has issued a statement on the announcement that BBC sports presenter Gary Lineker is leaving the BBC, after he re-posted a tweet with an antisemitic image. Mr Gilbert said: “It is right that the BBC and Gary Lineker have decided that the presenter will stand down from his work in light of the offence he caused by re-posting an antisemitic image. We had called for his departure and welcome this outcome. This incident further underscores the importance and urgency of implementing antisemitism training for all BBC staff.” Gary Lineker has apologised unreservedly, saying he did not notice the image and he should have been more diligent. The tweet has been deleted.
Global survey finds loss of religion leads to loss of fulfilment
The Telegraph reports key findings of the US based The Global Flourishing Study, which suggests that loss of religion and loss of fulfilment go hand in hand. The study is conducted by the Institute for Studies of Religion at Baylor University and the Human Flourishing Program at Harvard University, in partnership with Gallup and the Center for Open Science. Based on survey results from 200,000 people across 22 countries, they found a widespread correlation between those nationalities who feel most fulfilled and those with the highest religious observance. Telegraph story here
Hasidic author offers emotional wellbeing advice for new generation
Levi Shmotkin, a 27-year-old Hasidic author, is visiting Britain as part of a global tour spanning 100 cities. His mission is to share the teachings and pastoral insights of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, the seventh and last leader of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement, widely revered for his spiritual and emotional guidance. Shmotkin’s newly published book, Letters for Life, distills Rabbi Schneerson’s wisdom into practical advice for a new generation. The book focuses on preventative emotional care, managing difficult emotions, and cultivating emotional wellness. His message is especially timely: recent research shows that Orthodox Jews are often less likely to seek mental health treatment, largely due to stigma and concerns about confidentiality.
CofE congregation numbers rise by 1.2 per cent
The Church of England says the number of regular worshippers grew to 1.02 million in 2024, a rise of 1.2 per cent on the previous year, moving closer to the pre-Covid pandemic number. On a typical Sunday, 582,000 people attend CofE services, but this number is larger when weekday services are included. The figures are from internal data published in Statistics for Mission. This also showed that the number of page visits to the website listing all CofE churches, AChurchNearYou.com, jumped by 55 per cent last year to almost 200 million searches.
CofE congregation numbers rise by 1.2 per cent
The agenda for the Church of England general synod meeting in July has been published. It will include clergy pay and pensions, re-organisation of church institutions, redress for survivors of abuse, church growth and a bid to remove Issues in Human Sexuality from the vocations process. The Church Times points out that a senior member of the armed forces, who is not named, will speak. It reports that Living in Love and Faith, dealing with same sex blessings, is not the agenda.
