Netanyahu: outrageous slanders against Israel “demonise Jews everywhere”
Israel’s Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, made a defiant speech to the US Congress, vowing to continue with the war against Hamas until “total victory”. Emphasising the alliance with the US, he said, “Give us the tools and we’ll finish the job” adding that when the two countries stand together, “We win, they lose”. He framed criticism of Israel as antisemitism: “Just as malicious lies were levelled for centuries at the Jewish people, malicious lies are now being levelled at the Jewish state. The outrageous slanders that paint Israel as racist and genocidal are meant to delegitimise Israel, to demonise the Jewish state and to demonise Jews everywhere.” His speech won frequent loud applause in Congress, but also silence from Democrats and loud protests from thousands of people on the streets outside, some of whom were from Jewish organisations. RNS reports that the anti-Zionist activist group Jewish Voice for Peace assembled hundreds of protesters on Capitol Hill the day before. Netanyahu said protesters were “useful idiots” for Israel’s opponents and they should be ashamed of themselves.
200 global religious leaders say the US is complicit in the war in Gaza
Churches for the Middle East has organised the publication of an open letter, signed by 200 global religious leaders, calling on world powers to “end complicity in the ongoing violence and atrocities being committed in the Holy Land”. The letter calls for an immediate permanent ceasefire, the release of hostages and prisoners held without due process of law, the unimpeded flow of humanitarian aid to civilians, and halting all weapons and ammunition transfers to Israel. The group sent a copy to President Biden and his team with a cover letter saying the US Administration had been complicit in, and actively aided, the ongoing violence in Gaza. It was released hours before President Netanyahu’s address to Congress.
Report says antisemitism incidents in Canada in 2023 was worst year ever recorded
A report into antisemitism in Canada says incidents in 2023 made it the worst year ever recorded and “not since the Holocaust has Canada’s Jewish community faced such a legitimate threat to its survival”. The annual audit report is by “B’nai Brith”, which means Children of the Covenant, a worldwide Jewish advocacy organisation. It recorded 5,791 incidents in 2023, a rise of 109 per cent on the previous year, saying multiple conflicts in Israel led to an unprecedented rise. Hardeep Singh reports that Montreal has become the one of the most dangerous places for Jews in North America. It has the second largest Jewish community in Canada, at 90,000 people, but police recorded a total of 191 hate crimes and hate incidents against Jewish communities over the past nine months alone.
Archbishop praises MPs for standing up to anger and abuse in election campaign
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, has praised the peaceful transfer of power in parliament, but warned of the abuse and anger towards politicians especially in the election and said MPs had been courageous to stand. Preaching at the traditional service for a new parliament, held at St Margaret’s Church in Westminster, he said: “Many of you will have endured abuse beyond the acceptable and normal in a campaign. Threats aimed especially at women are becoming normalised. Hustings held in churches have sometimes needed close protection officers.” The fears and traits that Britain will encounter during this parliament “may become huge”, and the responsibility placed on MPs “is enormous”. But he advised MPs and parliamentary staff not to be afraid, but “to do right, to love justice, and to walk humbly with God”.
Cardinal visits Ukraine offering support and commitment to a lasting peace
The Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, has visited Ukraine to see the sites of Russia’s latest aggression and to assure President Zelensky of the Holy See’s support and commitment to “a just and lasting peace”. He saw for himself the ruins of the Okhmatdyt Ukrainian Paediatric Hospital in Kyiv, bombed earlier this month, despite there being 627 children cared for inside. Two people died and 50 were injured including eight children. There have been frequent visits to Ukraine by Vatican officials and many phone calls and face to face meetings between the Pope and the president. During his visit, Cardinal Parolin was awarded the Order of Merit, in honour of his work developing bilateral relations during the war.
Vatican deeply concerned at nuclear weapons escalation
The Vatican’s permanent observer to the United Nations in Geneva, has said the Holy See is deeply concerned at nuclear escalation. Archbishop Ettore Balestrero told a UN committee that nuclear weapons pose an existential threat made worse by the “ongoing modernisation and expansion of nuclear arsenals.” Pope Francis has said that the manufacture and possession of nuclear weapons, even for deterrence, is morally wrong. The Vatican is concerned by the continuing growth in military expenditure related to nuclear weapons and the increase in rhetoric and threats about their possible use. Such actions, he said, are “an affront to humanity as a whole.” Vatican News report here
Religious disaffiliation in East Asia – yet religious belief remains entrenched
A Pew Research survey of 10,000 people in Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and Vietnam has found that many people don’t identify with a religion but say they believe in unseen beings, venerate ancestors’ spirits and engage in ritual practices. It does indicate that few adults engage in daily prayers, few consider religion a major part of their lives and the rate of leaving organised religion is the highest in the world. But a report in Religion Unplugged explains, the belief in unseen beings is a deeply entrenched aspect of the cultural, religious, and spiritual life throughout the region, linking spirituality, folklore and everyday life. There is a continuing belief that ancestral spirits protect and guide people in exchange for reverence and offerings. The article suggests that “spirituality centres on personal experiences and beliefs, while religion is structured around collective beliefs, practices and institutional frameworks. The belief in unseen beings connects both concepts”. Religion Unplugged article is here
Members of new religious movement at risk of deportation from Turkey
The organisation Human Rights Without Frontiers is highlighting the story of 40 members of the new religious movement, the Ahmadi Religion of Peace and Light, who are being threatened with deportation from Turkey. The movement developed in Iraq in 1999, following Imam Ahmed Al-Hassan, considered to be a prophetic figure, but they are regarded as heretics in Muslim majority countries and at risk of persecution. The group of 40 were among more than 100 from countries including Iran and Iraq, who fled to Turkey where they tried to cross the border into Bulgaria, but they were detained leading to an intervention by the United Nations. The movement is based in Cheshire with members in the US, UK and EU.
