Two women claim Bishop of Liverpool sexually assaulted them
The Bishop of Liverpool, John Perumbalath, has been accused of sexually assaulting one woman and harassing a woman bishop, Channel 4 News reported last night. It says Archbishop Stephen Cottrell, the interim head of the Church of England after Justin Welby resigned in November, was also made aware of the allegations after Perumbalath was promoted but before he was formally enthroned as Bishop of Liverpool in April 2023. The woman bishop made a formal complaint, but a judge refused to allow it because more than a year had passed since the alleged harassment. The woman church member says she was sexually assaulted on separate occasions between 2019 and 2023 and told the police, who interviewd the bishop but closed the case due to insufficient evidence. Bishop Perumbalath has consistently denied the allegations. Full story on our website here.
Injuries after crowd surge at Kumbh Mela festival in India
There are reports of injuries after a crowd surge at the Kumbh Mela Hindu festival in northern India, which attracts 400 million people over six weeks, in the largest gathering on earth. People set up temporary tents by the confluence of two rivers, bathing for the forgiveness of sins, and performing rituals with colourful body paints and festival clothing. The BBC reports that people sleeping by the riverbanks were trampled by others going into the river. Twenty ambulances were seen in 15 minutes rushing to the scene and security officers tried to stop the crowd surging forward. Pictures show people distressed and draped in blankets suffering from shock. BBC live page here
Cardiff University axes Religion and Theology department
Four hundred jobs are being cut at Cardiff University, and several departments are closing including Religion and Theology, as the unversity faces a £30 million hole in its budget. Vice Chancellor, Professor Wendy Larner, said they had to take difficult decisions after a drop in international student applications. The Religion and Theology department has links to the Centre for the Study of Law and Religion, and the Centre for the Study of Islam in the UK, and it is not clear what the impact will be. This is not the only blow to the teaching of religion in Wales. The University of Wales Trinity Saint David in Lampeter, an important centre for theology, philosophy, and religious studies going back 200 years, is cutting all its undergraduate courses and students will transfer in September to a Carmarthenshire campus.
Government rejects calls for definition of extremism to be expanded
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has rejected calls in a leaked Home Office report for the definition of extremism to be expanded. The report was called for after the murder of three little girls in Southport last August. It has been leaked by the right wing think tank Policy Exchange, which says it lists nine types of extremism in the following order – Islamist, extreme right wing, extreme misogyny, pro-Khalistan extremism, Hindu nationalist extremism, environmental extremism, Left wing, anarchist and single-issue extremism, violence fascination and conspiracy theories. The report says extremism should be categorised as concerning behaviours and activity rather than ideologies; claims of “two-tier” policing are an example of a right-wing extremist narrative; and grooming gangs are an issue exploited by the far-right to stir hatred against Muslims. Government ministers have made it clear that the expanded definitions are rejected and their view remains that Islamist extremism and far right extremism are the biggest threats.
Vatican warns of AI ‘enslavement’
The Vatican believes that AI technology contains “the shadow of evil” and has urged governments to monitor its development. A 13,000-word document, Antiqua et nova (Ancient and New), was published with the Pope’s approval yesterday, the day after global panic about China’s DeepSeek chatbot wiped hundreds of billions of dollars from the value of US tech firms. It says AI can transform lives for the better but can have apocalyptic consequences if misused. It can also lead to loneliness and “enslave” workers by limiting them to “rigid and repetitive tasks”. Pope Francis has been the victim of AI manipulation with deepfake images of him in a white puffer coat and flirting with the singer Madonna. Times report here
Jake Wallis Simons steps down as Jewish Chronicle editor
Jake Wallis Simons, editor of the Jewish Chronicle since 2021, is stepping down. He is succeeded by Daniel Schwammenthal, a former opinion writer on the Wall Street Journal. Mr Wallis Simons has signed a contract with Little Brown for a book, Never Again? How the West Betrayed the Jews and Itself, to published in September. He said: “It has been the honour and challenge of my life to steer the ship through the unprecedented turbulence of 7 October and beyond.” He will write a regular column for the Chronicle.
Sir Stephen Timms reprimanded for attending MCB event
Labour minister Sir Stephen Timms, who attended a Muslim Council of Britain annual leadership dinner and awards evening last week, has been “reminded of his duty to uphold collective responsibility”, according to Number Ten Downing Street. Successive governments have refused to engage with the MCB since 2009 after comments by a deputy secretary general. The prime minister’s official spokesman said the government’s policy on the group “has not changed”.
Bishop calls for £2.6bn to halt ‘degradation’ in parishes
An urgent call to transfer £2.6 billion into funds to help boost parish ministry across the Church of England will be proposed at the General Synod next month. Dr Michael Beasley, the Bishop of Bath & Wells, will say there is “widespread degradation” in parishes and dioceses, as they struggle to balance the books by selling property and cutting clergy posts. Church Times report here
Full-scale replica of Anne Frank’s secret annexe opens in Manhattan
A life-sized recreation of the secret annexe in which the Jewish schoolgirl Anne Frank hid from the Nazis with her family for two years has opened to the public at the Center for Jewish History in Manhattan. It shows the five rooms as they would have looked while the Frank family and others lived in hiding and includes Anne’s desk at which she wrote the diary, which was published after her death in Belsen concentration camp aged 15. AP report here
Christian street preacher loses appeal over ‘Love Muslims, Hate Islam’ poster Report here
Nigerian politician condemns Badenoch for criticising his country Report here
Musk brother offers drone ‘son et lumiere’ for Catholic jubilee Report here
‘Double standards policing’ claim by woman arrested outside abortion clinic Report here
Female church worker in court over her behaviour towards boy, 14 Report here
