“Faith in the City” research project to explore faith needs in the Square Mile
The City of London Corporation has launched a research project “Faith in the City” to explore the role of faith in the Square Mile and understand what more needs to be done to support faith needs. The project was unveiled at Mansion House to an audience of more than 100 business and faith leaders. There are 678,000 people now working in the Square Mile where 80 per cent of business is global, and the Corporation wants to ensure it is open and welcoming to diverse talent and visitors. The study will involve questionnaires, meetings and interviews and will inform future policies and projects, including access to prayer spaces, dietary needs, faith-based communities, and a broad programme of inclusive events. Report here
Archbishop of York won’t quit over handling of abuse allegations
The Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell, who has faced calls to resign over his handling of abuse allegations, has given an interview to The Times saying he plans to carry on in his role until retirement in 2028. He told Kaya Burgess that he had made mistakes but “had to live with the constraints and inadequacies of our systems.” Asked whether the enthronement of the Bishop of Liverpool, John Perumbalath, should have gone ahead, he said a safeguarding investigation was completed before the ceremony and found “no ongoing safeguarding concerns”. He had supported Bishop Bev Mason making a complaint beyond the time limit, but a judge ruled it out. Interview Is here
More legal questions over independent safeguarding in the CofE
The Church Times reports that lawyers have raised questions about proposals for independent safeguarding in the Church of England, which has implications for the responsibility of trustees to be able to control the work. The questions are in a document written by solicitors who advise some dioceses. The report also says that the chief executive of the Charity Commission, David Holdsworth, has written a letter to bishops “asking whether there are any legal impediments which would prevent Diocesan Boards of Finance from fulfilling their safeguarding duties at charity trustees”. Report by Madeleine Davies is here
RMC briefing 1200 today: Impact of Bishop of Liverpool story on city, church and nation
The Religion Media Centre is holding a briefing tomorrow, Tuesday 4 Feb, at 1200: Impact of Bishop Liverpool story on city, church and country. Guests include: Bishop of Blackburn Philip North; Theo Hobson, journalist and author; Archdeacon Miranda Threlfall-Holmes; Podcaster Fr Alex Frost; and Rev Canon Rachel Firth, Vicar of Huddersfield Parish Church. To get the link: [email protected]
15-year-old boy stabbed to death at Catholic school in Sheffield
A 15-year-old boy has died after being stabbed in the playground at All Saints Catholic High School, in Sheffield at lunchtime yesterday. A 15-year-old teenager has been arrested on suspicion of murder and is in custody. Police say emergency services were called, but the boy died a short time later. Last week, the school was locked down following threats of violence. The school describes itself as a Catholic community where prayer and worship are central to daily life, with a dedicated prayer area and chapel.
Reports of new government group to re-define Islamophobia
The Telegraph reports that Angela Rayner is planning to create a 16 strong council to draw up an official government definition of anti-Muslim discrimination, and suggests Dominic Grieve, former Tory MP, will lead it. The definition put forward in 2018 by the APPG on British Muslims is: ‘Islamophobia is rooted in racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.’ But it has been criticised for potentially stifling legitimate criticism of Islam as a religion. The need for a new definition has been identified by governments for years, as a way of defining and tackling rising Islamophobia.
Zara Mohammed says British Muslims need a national narrative of belonging
Zara Mohammed, the outgoing secretary-general of the Muslim Council of Britain, has reflected on her tenure as its youngest and only female leader. In an interview with our reporter Maira Butt, she describes the turbulent past four years including the Covid-19 pandemic, the war in Gaza, the general election and the Southport riots. And now, at the end, there is a rise in the extreme far right and the rhetoric pushed by Elon Musk and Donald Trump’s presidency. As a third-generation British Muslim, she concludes “what we’re lacking is a national narrative of belonging: one that talks about the role of Muslims and Islam in Britain today.” Report is here
13th-century fresco suggests jeweled Islamic tents shielded Italian altars.
A Cambridge university historian, Dr Federica Gigante, has found a 13th century fresco in a church in Ferrara, Italy, which she believes is evidence of medieval churches using Islamic tents to conceal their high altars. The fresco was found in an apse, a semicircular recess with a semi-dome, in the Benedictine convent church of Saint Antonio in Polesine, Ferrara. It had been partly painted over with scenes depicting the Virgin Mary and Jesus Christ, which obscured it from view. It appears to represent a canopy placed over the high altar, with blue and golden drapery wrapped around the three walls and topped by a double-tier bejewelled conical canopy of the type found throughout the Islamic world. She believes it could have been painted to represent an actual tent and suggests it’s possible that Pope Innocent IV may have given jewelled textiles to the church as a gift.
