Global day of reflection on one year of unceasing war in the Middle East
On the first anniversary of the Hamas terrorist attack leading to Israel’s retaliation in Gaza, Pope Francis joined other world leaders calling for an end to the fighting. In a letter to Catholics in the Middle East, he said “the fuse of hatred” had been lit a year ago and “exploded in a spiral of violence – in the shameful inability of the international community and the most powerful countries to silence the weapons and put an end to the tragedy of war”. As memorial events took place, Israel continued its ground operation into Lebanon and last night, it launched attacks on 120 sites in southern Lebanon and Beirut. During the day, rockets continued to be fired on Israel from Gaza and Lebanon.
In the UK, faith leaders called for Christians, Jews and Muslims to come together in their “shared humanity”. Nine leaders including the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, the Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis, and the chair of the Mosques and Imans National Advisory Board Imam Qari Asim, mourned all innocent people who have lost their lives and vowed to nurture good community relations in the UK: “In these challenging times, we must also reject those who seek to divide us. Anti-Jewish hate and anti-Muslim hate have no place in the UK today. We must stand together against prejudice and hatred in all its forms”.
The mother of the only British-Israeli hostage still being held by Hamas in Gaza has asked why the UK is not “fighting every moment to secure her release”. 28 year old Emily Damari was shot and taken from an Israeli kibbutz across the border into Gaza on 7 October. Her mother, Mandy Damari, said her daughter’s “plight seems to have been forgotten” and pleaded with Britain and other countries to do more. She asked: “Why isn’t the whole world, especially Britain, fighting every moment to secure her release? She’s one of their own”.
The Secretary General of the Muslim Council of Britain, Zara Mohammed, writing in the Guardian, said the reverberations of the Israel-Gaza conflict have been felt acutely by British Muslims, espeially those whose family members were killed. She said the war has challenged their sense of security and place within British society. Parents have been distraught after their children were arrested for pro-Palestinian advocacy, with university students fearing deportation for criticising Israel. Of the protests at the civilian death toll she said: “This is not a Muslim issue; it’s a human rights issue that concerns us all”.
Other news
Museum opens in Paris dedicated to centuries of Sufi art and culture
A museum displaying objects of art telling the story of Sufism over the centuries has opened in a suburb of Paris – an international first. It features decorative and everyday objects relating to Sufism, including sculpture, textiles, calligraphy, manuscripts and ceramic and mirror mosaics. Traditional music also features in a series of sound installations. Centre stage is a rare khirqa, a traditional cloak passed between successive Sufi masters. One of the most striking installations is a lecture on eternal life, delivered via hologram by the master who came up with the idea of the museum – Hazrat Shah Maghsoud Sadegh Angha, the 41st master of the Maktab Tarighat Oveyssi Shahmaghsoudi School of Islamic Studies, who died in 1980. Sufism is often referred to as the mystical dimension of Islam, a path towards inner knowledge and connection with God, through prayer, chanting and meditation. Claire Sahar Bay, president of the museum’s board, said universal concepts of love, unity and harmony take different forms in art and the museum offers opportunities for reflection and contemplation. Read Lianne Kolirin’s report on the museum here
Marsha de Cordova is new Second Church Estates Commissioner
The Labour MP for Battersea, Marsha de Cordova, has been appointed as the Second Church Estates Commissioner, succeeding the former Conservative MP Andrew Selous who was voted out in the General Election. She takes on a role first created in 1850 to coordinate between government, parliament, and the established church. Registered blind, she was Shadow Secretary of State for Women and Equalities from April 2020 until September 2021 and Shadow Minister for Disabled People from 2016 until April 2020. She also served on the Work and Pension Select Committee and Petitions Committee. Before entering Parliament, she worked in the charity sector for more than ten years. She said: “I am honoured to take on this role. The Church of England is a core part of our national story and plays a vital role in our society. I look forward to working with my fellow Commissioners – and my fellow parliamentarians – to help further the work of the church.” The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby said he was delighted at her appointment.
US report charts China’s “coercive” religious policy
The authorities in China have replaced Christian symbols of Jesus and Mary with images of communist leaders and party slogans in many churches, according to the US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF). Its report “Sinicization of Religion: China’s Coercive Religious Policy” points to an aggressive policy to integrate the Chinese Communist Party ideology into religious practices. It cites instances where crosses and religious imagery were removed from churches and replaced with portraits of President Xi Jinping and the late Chairman Mao Zedong. Reports from local media and human rights organisations indicate that such affect not only Christians but also Muslims, Buddhists and followers of other religions. USCIRF is an independent, bipartisan US federal government agency which monitors freedom of religion or belief abroad and makes policy recommendations to the President, Secretary of State, and Congress. Its chair is Professor Stephen Schneck, recently retired from The Catholic University of America.
The fate of a pacifist Christian sect in Georgia
The Associated Press reports on a Christian sect which is now on the brink of vanishing in Georgia. Today, only about 100 Doukhobors remain in the tight-knit Russian-speaking farming community in two remote mountainous villages in southern Georgia. The pacifist Christian sect emerged in Russia in the 18th century. Thousands of their ancestors were expelled to the fringes of the Russian Empire for rejecting the Orthodox church and refusing to serve in Czar Nicholas I’s army. The community grew to around 20,000, but when some refused to pledge allegiance to the new czar, the authorities unleashed a violent crackdown and sent about 4,000 of them to live elsewhere. Their plight caught the attention of Russian novelist Leo Tolstoy, also a pacifist, who donated the profits from his final novel “Resurrection” to help around 7,500 Doukhobors emigrate to Canada to escape persecution. Reporter Kostya Manenkov tracked down one of the last remaining members, 46-year-old Yuri Strukov. He owns cattle and produces cottage cheese and sour cream, braving freezing temperatures during winter and droughts in the summer, with his village a three-hour drive from the nearest big city — which does not appeal to many Doukhobors any longer. “The community has changed because it became small,” he says. “The fact that there are few of us leaves a heavy residue in the soul.” AP report is here.
