Tag: interfaith

Bishop of Worcester responds to government statement on the closure of the UK Interfaith Network

The Bishop of Worcester asked a question in response to a government statement on the closure of the UK Interfaith Network on 22nd February 2024:

The Lord Bishop of Worcester: My Lords, I too pay tribute to the work of the Inter Faith Network. As has been stated, surely the optics of this are not good. I would like to ask the Minister how far non-engagement extends, because surely, in our society, we want to encourage dialogue, even with those organisations that may express some views with which we disagree. To not be willing to engage at all with an organisation that has not been proscribed goes against all the efforts being made to bring our society together—it seems very strange.

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Bishop of Chichester asks about closure of the UK Inter-Faith Network

The Bishop of Chichester asked a question on the impact of the closure of the UK Inter-Faith Network on 21st February 2024, following the withdrawal of funding from the network by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing, and Communities:

The Lord Bishop of Chichester: My Lords, this is an extremely difficult time, in which we hear profoundly disturbing reports of the rise in race and faith-based hate crimes. Tomorrow, the board of the UK’s Inter Faith Network will meet to confirm its closure following the withdrawal of funding by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities. This comes at a time when we urgently need to promote interfaith dialogue and the expansion of religious literacy in schools, as has been mentioned, and elsewhere. What assessment have His Majesty’s Government made of the impact of the closure of the Inter Faith Network, and what will replace it?

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Bishop of Leicester asks about the UK Inter-Faith Network

The Bishop of Leicester received the following written answer on 14th June 2023:

The Lord Bishop of Leicester asked His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of (1) the value of the Inter-Faith Network, and (2) the risks of withdrawing funding from the Network.

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Bishop of Leeds asks about interfaith engagement in levelling-up agenda

The Bishop of Leeds received the following written answer on 25th May 2023:

The Lord Bishop of Leeds asked  His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the contribution of inter-faith engagement and cooperation to the Levelling Up agenda; and what plans they have, if any, to provide funding support towards the work of the Inter Faith Network, including for Inter Faith Week during 2023–24.

Baroness Scott of Bybrook (Con): The department continues to take steps to support inter-faith community cohesion. For example, this government is supporting Dame Sara Khan’s independent review of Social Cohesion and Resilience which is due to report in the Autumn, and I am considering additional options to take forward.

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Bishop of Lichfield makes maiden speech on parliamentary democracy

On 25th April 2023, The Bishop of Lichfield made his maiden speech in a debate on the strength of parliamentary democracy in the UK, speaking on the importance of freedom of faith and belief, and the benefits of interfaith relationships and communication:

The Lord Bishop of Lichfield: My Lords, I am very grateful for the opportunity to speak in this House for the first time. I promise that I will be brief. I thank all noble Lords for their warm welcome and all the parliamentary staff and officers for their kindness and patience in explaining to me the procedures, traditions and geography of this extraordinary place.

Throughout my ministry I have had the joy of living and working in places of cheerful diversity—in Leicester, in south London and now in the West Midlands—and it is in the context of a diverse society that the noble Baroness, Lady Jones of Moulsecoomb, has rightly asked this Question about the strength of our parliamentary democracy.

In 2010 the late Pope, His Holiness Benedict XVI, spoke about parliamentary democracy in an address here in Westminster. He pointed out that democracy is a process rather than a value in itself—a process whose vitality depends on its being open to people who are guided by the values and commitments that inform their conscience. He asked the question,

“where is the ethical foundation for political choices to be found?”.

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International Holocaust Memorial Day: Bishop of Carlisle speaks in tribute

On 19th January 2023, the Bishop of Carlisle spoke in a debate to mark the lead up to International Holocaust Memorial Day:

The Lord Bishop of Carlisle: My Lords, it is a privilege to follow the noble Baroness, Lady Brinton. Like so many others, I am most grateful to the noble Lord, Lord Pickles, for this Motion. It provides an opportunity not only to hear such moving contributions but to express from these Benches our deep appreciation of the history and values that Christians and Jews have in common, as well as the importance we attach to our ongoing dialogue, understanding and attempts to work together for the common good. Our central Christian act of worship, the Eucharist, originated in Christ’s participation in the Jewish ceremony of Passover. We note the huge contribution that Jewish people have made to British society through the centuries, which is a great expression of the significance of faith in public life.

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Bishop of Manchester asks about food supply to Northern Ireland

The Bishop of Manchester received the following written answer on 5th September 2022:

The Lord Bishop of Manchester asked Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to ensure an (1) adequate, and (2) diverse, supply of food for those of (a) Orthodox Jewish faith, and (b) other faiths, in Northern Ireland.

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Bishop of Birmingham on how faith and civil society can create safe spaces for dialogue

“civil society and faiths can create and convene safe spaces where difference can be spoken with care and understanding can be deepened, truth revealed and progress made towards a common good”

On 10th December 2021 the Bishop of Birmingham spoke in a House of Lords debate led by the Archbishop of Canterbury on contemporary challenges to freedom of speech and the role of the public, private and third sectors in upholding it

The Lord Bishop of Birmingham: My Lords, as we have been hearing, speech is one of the most precious gifts for humanity, freedom of which is easy to take for granted, as we may do from week to week in this House, but even easier to abuse. Speech is so important that, at this season of the year, for people of Christian tradition, we even call the son of God’s appearance the word of God—the word made flesh

In the same scriptures in which we read that story, there is warning of the danger of the use of the tongue:

“If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless.”

Of course, I do not refer to anyone who stands on the platform at Speakers’ Corner or any other venue of that kind. We remember also

“the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great things. How great a forest is set ablaze by such a small fire!”—

the blaze of instant phone recordings or a tweet out of context.

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Archbishop of Canterbury asks Government for pressure on universities over antisemitism on campus

Canterbury171018On 4th November 2019 Lord Leigh of Hurley asked the Government “how many universities in England have adopted the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of anti-Semitism; and what steps they intend to take in respect of those which have not”. The Archbishop of Canterbury, Most Revd and Rt Hon Justin Welby, asked a follow-up question:

The Lord Archbishop of Canterbury: My Lords, I declare an interest as president of the Council of Christians and Jews, founded in the depths of the Second World War by Chief Rabbi Hertz and Archbishop William ​Temple. I applaud the noble Baroness’s long history of standing up for freedom of religion and belief. Like the noble Lord, the CCJ hears numerous reports of no-platforming, intimidation and lack of free speech. I fully accept that universities are autonomous, but will the Minister look for ways in which pressure can be applied to ensure that these standards are kept? Does she agree that mere exhortation is not really working?

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Bishop of Coventry asks about lessons learned from Grenfell Tower tragedy

On 10th June 2019 the House of Lords heard repeated a statement by the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government on the second anniversary of the Grenfell Tower fire. The Bishop of Coventry, Rt Revd Christopher Cocksworth, asked a follow-up question:

Coventry171122 bThe Lord Bishop of Coventry: My Lords, I echo the praise that has already been given to the emergency services following both Barking and the Grenfell disaster. I welcome the Statement’s recognition of the power of community and its commitment to a new and stronger partnership between residents and those who serve them, for trust to rebuilt and, in particular, for the council to listen and the community to be heard.

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