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2 weeks ago | 
religionmediacentre.org.uk | Angela Youngman |Oliver Bowring
By Angela YoungmanA patchwork coat with a long train, carrying prayers and hopes for the environment, is on a pilgrimage though the UK, resting overnight in churches and religious centres. To date it has travelled more than 1,500 miles, borne on the shoulders of hundreds of people. This month, it is journeying through Norfolk. Nobody knows just how many people have worn the coat, simply because there have been so many that the organisers have lost count.
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3 weeks ago | 
religionmediacentre.org.uk | Lianne Kolirin |Oliver Bowring
By Lianne KolirinThe British historian Sir Simon Schama has spoken out about the “toxic” spread of antisemitism in popular culture since 7 October 2023. He said that the rise of anti-Jewish hatred was “extremely upsetting” before the events of that day, but that the hatred had now spread like an “infection”. Sir Simon described the “trivialisation and debasement” of Holocaust memory by controversial public figures with vast social media followings.
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3 weeks ago | 
religionmediacentre.org.uk | Ruth Peacock |Oliver Bowring |Maira Butt
BBC broadcasts first Eid-ul-Fitr live from BradfordAfter the sighting of the crescent moon on Sunday night, Eid al-Fitr, the “festival of breaking the fast,” which marks the end of Ramadan, was broadcast live by the BBC yesterday morning, a first for British terrestrial TV. The service came from Bradford Central Mosque, a city where a third of the population is Muslim.
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3 weeks ago | 
religionmediacentre.org.uk | Ruth Peacock |Oliver Bowring |Catherine Pepinster
“Mystifying and deeply alarming” failures of Justin WelbyThe former Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, has given an interview to the BBC about his resignation in November, following a review which said he should have done more to stop the serial abuser John Smyth. In a comment which made the headlines, he said he would forgive John Smyth, if he were alive – Smyth died in 2018 a year after Channel 4 exposed his abuse of more than 100 young men, beaten until they bled in his garden shed.
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3 weeks ago | 
religionmediacentre.org.uk | Maira Butt |Ruth Peacock |Oliver Bowring |Catherine Pepinster
By Maira ButtAs Ramadan comes to an end, many families across the UK eagerly await an announcement that the crescent moon has been sighted, which will mark the end of one of the holiest months in Islam. When the sun sets, Muslim commmunities enjoy a meal to break their fast, not knowing whether it will be their last. Once the declaration is made, and this is expected anytime over the next 24 hours as moonwatchers scan the skies, preparations are swiftly underway.
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3 weeks ago | 
religionmediacentre.org.uk | Catherine Pepinster |Oliver Bowring
By Catherine PepinsterChurches and cathedrals across Britain have embraced a digital revolution, prompted by the Covid pandemic, which has seen thousands of services streamed in the past five years. Some online services have led people to convert to Christianity and even become priests. What began as an emergency became an opportunity. In 2020, streaming services were offered after the UK government announced a lockdown, including the closure of churches.
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4 weeks ago | 
religionmediacentre.org.uk | Ruth Peacock |Oliver Bowring |Maira Butt |Catherine Pepinster
The church experience of long covid, with emergency online worship now a fixtureChurches and cathedrals across Britain have embraced a digital revolution, accelerated by the Covid pandemic, and have broadcast thousands of online services which have developed into church prayer groups, pastoral counselling and theological debates.
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4 weeks ago | 
religionmediacentre.org.uk | Oliver Bowring |Maira Butt |Catherine Pepinster
It’s five years since the Church of England began producing a National Online Service. Since its inception during the first COVID lockdown, it has become a fixture, especially for people who are ill, housebound or living remotely. More than a third of parish churches and those of other denominations have maintained their online Sunday service since the pandemic.
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4 weeks ago | 
religionmediacentre.org.uk | Ruth Peacock |Oliver Bowring |Maira Butt |Catherine Pepinster
Spring statement slammed as ‘lacking compassion and care’Christians Against Poverty, which offers debt advice to lift people out of poverty, says more people may be pushed into deeper debt because of the welfare cuts outlined in the Chancellor’s Spring statement. Chief executiveStewart McCulloch is urging the government to reconsider in order to protect the most vulnerable.
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1 month ago | 
religionmediacentre.org.uk | Ruth Peacock |Oliver Bowring |Maira Butt |Catherine Pepinster
Isle of Man passes assisted dying billThe Isle of Man has become the first part of the UK and Crown dependencies to pass an Assisted Dying Bill. It means that adult Isle of Man residents who are of sound mind, are terminally ill, have twelve months or fewer to live, and have a clear and settled wish to die, can apply for assisted dying. Members of the Legislative Council, the upper chamber, agreed amendments to cut the residency criteria from five years to 12 months for someone to be eligible.
