Daily media briefing
Stay informed with our daily media briefing newsletter. Every weekday morning we'll bring you the most relevant news and updates related to secularism directly to your inbox.
* = Registration may be required to read the article
Mon, 29 Jan 2024
Inside the primary school row over a pro-Palestinian badge
Parents at the centre of the dispute at Barclay Primary School in east London speak for first time.
The Times*
Archbishops should be ‘held to account’ over disgraced ex-Post Office boss
Archbishops should be "held to account", clergy have said, after it emerged that Paula Vennells held four roles within the Church of England after the Post Office scandal broke.
The Daily Telegraph*
High-ranking Orthodox prelate warns against spread of antisemitism by religious officials
Speaking on the day for commemorating the victims of the Holocaust, a high-ranking official of the Orthodox Church warned Sunday against the spread of antisemitism by religious and church officials.
Associated Press
Canada: Ex-minister of secretive sect admits to child sex abuse
Robert Corfield, a man who abused a boy in Canada in a secretive Christian church in the 1980s, has spoken publicly about what happened for the first time.
BBC
Hindu group toughens stance on India's mosque-temple disputes
A powerful Hindu group said several mosques in India were built over demolished Hindu temples, apparently hardening its stance in a decades-long sectarian dispute just days after a huge temple was inaugurated on the site of a razed mosque.
Reuters
Haji Malang: The Sufi shrine caught up in a religious row in Mumbai
A Sufi shrine frequented by Indians of all faiths made headlines recently after a top political leader said that he wanted to "liberate" it for just Hindus. The BBC's Cherylann Mollan visited to understand what the controversy was about.
BBC
Istanbul church attack: Gunmen kill one person during Sunday morning mass
Two gunmen attacked a Catholic church in Istanbul, turning morning mass into a scene of terror and killing one man.
BBC
Fri, 26 Jan 2024
Charity linked to preacher convicted of fraud over bogus Covid cure told to shut
A charity whose trustee was found guilty of fraud for selling a bogus cure for Covid-19 has been ordered to shut down.
Evening Standard
Hizb ut-Tahrir plotting legal battle to fight terror ruling
A terror organisation is reportedly planning to launch a legal battle to overturn the government's decision to outlaw the group as part of a fightback plan that has been in place for years.
The Jewish Chronicle
Report on sex abuse in Germany’s Protestant Church documents at least 2,225 victims
At least 1,259 people working for the Protestant Church of Germany have committed sexual abuse in the last decades and at least 2,225 victims were affected by the abuse according to an independent report published Thursday.
Associated Press
Quebec Cardinal Gerald Lacroix faces sex assault allegations in class-action lawsuit
A senior leader of the Roman Catholic Church in Quebec is facing allegations of sexual assault as part of a class-action lawsuit against the archdiocese in the provincial capital.
National Post
Iran regime bars former president from seeking re-election to key body
The Iranian regime has taken its crackdown on any internal opposition into a new phase by disqualifying the reformist former president Hassan Rouhani from seeking re-election to the assembly of experts, the body that chooses the country's supreme leader.
The Guardian
Police detain 15 for religious clashes after inauguration of India’s Ram temple
Police in India detained 15 people in connection with religious violence that broke out ahead of the inauguration of a Hindu temple on the site of an illegally razed mosque in the northern city of Ayodhya.
The Independent*
Russia’s plan to seduce Christians in Africa
The Ukraine war has split Africa's Orthodox church, and some believe the Russian church has waded into Africa to spread propaganda and stoke hostility towards the West.
The Economist*
Thu, 25 Jan 2024
Safeguarding review group at Archbishops' Council scorned by abuse survivors and their advocates
The Church of England's announcement regarding a group set up to consider how the church should respond to the findings of two safeguarding reviews, has been described as "ham-fisted" by a former General Synod member.
Premier Christian News
Monk who abused boys in his care calls his victims 'unhinged' at Scottish inquiry
A 90-year-old monk who was jailed three separate times for abusing boys in his care by subjecting them to electric shocks has called his victims 'unhinged' at an inquiry.
Daily Mail
‘What Katharine Birbalsingh gets wrong about secularism’
"Miss Birbalsingh's courageous resistance to religious bullying is to be admired without qualification. And secularism is an admirable aspiration for a school to have. But the assumption that 'British values' are by default the Anglicanism of the established church isn't secularism. It's something else."
The Spectator*
British Hizb ut-Tahrir leader and family doctor suspended by NHS
A British GP, who is one of the key figures behind an Islamist terror group, has been suspended from practising, the NHS has disclosed.
The Telegraph*
Priest jailed for sexual abuse inside Vatican in ‘Pope’s choirboys’ case
A Catholic priest has been jailed for sexually abusing an altar boy within the walls of the Vatican in the first legal case of its kind.
The Telegraph*
Pope Francis thanks Vatican journalists for uncovering Catholic scandals 'with sensitivity'
Pope Francis thanked the Rome-based journalists who regularly report on his papacy for their work to uncover scandals in the global Catholic Church in a manner that he said showed "great sensitivity".
National Catholic Reporter
Estonia tells its top Russian Orthodox clergyman to leave the country
Estonia has told the head of its branch of the Russian Orthodox Church to leave the country, calling him a threat to national security, Estonian public broadcaster ERR reported on Thursday.
Reuters
Religious 'Nones' are now the largest single group in the U.S.
When Americans are asked to check a box indicating their religious affiliation, 28% now check 'none'.
NPR
Churches and mosques burnt in Nigeria as curfew imposed in Mangu
Mosques and churches have been burnt in Nigeria's central Plateau state after a row over cattle turned deadly.
BBC
Churches, temples and monasteries regularly hit by airstrikes in Myanmar, activists say
A study issued Tuesday by researchers collecting evidence of war crimes in Myanmar supported reports that air strikes by the military government damaged churches in the Buddhist-dominated country's sole Christian-majority state.
Associated Press
Wed, 24 Jan 2024
Labour pushes bill to create new register of children not in school
Labour is planning to use an opposition day debate motion to bring forward legislation for a new register of children who are not in school as part of plans to tackle persistent absenteeism.
The Guardian
Man says Church of England 'betrayed' him and allowed choirmaster who sexually abused him to operate 'in plain sight'
A former choirboy has accused the church of serious failings after he was sexually abused by a choirmaster at the centre of a twisted paedophile ring.
Daily Mail
‘Islamists are wreaking havoc in British schools’
"The threat posed by Muslim protesters and agitators, creating trouble at the school gate and now in the courtroom, needs to be taken far more seriously. They are threatening education itself."
Spiked
Myanmar's army is losing - and facing fire from a militant monk
Last Tuesday, a noisy crowd of several hundred people stood in the small main square of Pyin Oo Lwin, a popular Myanmar hill town, to hear a bespectacled monk make a startling suggestion.
BBC
Kenya death cult leader charged after hundreds found dead in forest
A Kenyan court has charged a cult leader and dozens of suspected accomplices with manslaughter over the deaths of more than 200 people.
The Guardian
Greek Church blasts proposed same-sex civil marriages, will present its views to congregations
Greece's influential Orthodox Church on Tuesday voiced strong opposition to the center-right government's plans to legalize same-sex civil marriages, and said it would present its views to lawmakers and congregations nationwide.
Associated Press
‘How Modi is tearing up India’s secular state’
"[Modi's] time in power has seen a steady erosion of secular values, blurring the boundary between the state and religion. It falls to Indian voters to decide what kind of India they want."
The Spectator*
Vatican convicts priest accused of abuse at papal altar boys' school
A Vatican appeals court on Tuesday convicted a priest of sexually abusing a fellow student while they were both attending a school for papal altar boys.
Reuters
Nation after nation condemns China’s persecution of Uighurs
China has been publicly condemned by dozens of countries at the United Nations over its persecution of the Uighur Muslim minority and crackdown on freedoms in Hong Kong.
The Times*
Tue, 23 Jan 2024
Katherine Birbalsingh on prayer ban court fight: 'You can't divide children by race and religion'
Britain's "strictest headteacher" has said there will be despair among many parents and children at her school if a prayer ban is overturned, and pledged that she will not divide children according to race or religion.
Evening Standard
GP who heads newly outlawed Islamist group ‘suspended’ by NHS England
The Harrow GP who heads the UK branch of newly banned Islamist terror group Hizb ut-Tahrir has reportedly been suspended by NHS England.
Jewish News
‘Katharine Birbalsingh is right: a school is not a church, though a British court may soon disagree’
"[Michaela school] is an example of how children from all faiths can be taught under the same roof with a frame of reference that focuses on education rather than religion".
Evening Standard
‘Banning prayer rituals in school? Just get religion out of education completely’
"How oddly this tale of banned prayers at a non-religious school, lauded by the right, sits in England, where the state pays religions to run a third of our schools – fewer than 1% of those non-Christian. In this most atheist country, pews are empty except when parents get on their knees at admissions time for a vicar's letter."
The Guardian
Prayer row school head reveals teacher suffered racist abuse
A teacher at "Britain's strictest school" suffered "horrible racist abuse" in the wake of a prayer ban row which has been taken to the High Court.
The Times*
Nazareth Lodge: Family to get £250,000 over Belfast home abuse
The family of a man physically and sexually abused at a Belfast children's home is to receive £250,000 in damages.
BBC
UK officials probe Iran generals' antisemitic talks to students
Videos of antisemitic speeches by Iranian generals, given to UK students, are being investigated by the Charity Commission.
BBC
Church in 'serious safeguarding breach' after allowing teenager to accompany convicted paedophile
The Diocese of Truro is investigating a "serious breach of safeguarding" at one of its churches after a teenage organist was hired to work alongside a convicted paedophile.
Premier Christian News
Taliban restricting unmarried women’s access to work and travel, UN report says
The Taliban are restricting Afghan women's access to work, travel and healthcare if they are unmarried or don't have a male guardian, according to a U.N report published Monday.
France 24
Mon, 22 Jan 2024
NHS GP who leads British Hizb ut-Tahrir tried to justify Salman Rushdie stabbing
Two key figures behind a prominent Islamist extremist group until its ban last week sought to justify the attempted murder of Sir Salman Rushdie to their followers as the writer fought for his life in hospital.
The Telegraph*
'The ‘trial’ of Katharine Birbalsingh is a battle for the future of Britain'
"In the case of Michaela school, there's a vital principle at stake in the case – whether 'rights' culture is allowed to trump social cohesion."
The Telegraph*
Scrapping CofE safeguarding board left victims suicidal, report warns
The Church of England's dismantling of its own Independent Safeguarding Board left abuse victims suicidal, a psychologist has warned.
The Telegraph*
Michaela schoolgirl in prayer row was suspended for stab threat
The schoolgirl at the centre of a prayer row at one of Britain's best-known state schools was once suspended for threatening to stab a fellow pupil, it has emerged.
The Times*
East London school in Palestinian flag row could close after threats and abuse
An east London school has warned parents it may switch to online learning for its pupils because of threats to the school and abuse of staff since its decision to ban political symbols, including the Palestinian flag.
The Guardian
‘Prince William should finish what Charles started – and sever the ridiculous ties of church and state’
"Rumours that the heir isn't religious are heartening: monarchy is dubious enough without the Anglican mumbo-jumbo."
The Guardian
Church of England ‘risked teenager’s safety’ at parish attended by paedophile predator
The Church of England reportedly "gambled" with a teenage boy's safety by allowing a convicted predatory paedophile to worship at the same remote Cornish chapel.
The Telegraph*
Retired priest jailed for child sex abuse
A retired priest who sexually abused two schoolchildren at his home in the 1980s has been jailed for 32 months.
BBC
Disclaimer: Links are provided to external websites for information and in the interests of free exchange. We do not accept any responsibility for the content of those sites, nor does a link indicate approval or imply endorsement of those sites.