QUOTES FROM THE MEDIA
CHURCH OF ENGLAND ISSUES GUIDANCE ON MEMORIALS WITH SLAVERY LINKS New guidance has been issued by the Church of England to help churches and cathedrals address concerns over memorials with links to slavery. Contested Heritage in Cathedrals and Churches focuses on memorials for people or events connected with racism and slavery. It recognises the ‘anger’ over monuments to people with such links, expressed in the toppling of statues during protests last year… The guidance says… ‘The effects of enslavement continue to impact the lives of many UK ethnic minority communities to whom, at best, these objects may be reminders of an “overcome” past, a horror from which we celebrate our extrication; at worst, for these objects to remain in place with no discussion or interpretation could be taken to imply that the oppression and disenfranchisement they evoke for many in affected communities is socially and theologically acceptable to the Church’… ‘The passions around this – on all sides – mean that there needs to be open dialogue,’ it reads… The guidance recognises that consultations may conclude ... not to remove a particular monument, but says that churches should nonetheless engage in research, consultation and reflection where concerns are raised, to assess how much objects may impact on missional, pastoral and liturgical activities.
BRITISH CUPPA AT RISK FROM CLIMATE CHANGE, SAYS CHRISTIAN AID Climate change is putting the muchloved British cuppa at risk as extreme weather and rising temperatures hit tea-growing countries, according to Christian Aid. The UK and Ireland drink more tea per person than any other countries in the world, with Kenya alone producing half the black tea drunk in the UK. But ... the charity is warning that climate change is going to slash optimal conditions for tea production in Kenya by a quarter in the next 30 years. Dr Kat Kramer … says ... ‘Within the next few years, we have a window of opportunity to act... One of the big questions for the G7 is ... how much ... wealthy countries are willing to open their pockets to actually deliver a global recovery.’
A new prayer post feature is being tested on Facebook that will allow members of Facebook groups to ask for and respond to prayer requests. The move by the social media giant was confirmed to the Religion News Service. ‘Our mission to give people the power to build community extends to the world’s largest community; the faith community,’ Nona Jones, head of Global Faith Partnerships at Facebook, said in a written statement… The idea for prayer posts grew out of the many ways users have connected over Facebook while distancing during the Covid-19 pandemic... The testing is taking place in a subset of groups in the United States... A pray button can be clicked to let the poster know their request will be committed to prayer.
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CALL TO PROTECT FREE SPEECH AS MPS ACCUSE MEDIA OF ANTI-RELIGIOUS BIAS Calls by MPs for the media to improve their ‘religious literacy’ must not lead to the ‘stifling’ of free speech, humanists have said. A report by the all-party parliamentary group on religion in the media said that many religious people believed that journalists were ‘indifferent towards religion and belief at best and actively biased against people of faith at worst’. It proposed that groups should be able to make joint complaints to media regulators on grounds of discrimination, that religious literacy training should be made part of journalism qualifications and that journalists should focus more on the ‘lived experience’ of people of faith, rather than just the doctrines and rituals. Humanists UK expressed concern about the consequences of the report’s recommendations. ‘It is essential that the media remain free to criticise religious beliefs and ideas, which can be the source of much harm around the world today,’ Richy Thompson, the group’s director of public affairs and policy, said. ‘Any stifling of such criticism could be a significant impingement on essential freedom of speech.’
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Salvationist 22 May 2021
FACEBOOK TESTS NEW ‘PRAYER POST’ FEATURE
ISSN 2516-5909
THE SALVATION ARMY FOUNDER William Booth GENERAL Brian Peddle TERRITORIAL COMMANDER Commissioner Anthony Cotterill EDITOR-IN-CHIEF AND PUBLISHING SECRETARY Major Mal Davies
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