Church advisor complains of marginalisation by Government
-09/10/06
A Church of England
Church advisor complains of marginalisation by Government
-09/10/06
A Church of England advisor has accused the Government of deliberately favouring Muslims in a drive to encourage interfaith relations.
In a confidential document, the advisor says the Government’s attempts to integrate minority faiths have backfired, leaving Britain “more separated than ever before”.
The report – which was leaked to The Sunday Telegraph – claims the Church has been “sidelined” and “preferential” treatment has been given to Britain’s Muslim community.
Titled Cohesion and Integration the report was written by Guy Wilkinson, interfaith advisor to the Archbishop of Canterbury Dr Rowan Williams.
It lists a number of Government initiatives since last year’s London bombings such as shelving legislation on forced marriage, and claims they have produced no “noticeable impact on community cohesion.”
It also challenges the opinion that Britain is a “multi-faith society” and says the Government’s “schizophrenic” approach has instead added to disaffection between communities.
According to the paper, the briefing note said: “Indeed one might argue that disaffection and separation is now greater than ever, with Muslim communities withdrawing further into a sense of victimhood.”
It also reportedly said that other faith communities were “seriously concerned that the Government has given signals that appear to encourage the notion of a privileged relationship with sections of the Muslim community”.
The report follows a week in which Leader of the Commons Jack Straw sparked controversy by describing the Muslim women’s veil as “a visible statement of separation and of difference” between Muslim and non-Muslim communities.
It also follows reports that a Muslim police officer was excused from taking part in guard duty at the Israeli embassy in London.
The claims by the Church of England advisor come as no surprise however to those who have been following church trends.
In his book, ‘Faith and Politics After Christendom’ published earlier this year, Jonathan Bartley of the thinktank Ekklesia tracks a growing feeling amongst Christians that they are being marginalised in favour of other faiths. He suggests however that the feelings are often misguided and more to do with Christians coming to terms with the loss of privileges that they held during the Christendom era.
Church advisor complains of marginalisation by Government
-09/10/06
A Church of England advisor has accused the Government of deliberately favouring Muslims in a drive to encourage interfaith relations.
In a confidential document, the advisor says the Government’s attempts to integrate minority faiths have backfired, leaving Britain “more separated than ever before”.
The report – which was leaked to The Sunday Telegraph – claims the Church has been “sidelined” and “preferential” treatment has been given to Britain’s Muslim community.
Titled Cohesion and Integration the report was written by Guy Wilkinson, interfaith advisor to the Archbishop of Canterbury Dr Rowan Williams.
It lists a number of Government initiatives since last year’s London bombings such as shelving legislation on forced marriage, and claims they have produced no “noticeable impact on community cohesion.”
It also challenges the opinion that Britain is a “multi-faith society” and says the Government’s “schizophrenic” approach has instead added to disaffection between communities.
According to the paper, the briefing note said: “Indeed one might argue that disaffection and separation is now greater than ever, with Muslim communities withdrawing further into a sense of victimhood.”
It also reportedly said that other faith communities were “seriously concerned that the Government has given signals that appear to encourage the notion of a privileged relationship with sections of the Muslim community”.
The report follows a week in which Leader of the Commons Jack Straw sparked controversy by describing the Muslim women’s veil as “a visible statement of separation and of difference” between Muslim and non-Muslim communities.
It also follows reports that a Muslim police officer was excused from taking part in guard duty at the Israeli embassy in London.
The claims by the Church of England advisor come as no surprise however to those who have been following church trends.
In his book, ‘Faith and Politics After Christendom’ published earlier this year, Jonathan Bartley of the thinktank Ekklesia tracks a growing feeling amongst Christians that they are being marginalised in favour of other faiths. He suggests however that the feelings are often misguided and more to do with Christians coming to terms with the loss of privileges that they held during the Christendom era.