A church pastor in America caused something of a media storm recently when he argued against people using "religious exemption" to avoid getting vaccinated or wearing a mask.Quite rightly, he argued that true Christians will always put the needs of others above their own, although that did not go down well with some of his readers.We don’t have the same sort of religious exemptions in the UK as they do in America, but the same principles apply.Those of us who claim to be Christians are called to love God and love our neighbours as ourselves. So, when we are thinking about whether to wear a mask or be vaccinated, we should be thinking less about our personal freedom and more about what is good for other people, and especially those whose age or health makes them especially vulnerable to Covid-19.St Paul wrote: "Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. "Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others."To those who protested, saying that Jesus came to set us free, he wrote: "You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge in the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love."For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: Love your neighbour as yourself."Jesus himself called on his followers to act in the interests of the vulnerable: "Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me."In a free country, we all have the right to refuse the vaccine or to go mask-free except where the law requires it, but if we are trying to live our lives as Christians we will not do so.Loving our neighbours means recognising that being vaccinated and wearing a mask is about protecting others, and especially about keeping the vulnerable safe. Quite literally, it’s about sacrificing a bit of our freedom to save other people’s lives.
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Pope Francis and dozens of religious leaders have signed a joint appeal to governments to commit to ambitious targets at the upcoming UN climate conference in Glasgow.The religious leaders also promised to do their own part to lead their faithful towards more sustainable behaviour, as "care for the environment is a moral imperative to preserve God's creation for future generations"."We have inherited a garden; we must not leave a desert to our children," said the appeal, which was signed at a formal ceremony in the Apostolic Palace before being handed over to the COP26 President, Alok Sharma.The "Faith and Science: towards COP26" meeting brought together Christian including the Orthodox Ecumenical Patriarch, as well as representatives of Islam, Judaism, Hinduism, Sikhism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism, Zoroastrianism, and Jainism.Experts say the appeal is a make-or-break chance to curb greenhouse gas emissions.Allow me to offer three concepts for reflection on this shared endeavour: Openness to interdependence and sharing, the driving force of love and the call to respect," declared Pope Francis.The meeting follows a youth climate summit in Milan last week, and many of the faith leaders are now insisting that faith and science must listen to each other to save the planet.We need our youth to continue their call for change with the passion that we have heard today. We need the scientists with their academic authority to amplify further their voices in the public debate. And [we need] faith leaders to use their moral leadership to make the case for action," said Sharma.In their appeal, the church leaders begged political leaders to adopt measures to limit temperature rise and for countries that are most responsible for greenhouse gas emissions to provide financial support to the most vulnerable communities.Pope Francis is widely expected to attend the COP26 on October 31, a summit aiming at securing more ambitious commitment to limit global warming to well below 2 degrees Celsius, with a goal of keeping it to 1.5 degrees Celsius compared to pre-industrial levels.
Our thanks to all those who supplied feedback in response to the online questionnaires circulated to Big Questions attendees and incumbents. This will be helpful as we reflect with the Archbishop’s team on how future visits to dioceses might be made as effective as possible.The response to the Big Questions format developed by the diocese has been overwhelmingly positive, with 83% of participants according the events an overall satisfaction rating of 4 or 5 out of a possible 5 (average 4.27) and 42% of those responding indicating that they brought one or more guests. Many said they were greatly influenced by Archbishop Justin’s candour, warmth and personal testimony and were either strengthened in their faith or motivated to explore faith for the first time.When asked, participants also indicated that there were a number of ways in which any future events could be improved. These included having a longer Q&A session with the Archbishop, more local marketing to boost the number of non-Christians attending, serving refreshments to extend the time available for mingling, providing ways for those uncomfortable with using phones to submit questions and scheduling events further ahead to enable awareness and attendance to build.Peter Harwood, Director of MissionDavid Senior, Co-ordinator, Archbishop’s Visit
Over the last few weeks, I have been reminded of the importance of belonging. There is something good and life giving about being together.It was as I was travelling in the car to Loughborough last week, taking my son to uni, that we got talking about his school career. As we chatted it become clear that one of the things that had enabled him to thrive throughout his time at primary and secondary school was the fact that he felt he belonged to his school and class. Belonging is about being accepted, included, welcomed, unconditionally, no matter who you are and what you bring. It is about realising that you have a voice and that your contributions are sought after and listened to. When we feel that we belong, we feel safe in our own skin and are more likely to be able to fulfil our potential.Belonging is a key element of the Christian faith. The apostle Peter writes, in one of my favourite passages of scripture, about those who follow Jesus, ‘you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light’ (1 Pet 2:9). We belong to God because God claims us as his own. Let’s pray that those attending the numerous Christian basics courses being run around the Diocese in the aftermath of Archbishop Justin’s visit experience a real welcome and are increasingly drawn into an awareness that they can belong to God.Archdeacon Martin
