Faith leaders including the Archbishop of Canterbury and Cardinal Vincent Nichols have welcomed a new report which calls for better support for asylum seekers. It comes from a commission set up to consider how refugees might be helped to integrate into society more easily. It makes a series of recommendations and suggests that the current system creates barriers to asylum seekers who want to quickly make good use of their existing skills and qualifications. The government says it's committed to ensuring refugees can take positive steps towards integration as they rebuild their lives in the UK.
It's 300 years since J S Bach's setting of the Passion narrative from St John's gospel was first performed on Good Friday at the St Nicholas Church in Leipzig. This week many of the UK's cathedrals and churches will be marking the anniversary by performing it. The composer, conductor and singer, Bob Chilcott celebrates the work and reflects on what is one of the most revered of all musical settings of the Passion.
Does religious education at school help young people when they get a job? Lord Karan Bilimoria, a former president of the CBI, thinks it can. He believes RE helps young people to navigate the complexity of modern belief and the diversity of worldviews in the UK today. The businessman, who is from the Zoroastrian tradition, has launched a campaign urging employers to support higher standards in religious education. We hear from Lord Bilimoria, and also from the National Secular Society who feel there are better ways to equip young people for the workforce.
Presenter: Edward Stourton Producers: Jonathan Hallewell and Alexa Good Editor: Dan Tierney
Power of religion at Cop28; Shane McGowan's Catholicism; Near-death experiences
Same sex church blessings; Religion in Dr Who; Antonio Banderas on playing King Herod
Same Sex Blessings in the Church of England
Interfaith relations and Israel-Hamas war; The Bard and the Bible; Hindu ante-natal rituals
Use of scripture in war rhetoric & Church of England same-sex blessings
29/10/2023
The Israel-Hamas conflict and its repercussions in the UK
15/10/2023
Violence in the Middle East
Politics and the Lords Spiritual; The Venerable Bede; Spirituality of Sycamore Gap
Pope in Marseille; Khalistan; Definition of Islamophobia
Libya floods, pilgrimage to the city of Uman, racial injustice in the church
British Imams "whitewashing" the actions of the Taliban
Reconciling sex work with faith
The Catholic seal of confession
Hawaii Fires; Jehovah's Witnesses; the Vicar of Moscow
06/08/2023
30/07/2023
Oppenheimer, Manipur, The Sixth Commandment
Soul Survivor; 'Our Problematic Father'; White Privilege
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