News briefing Britain and Ireland

Nearly 250 Hongkongers living in the UK were received into the Catholic Church across 11 locations at Easter.

Bishop Paul McAleenan, lead bishop for migrants and refugees in the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales, praised the “outstanding” attachment to their faith of members of the Hong Kong Catholic community who have settled in England and Wales in recent years. The group comprised adults, youths, and children, with two specific age demographics, children under 11 and adults aged 36–45, representing 82 per cent of the total.

King Charles III has appointed Tarandip Kaur Sandhu  as his next ambassador to the Holy See. The British Consul to San Francisco from 2023 to 2025, she was awarded the MBE in 2021 for services to “diversity and inclusion” while chair of the Race and Ethnicity Network of the FCDO. Kaur Sandu replaces the current ambassador to the Holy See, Christopher Trott, in August. Meanwhile, Labour MP for Barking Nesil Caliskan has been appointed as the government’s new Faith Minister, succeeding Miatta Fahnbulleh who resigned on Monday after calling for Keir Starmer to stand down as Prime Minister.

A new platform CatholicPlus has been developed by current primary school teachers and senior leaders to support Catholic schools delivering the new Religious Education Directory. The aim is to help teachers deal with the changes to the curriculum without facing burnout by providing complete schemes of work for them to use.

Pope Leo XIV has sent a video message to the prayer movement, Thy Kingdom Come, which started in 2016 with an invitation from the Archbishops of Canterbury and York to the Church of England and has since grown into an international and ecumenical call to prayer involving more than one million Christians. In his message, Pope Leo encourages those taking part to share the Gospel which he says “is not something about which we can keep silent”. This year’s event began on 14 May, Ascension Thursday and finishes 24 May, Pentecost Sunday.

Preliminary findings from research by Theos on Christian nationalism suggest that 17 per cent of adults in UK agree that a person needs to be Christian to be truly British while 16 per cent agree that people who do not hold Christian values do not belong in Britain. Four in ten agree that “the law in Britain should be based on Christian values” and four in ten people agree that “religious education in Britain should prioritise the teaching of Christianity ahead of other faiths”. Fewer than four in 10 think that “the government should formally state that Britain is a Christian country”. Under a third of people agree that “it is important for the political leader of my country to be a Christian”.

A new Mass in honour of St Etheldreda will premiere at St Etheldreda’s, Ely at 12.30pm on 27 June. It is written by the English Catholic composer, Matthew JC Ward, who will conduct the choir, while Martin Baker will perform on the organ. The Mass setting includes a festal motet. Some parts are in English and there is a Latin text from St Bede’s hymn to St Etheldreda. Ward said he approached the project “with the idea of ‘bringing out treasures both old and new’”.  St Etheldreda’s is seeking experienced singers to join the choir. Please email: monicaaway@gmail.com.

A Scripture stone-painting workshop will take place in Holy Trinity parish centre, Dorchester, Dorset on 30 May. Artist Judith Gait was inspired to found the initiative “For Crying out Loud” by Luke 19:38-40, where Jesus says that should his disciples remain quiet “the stones will cry out”. The project is supported by Bishop Hudson of Plymouth and stones have been left in places including Rome, Medjugorje and Sweden. Email pippa.worth@prcdtr.org.uk to book a place in the free workshop where all materials are provided.  

A special service of evensong will be held at St Paul’s, London on 30 May for Iranian Christians to meet for prayer, remembrance and reflection, remembering those who have lost their lives in protest and conflict. Prayers will be said for all who continue to suffer the consequences of violence and instability.

The Children’s Commissioner for England has launched The Big Future a nationwide survey for children and young people asking them “what’s it like to be a child or young person in England today“. Rachel de Souza, a Catholic, said she would take the findings of the survey, to the government “to help them make life better for children”.

Westminster Youth Ministry is holding the John Paul II Football tournament on 6 June. Eight teams will compete for the John Paul II cup playing five-a-side football. A donation of £90 per team is requested to cover the costs of the tournament, which was launched last June and attended by diocesan clergy who provided opportunities for Confession. Open to men aged between 18-35 years old. Contact youth@rcdow.org.uk  for details.

The scripture expert Dr Scott Hahn will deliver two lectures at St George’s Cathedral, Southwark on 28 May, on the topic of the “Road to Emmaus: Cultivating Eucharistic Amazement” and reflections on understanding the Our Father. A former Presbyterian minister, Hahn converted to Catholicism after finding key Church doctrines including purgatory and veneration of Mary in the Bible. Now Father Michael Scanlan TOR Professor of Biblical Theology and the New Evangelization at Steubenville University, Ohio, Hahn is the founder and president of the Saint Paul Center for Biblical Theology, and author of numerous books including Rome, Sweet Home, co-authored with his wife Kimberly.

The Church must apologise and begin again, slowly rebuilding trust over time, Bishop of Cork and Ross Fintan Gavin said at a Mass to celebrate the bicentenary of St Patrick’s Cathedral, Skibbereen.“There are wounds that cannot be ignored, some caused by the Church and its members, and we must acknowledge them honestly,” he said. Reflecting on the significance of the occasion, Bishop Gavin said the anniversary was not simply about remembering the past, but also about renewing faith for the future. He saw signs of hope and renewal among younger generations, families and parish communities seeking to live their faith in new ways.

The fossil fuel crisis has highlighted the urgency of transitioning to renewable sources of energy, Bishop Martin Hayes has said. In a statement for Laudato Sí week he said it also had shown just how dependent the global economy is on the supply of oil and gas in particular. Referring to the Irish Bishops’ support for Trócaire’s appeal for the Irish government to support the Fossil Fuel Treaty, the Bishop of Kilmore welcomed the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment, Darragh O’Brien’s announcement that Ireland will co-host the ‘Second Conference on Transitioning Away from Fossil Fuels’ in 2027.

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