News briefings Britain and Ireland

A new painting by a Scottish artist marks the 60th anniversary of Sciaf in imagery that sums up the charity’s history and purpose.

The work, which has been presented to Sciaf by the artist Mark Armstrong, who runs a social enterprise company helping budding artists in the east End, is entitled “Journey” and shows images of work, leisure and worship, all cast in strong colours, with two clerical figures and a saintly statue observing from the foreground. He said that he wanted to sum up aspects of Sciaf’s story and mission. Scotland’s Catholic International Aid Fund was established in 1965 and works across three continents, providing aid and support for vulnerable people.

“There are so many ways in which we can be proud of those who have gone before us and handed on to us this great inheritance,” Archbishop of Westminster Cardinal Vincent Nichols said in a pastoral letter read out in churches on Sunday to mark the 175th anniversary of the diocese. “Our duty is to hand it on to the next generations, better tuned to contemporary circumstances, responding to today’s challenges and strengthened as ever by the bounteous grace of God.”

Cardinal Nichols and the other presidents of Churches Together in England have issued a statement expressing “deep concern” about symbols and words of the Christian faith being co-opted to support messages that breed hostility towards others. Responding to the recent “Unite the Kingdom” rally in London and other occasions where they said use had been made of the symbols and words of the Christian faith to support views and attitudes actually opposed to their message, they said, “The Cross and the Gospel of Christ must never be co-opted to support the messages that breed hostility towards others. Its message never legitimises rejection, hatred or superiority towards people of other cultures.”

An event to celebrate the building fifty years ago of Worth Abbey in West Sussex takes place this morning, 4 October, at 10.30am in the abbey church. The architect Fred Manson will discuss Francis Pollen’s design for the Abbey Church of Our Lady, Help of Christians with Fr Christopher Jamison, Abbot President of the English Benedictine Congregation. 

The Archbishop Emeritus of Liverpool Malcolm McMahon presided over a Mass on 20 September in the Metropolitan Cathedral Liverpool to celebrate the Jubilee of Social Justice. Referring to the day’s gospel (Luke 8:15) McMahon urged the congregation “to bear fruit with patience”, acknowledging the challenges faced by those working for social. During the Jubilee, organised by the Catholic Social Action Network, 20 charities and organisations including Cafod, Mary’s Meals and the National Justice and Peace Network participated in an exhibition. “It was a great joy to bring together so many committed people working for social justice in England and Wales,” said Raymond Friel, chief executive of Csan. He added: “So many people know little of the work of Catholic charities in relieving poverty and advocating for social justice.” A youth version of Love the Stranger, the Bishops Conference’s 2023 document on a Catholic response to refugees and migrants was launched online on Monday. Produced by the Caritas Social Action Network and Caritas Brentwood, its guiding principles are endorsed by the Holy See, Cafod and Comece (Commission of the Bishops’ Conference of the European Union). The event was held to mark the Jubilee of Migrants and the World Day of Migrants this weekend. 

Kate Nightingale, chief executive of the St Vincent de Paul Society will deliver a Catholic Union pub talk on Monday 13 October. At the event chaired by Catherine Pepinster, former editor of The Tablet, Nightingale will speak about the changing landscape for those in need. She said: “The cost-of-living crisis is continuing to bite often in ways that are not reported in the press. Many of the people that SVP supports do not have access to meeting the most basic of needs.” The talk is free, although a nominal donation is requested. Booking is essential as spaces are limited. Please click here for tickets:

Bishop Paul McAleenan met survivors of trafficking and modern slavery through the Medaille Trust. The Catholic charity supports more than 500 survivors a year through Medaille’s network of safe houses and community projects. “Witnessing the care and compassion shown in providing not only safety and practical support, but also a sense of community, was deeply heartening,” said McAleenan, the lead bishop for refugees and migrants. He added: “It was evident that the resilience of survivors is a powerful reminder that hope cannot be silenced.” In a separate statement marking the World Day of Migrants and Refugees today and the Jubilee of Migrants in Rome tomorrow, McAleenan said: “It is our obligation to try and understand why migrants appear among us; our duty is to care for those who seek refuge in our country.”

A survey by YouGov, commissioned by the think tank Theos has revealed a gap between residents and their local faith communities. While 36 per cent of respondents said that faith communities make a positive contribution to the life of their local community, rising to 51 per cent among younger people aged 18-24, three-quarters said that they could not name a local faith leader of any religion and more than two-thirds of adults between 25-64 years of age said they had not visited any place of worship in the past twelve months. More people had visited a local park in the last week than had visited a local place of worship in the last year. Chine McDonald, director of Theos, said: “This poses a challenge to leaders and members of every faith community, including the new Archbishop of Canterbury. Mayor Andy Burnham believes that people of faith can have a significant role to play in building communities and shaping devolved democracy. That can only happen if faith communities are visible and active beyond our own walls.”

Andy Burnham, Mayor of Greater Manchester, is to be this year’s Theos lecturer on 9 May at Methodist Central Hall in Manchester, marking the first time the Theos annual lecture takes place outside London. Andy Burnham was first elected as Mayor of Greater Manchester in May 2017, re–elected for a second term in May 2021 and a third term in May 2024.

Prominent theologian and former Anglican bishop who converted to Catholicism, Mgr Michael Nazir-Ali, is among those behind the 2025 Westminster Declaration, a coalition of Christian leaders and organisations who describe themselves as “united by a shared concern for the moral and spiritual welfare of the nation”. Building on the original 2010 Westminster Declaration, others involved include the Anglican priest and theologian Lord Biggar and former MP Fiona Bruce.

A National Justice and Peace Network webinar on child poverty in the UK has urged an end to the two-child benefit cap. Around 70 people attending on 18 September agreed to support campaigning on the issue.  They heard Liam Purcell, chief executive of Church Action on Poverty, quote the Child Poverty Action Group statistic that scrapping the two-child limit would lift 350,000 children out of poverty. Challenging systemic causes of deprivation was echoed by Paul Morrison, Policy Advisor for the Joint Public Issues Team, who deplored political and economic choices which ignore child poverty and the huge growth of food banks in the UK. Carol Cross, trustee of the Cause Foundation in Teesside, reported on the take-up of hampers by families in need. There is growing speculation that Chancellor Rachel Reeves will abolish the cap in her budget in November.

Pax Christi in England and Wales has endorsed an international appeal, “Stop Nuclear Weapons: Peace is in our Hands” that calls on governments to use Nuclear Abolition Day on 26 September to announce plans to prevent nuclear war, shift nuclear weapons budgets and investments to strengthen the UN, and advance peacekeeping and conflict resolution. Chief executive Andrew Jackson displayed a hand in a social media action which used a graphic of a hand raised with palm facing forwards as a message to stop nuclear weapons. The hand displayed the classic peace and nuclear disarmament symbol of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament. 

An 87-year-old great grandmother has completed a third cycling challenge to raise awareness of the work of [Scottish school meals charity] Mary’s Meals. Ellison Hudson, from Bridge of Allan, near Stirling, became aware of the [school meals] charity’s work when she visited Malawi some years ago and completed tricycle rides to support its work in 2018 and 2022. She has now undertaken a third challenge covering thirty miles over three days at the University of Stirling’s cycle track. Mrs Hudson admitted that she was “not as fast as I once was” but described completing her third challenge as “a real joy”. BM

Archbishop Eamon Martin, Chancellor of St Patrick’s College, Maynooth has awarded an honorary doctorate to Irish missionary Sr Orla Treacy, IBVM. A member of the Loreto order, she set up the first secondary school for girls in Rumbek, South Sudan in 2006 and this has since expanded to include a primary school and medical centre as well.  In his address, the Archbishop commended Sr Orla for highlighting the “dignity and the vocation of every person, especially that of girls and women, in the midst of a culture that often thinks differently”. He described Loreto Rumbek as “a beacon of hope”.  “You go where others have been reluctant to go before, and you are leaving a path behind for others to follow,” he said. 

Thirteen men begin their studies for priesthood in Maynooth this autumn, down from 21 last year. It brings the total number of seminarians in Irish dioceses to 77. Bishop Alphonsus Cullinan, chair of the Bishops’ Council for Vocations, said, “We need more priests. We must continue to do what we can to promote priestly vocations in families and in our parishes.” Fr Roy Donovan of the Association of Catholic Priests warned that a return to plentiful vocations will not happen due to smaller families, the drop in practice and the insistence on mandatory clerical celibacy.

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