Sunday 9 March 2014

Ukraine, art, Syria, cuts, Muslim women's football, armour, Islam & conservation, and gay vicars getting hitched



I was thinking of giving up listening to Sunday for Lent but temptation has taken hold of me and, alas, I've fallen by the wayside. So here we go again...

This week's Sunday began with Ukraine, and interviews with two people who take a negative view of Russia's involvement there. 

First came an interview between Edward Stourton and Protestant pastor Sergei Golovin about "what Russian control [of Crimea] might mean for different faith and ethnic communities." Though an ethnic Russian, the pastor thinks what Russia is doing is "illegal" and fears that Russian control would lead to loss of rights for Protestant churches. He also claims that Jews and Muslims would be negatively effected by renewed Russian rule.

Edward then talked to Dr Marat Shterin, senior lecturer in Sociology of religion, from Kings College London talks about the tensions with in the Russian Orthodox church over Crimea.

Dr Shterin said that Ukraine has a complex and interesting religious make-up with three Orthodox churches, Eastern Catholics (Uniate) and a number of Protestant sects, adding that in the 1990s Kiev had the largest Pentecostal community in the whole of Europe, led by a Nigerian pastor! Dr Shterin tried to resist Edward Stourton's attempts to simply the division between the two main Orthodox churches into a stark 'divisions are mirrored' paradigm. He doesn't think religious divisions will cause bloodshed, and says that people will unite around opposition to Russian intervention, & against the previous Ukrainian government.

Something Joseph Hillier prepared earlier

Next up was a plug for a new BBC venture, The Great North Passion, worked on in conjunction with an organisation called The Cultural Spring (doubtless an allusion to the once-popular Arab Spring):
In the lead up to an ambitious re-telling of the Passion story for BBC One on Good Friday, 12 artists in the North East have been given shipping containers in which to make art installations with the help of the community, for the twelve Stations of the Cross. Artist Joseph Hillier talks about his work for one of the containers.  
His art work will use digital motion capture photography to create a 3D image that will later be laser-cut into steel. Joseph Hillier himself isn't a Christian, more a humanist/agnostic. 

Next, Syrian refugees:
And Syria three years on, Nadene Ghouri has been to Lebanon's Bekaa valley and met child refugees. Most of whom have no access to education leading to fears of what the UN and aid agencies are calling Syria's 'lost generation'. 
1,500,000 people have fled to Lebanon because of the Syrian civil war. The Lebanese government doesn't allow formal refugee camps though.

Next, Edward Stourton read out two listener e-mails, responding to last week's one-sided coverage of the criticism of Michael Gove over bursary cuts to trainee RE teachers. Perhaps unsurprisingly, one e-mailer was "appalled" at the bursary cutbacks, while the other attacked the government for failing to include humanism in its RE guidelines. (Representative e-mails? Who knows!)


More familiar Sunday territory next - oh yes, Muslim headscarves:
Edward talks to Rimla Akhtar the chair of the Muslim Women's Sports Foundation about FIFA lifting the ban for players to wear headscarves and turbans in matches.
She's been involved in the campaign to get the ban lifted, and doesn't think much of anyone's safety concerns about wearing such headwear during football matches. Women's football is on the the rise in the Middle East, she said, and this ban was a barrier to them. The FA here in England has been leading by example, as a result of her campaigning. Plus her organisation helps ensure that 'all-women environments' are provided for those who don't want 'mixed environment' settings, whether for personal reasons or out of religious piety. 

Next, something unfamiliar for Sunday - Armour in churches:
Edward talks to Thom Richardson of the Royal Armouries who will explain the history and significance of Armour in churches.
The starting point for this feature was that a "row" has blown up about the "flogging" of a medieval helmet to an American buyer. Edward kept pressing Mr Richardson to make a firm argument for keeping such armour here in the UK, but Mr Richardson stuck to his position that his organisation should stick to trying to save the most important ones 'for the nation'. He said that church armour is important as it is  almost the only source of knowledge we have about late medieval armour. 

An old friend of Sunday was back next, talking about conservation and Islam:
Martin Palmer of the Alliance of Religions and Conservation explains why Indonesia's highest Islamic clerical body has issued a fatwa against illegal hunting and exporting of wildlife.

Martin Palmer says there's been a massive rise in the killing of elephants, tigers and rhinos in the last 3-4 years, driven by the Chinese market for traditional and no-so-traditional Chinese medicines. Plus the palm-olive growing industry is cutting down huge numbers of trees in Indonesia, destroying the habitat of orangutans. As Indonesia is the world's most-populous Muslim nation, Islam is a useful too for advancing environmentalism, argued Martin Palmer. When we hear the word 'fatwa' we tend to think of Salman Rushdie, he said, but he thinks they can be a good thing. 

Yes, the image of a happy alliance of environmentalists & Muslims working together was presented. Malaysia seems to be about to follow in Indonesia's footsteps and ARC are discussing with the Saudis the possibility of 'greening the Hajj'. 

"Fascinating stuff," said Edward Stourton, as he has a habit of doing whenever Martin Palmer appears on Sunday.

Well, mostly standard Sunday stuff so far - events in the Middle East, Muslim preoccupations, government cuts, environmentalism - but something's missing, isn't it? 

Ah, fear not. Here it comes - gay marriage:
Kevin Bocquet reports on the implications for the Church of England should members of its clergy take advantage of same sex marriage.
We heard from one North London clergyman, Rev. Andrew Cain of St Mary with All Souls, Kilburn, who's has been waiting for years to marry his same-sex partner (who we also heard from). He was unhappy as a document released by the Anglican bishops discouraging C of E clergy from getting same-sex married themselves. 


We also heard from Rev. Dean Henley of the Unite union, who says the document is making some gay clergy join his union in order to be able to take a union rep in with them when go to see their bishop! One of the bishops who helped write that letter, John Pritchard, Bishop of Oxford, appeared next. He now "regrets the tone of the document" and is sending out a letter apologising for it. Legal affairs guru Joshua Rosenberg doubts disciplinary action could be taken anyhow, as it's more a matter of doctrine than discipline. It's not going to be church law. 

What of the other side of the argument, the views of traditionalists who actually like the bishops' document? Well, in a very short sop to balance, we heard briefly from Rev. Andrew Symes of Anglican Mainstream, who thinks gay clerics who do opt to get married should face disciplinary action, but then it was back to Rev. Andrew Cain, who will marry in June regardless. "It is distressing for you?", asked Kevin. Rev. Cain replied that it's giving him a few sleepless nights. 

So, as it says in the title: Ukraine, art, Syria, cuts, Muslim women's football, armour, Islam & conservation, and gay vicars getting hitched. Welcome to Sunday. This is Edward Stourton.

3 comments:

  1. You have to admit that there is something inherently comic about some of these topics; specially (in no particular order):
    Gay marriage
    Fatwas
    Football in a burka

    Also quite amusing are:

    The Cultural Spring
    Public Art
    The Twelve Stations of the Cross (?) King’s Cross, Charing Cross?
    A humanist/agnostic making an art installation in a shipping container about the Passion Story (50 Shades of Grey?)

    Not amusing at all is the issue of refugees in Lebanon, and the looming presence of Hezbollah, the menace that (the BBC) dare not speak its name.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I`m trying to imagine gorillas in headscarves running away from attempts by Jenni Murray to ask about FGM and the Rushdie fatwa.
    Or gay vicars being able to finally play Subbuteo....
    As Sue says above-this pot pourri of dead flowers and liberal guff is par for "Sundays" shop window.
    God has long left the building, and we`re left with THIS list of random rubbish by way of "religious content".
    To be fair,we deserve Qom FM in our sitting rooms on Fridays by order of the Prophet if we don`t mock the BBCs efforts to "do" God...one long Savile gang Show at the minute!
    Still-at least Angela Tilby got to mention "death"(urgh!) on Ash Wednesdays Thought For the Day...won`t happen again this year I`d imagine unless Heseltine croaks...looked pretty ill the other night( like Michael Foot, not a good sign).
    Can I place a bet of Hezzas passing with Paddy Power?...all in the best possible taste?

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  3. FGM,PROSTITUTION ON WOMANHOOD -
    BUTCHERS OF WOMANHOOD
    When God told Abraham to sign the covenant of the flesh, he circumcised all the male children and he was
    circumcised. GENESIS 17: 1-27 When God told Moses that the Children of Israel shall not circumcise their
    girls, the message was given in a spiritual language and bore two warnings. The
    Israelis parent shall not sexually mutilate their daughters and fathers were
    commanded not have carnal knowledge (incest) of their daughters making them
    prostitutes. The evil cutting is done in honor of the dead.
    Leviticus 19:28-29. Israelis girl child remained a land fenced,a spring shut up and a blessed fountain sealed in divine state.
    Song of Solomon 4:12, Proverbs 5:18-19.
    Israelis women remained lively and delivered goodly children easily a state known to Pharaoh and he agreed with the midwives reply. Exodus 1:15-22. God has promised our beloved sisters save child delivery. 1Timothy 2: 15. Man is commanded by GOD to give his
    wife her conjugal wrights for its a shared joy. 1Corithians 1:1-4. FGM suppresses libido . Where man circumcision involves removal of a fold of fore skin FGM involves massive dense muscles with high concentration of sensitive net work of nerves and soft bone removal. Her bone is left in the air to dry like wood. This is not circumcision. It is Sexual excavation. It is the time the promises in fgm die out and the demonic world open its’ gates wide for the girl child and closes its’ gates behind her back as she leaves the alter of Satan empty handed for the lest of life time. The girl child lives with unresolved burning self reserved resentments against her parents but all they see is well to their eyes.
    Which man would ever leave any cut part of his bone to dry in the air like wood? After FGM there are no bows left for man to hold. Song of Solomon 7:8 .NO blood should be spilt in FGM. Leviticus 1928-29.
    FGM makes a woman a land without fence and a well without a cover. Song of Solomon 4:12
    They view God at fault for providing the girl child with an active sexual organ a source of immorality . FGM is a
    form of partial castration for a womanhood. The fleshy coals are provided for marriage. 1Corithians7: 9 .Jeremiah 44:19 . in FGM women count on their husbands support God purposed a woman to enjoy sex in marriage. Song of Solomon 2:2-6.No curse for brethren . Galatians3:10-14, Proverb26:1-2.
    We need fathers who can stand for God with their families like Joshua when the lest rebel against GOD Joshua 24:14-15 . FGM exercise the most Dignified Unreserved Beastly Cultural Atrocities on womanhood which is the deadly yoke of Satan hidden in parenthood for demonic chastity acceptance. .Let all Children of Abraham by faith join in spiritual circumcision. Colossians 2: 8-12. Roman2:28-29 .When faithful Abraham the father of faith was commanded by God to be circumcised at 99 years old with his son Ishmael at thirteen years old, he obeyed
    God. Sarah and Hagar were not circumcised or any girl child since there is no women circumcision with God. GENESIS 17: 1-27



    ReplyDelete

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