Sunday

William Crawley has the latest on events in Israel-Gaza. He’ll also be discussing use of scripture in war rhetoric with two experts after Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu referenced the Bible earlier this week. Also on the programme, a Sikh man who felt discriminated against when he was barred from doing jury service because of his religious sword. Are bells the soothing sound of Sunday morning or a nuisance for neighbours? New bells are going up at a parish in Devon and it’s caused a bit of a ding dong. Hear from the Canon of St James’s Church in Tiverton as well as critics.The Church of England General Synod meets later this month and one of the issues to be discussed includes same-sex relationships. In February, the Synod voted in favour of allowing blessings in church for LGBT couples, whilst maintaining that there was no change in the church's doctrine of marriage: church weddings would still only be for heterosexual couples. For supporters of same-sex marriage, it didn’t go far enough. The BB

A look at the ethical and religious issues of the week

This week's Sunday explores the latest on the conflict in the Middle East, and its repercussions in the UK for Jewish and Muslim communities. The archbishops of Canterbury and Jerusalem unite in a call for peace.As the Metropolitan Police reports a spike in anti-semitic hate incidents, a Jewish woman from London tells the programme how her Muslim friends escorted her to synagogue in an act of solidarity.And we examine the significance of the site of the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, which is layered in history and meaning for Muslims and Jews alike.Presenter: William Crawley Producers: Bara'atu Ibrahim and Louise Clark Editor: Dan Tierney.

A look at the ethical and religious issues of the week

We report the latest from Israel after a wave of surprise Palestinian attacks. Israel's Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has said the Palestinian militant group, Hamas, will pay "an unprecedented price" for their offensive across the border. Thousands of rockets were fired from Gaza, with gunmen entering Israel across land and sea. Israeli fighter jets have been striking Gaza in retaliation. It's a momentous week in Rome where the Catholic Synod is taking place for the first time with laymen and women. Seventy of them will have a vote as they consider topics including LGBTQ Catholics and the role of women in the church. It's inspiring hope in those who see an opportunity for change and anger in others. Could it lead to a schism in the church? We hear from two Catholic commentators, theologian Tina Beattie and journalist Edward Pentin. France has banned its athletes from wearing the Muslim hijab headdress at next year's Olympic games in Paris. The Sports Minister Amelie Oudea-Castera says the ban wil

Prayers are being said at church services today for the family of 15 year old Elianne Andam, who was stabbed to death while on her way to school in Croydon. A 17 year old man has been charged with murder. William Crawley speaks to local Anglican bishop, Rosemarie Mallett who has been working to tackle knife crime and supporting Elianne's family. It's called the holy grail of medieval history; the search to find the actual handwriting of the Venerable Bede, a monk from the north east of England. He was a man obsessed with learning who became the only English Doctor of the Catholic Church. Professor Michelle Brown has writen a new book, "Bede and the Theory of Everything". She explains what we owe to this saint from the 700s. Hare Krishna rapper Jake Emlyn tells us why he gave up music for his faith and why he's now considering a return to the record industry.There was shock over the felling of the 300 year old tree at Sycamore Gap, a place where people scattered ashes, made marriage proposals and contemp

This weekend Pope Francis made an historic visit to Marseille, France; the first papal visit to the port city since Clement VII in 1533. The purpose of the trip is to show solidarity with the migrants as the French government takes a stricter stance amid rising Mediterranean crossings. Edward Stourton speaks to French Christian Journalist, Sophie Lebrun.Relations between Canada and India have become strained after the Canadian Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau linked the Indian state with the killing of a Sikh separatist leader on Canadian soil. Hardeep Singh Nijjar - a Canadian citizen - is the third prominent Sikh figure to have died unexpectedly in recent months. India strongly denies the allegations and further suspended visa processing for Canadian nationals travelling to India. BBC Monitoring's Nurussanda Garg has the latest on the story and Professor Gurharpal Singh explains the origins of the pro-Khalistan movement.One in seven local authorities in England have adopted a definition of Islamophobia that w

The BBC has been told that bodies are still washing up from the sea in Derna, a week after massive flash floods in Libya. Now there are fears for survivors in the city with not enough medicine and clean water for those who have been made homeless. We hear live from Libya the latest on the situation on the ground and also look at the impact on the Muslim community both in Libya and here. Manchester has the largest Libyan population in the UK, we'll hear from Manchester based charity, Wafa Relief and Action for Humanity about their work in the disaster zone. US Presidential Candidate - Vivek Ramaswamy has been annoying rapper Eminem, defending Donald Trump and now answering questions about his Hindu faith on the campaign trail in Iowa. It was the second time he had been questioned about his faith, as the first-time candidate's popularity has continued to rise in the polls.And Pilgrims are travelling to Ukraine against official advice, to celebrate the Jewish New Year. We find out why they're taking the risk?Pr

Former diplomats and politicians from Afghanistan are among around 900 people who've signed an open letter calling on British authorities to investigate what they call a "propaganda" and "whitewashing" campaign by UK Muslim scholars on behalf of the Taliban. William Crawley speaks to one of the signatories of the letter.Pope Francis is planning to publish a sequel to Laudato Si', his encyclical, or papal teaching letter, on the climate crisis. One of his closest advisers, Cardinal Michael Czerny, explains why.And the extraordinary story of an Irish Catholic priest who, for many years, secretly worked for the IRA, earning himself a place on the UK's most wanted list.Presenter: William Crawley Producers: Dan Tierney and Peter Everett Editor: Helen Grady

Can you be a sex worker and still follow your faith? Sex work has always challenged religion. Although it’s broadly considered immoral within Christianity, Islam and Judaism, sacred texts carry some mixed messages. We hear from a British woman who grew up as a devout Muslim but now makes adult content for the online service Only Fans. She’s often pictured wearing a hijab. She’s received death threats but believes that expressing her sexuality and making her own choices about her body are empowering. She reflects on the difficulity of reconciling sex work with religious faith.Attendance at Church of England services has fallen sharply in recent decades. A new survey of over a thousand clergy suggests that many are anxious about the future of the church. Nearly a third of those who responded to the poll, by the Times newspaper, felt that the Church could face extinction if the decline continues. Some believe that part of the problem is that church teaching on issues like gay marriage and the role of wom

If priests were required by law to report child sex abuse, what would it mean for the Catholic seal of confession? Priests can never disclose anything they hear during the sacrament of confession. But a proposed new law could legally require people to report cases of child sex abuse. If a priest were to hear such evidence during confession, how should he respond? How could he, and the Church reconcile Church teaching with his need to obey the law, and protect the safety of children? We examine the arguments on both sides of the debate.What is it like if you and your partner have different faiths? Almost 300,000 households in the UK contain people of different faiths living under the same roof. It may sound like the stuff of sitcoms, but it can cause friction and division within families. How do you navigate the differences between your beliefs and practices? Is there a way of bringing two faiths together that can enrich your domestic life? We speak to a man who was brought up as an Orthodox Jew an

Most of the town of Lahaina, which served as the first capital of the former Kingdom of Hawaii has been destroyed, along with many of the sacred sites of Hawaii's indigenous religion as wildfires ripped through the region. Mokihana Melendez, who teaches aspects of Hawaiian traditional culture, talks to William Crawley about the significance of the religious and cultural heritage that has been lost.St Andrew's looks like a typical Victorian English parish church but it's only 10 minutes from the Kremlin. Rev Malcolm Rogers talks about what like was like living in Russia during the ongoing Ukraine war.After 9 years and a series of legal challenges the Charity Commission has finally published its report into the child protection and safeguarding policies of the Jehovah's Witnesses' Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Britain. We hear why a former Elder is "shocked and disappointed".As we mark the second anniversary of the Taliban's takeover of Afghanistan, a group of British Imams and scholars give a diffe

Hundreds of thousands of young people have greeted the Pope for World Youth Day in Lisbon. Find out why it matters to UK Catholics who have travelled there. Hear from the ex-Catholic nun, who cast off her habit to work as a nurse, an author, and finally a stand-up comic. Kelli Dunham has a show at the Edinburgh Fringe that takes in her past lives as well as difficult topics like grief and death.Morocco play France on Tuesday having made it to the last 16 of the Women's World Cup in their debut appearance. Last Sunday, the Moroccan defender Nouhaila Benzina became the first player to wear a hijab at the World Cup. We'll consider some of the challenges facing Muslim women in football.Dr Robert Jones, founder of the Public Religion Research Institute in Washington DC explains why Trump's indictment shows no sign of affecting his popularity with white Christian evangelical voters.Last week the Taliban in Afghanistan issued photographs of a giant bonfire of musical instruments. Is their crack-down on music and s

A look at the ethical and religious issues of the week

J. Robert Oppenheimer had a life-long fascination with Hinduism, and the Hindu sacred text, the Bagavad Gita, which he famously quoted in response to the first Atomic bomb detonations. As 'Oppenheimer' is released in cinemas this week, William Crawley explores the connections between Oppenheimer, the Gita and the Bomb, with Emeritus Professor of History Jim Nijiya and Hindu scholar Acharya Vidyabhaskar.The Indian state of Manipur, has been plunged into what some believe is a state of civil war between its two largest ethnic groups; the majority Meitei, who are mostly Hindu, and the minority Kuki tribe, who are mostly Christian. We speak to a researcher from Open Doors, the charity supporting persecuted Christians.And as the television series ‘The Sixth Commandment’ draws rave reviews, we debate the moral pros and cons of ‘true crime’ drama with journalist Amelia Tait and theologian Canon Angela Tilby. CORRECTION: This programme has been edited since broadcast to remove the incorrect assertion by Professor Sat

The Church of England's National Safeguarding Team has said it will not discipline Soul Survivor's Mike Pilavachi. Pilavachi, who founded Soul Survivor church and its Christian youth festivals resigned four months after more than 100 people alleged inappropriate behaviour that including wrestling with young teenagers. Edward Stourton speaks to David Gate, a former Soul Survivor church member, who shares his first hand experience.The Archbishop of York said last week that addressing God as 'Our Father' might be 'problematic'. We've gathered the opinions of some theologians - Christian, Muslim and Jewish - about the gender of God. A report published this week says many Catholic and Church of England schools are using American-style Critical Race Theory to teach pupils about racial justice, claiming the lessons are divisive and do more harm than good. Edward Stourton is joined by the author of the report, Alka Sehgal-Cuthbert to debate the issue with The Reverend Nigel Genders, Chief Education Officer for the Ch

Emily Buchanan travels to Moseley Old Hall in Wolverhampton to hear about a 400 year-old missal recently bought by the National Trust that belonged to a Catholic priest who saved the life of King Charles II'Water cremation’ will be available as a funeral option in Britain later this year. It’s said to be an environmentally friendly approach to disintegrating human remains – but is it appropriate for Christians and other believers in the afterlife?This week the Church of England Synod will be invited to approve the reintroduction of ‘defrocking’ as the most severe punishment it can impose on members of the priesthood. But what exactly is ‘defrocking’? Historian of the Anglican clergy, Reverend Fergus Butler-Gallie, explains.And the man who passed on a call from Boris Johnson to answer a call from the Holy Spirit... John Casson took up a role at L'Arche UK during a troubled time for the Christian organisation. He reflects on what working with people with learning disabilities has taught him about leadership.Pro

Irish lawmakers are currently debating a bill on hate speech. The aim is to update 35 year old legislation that the Irish Justice Minister has called “ineffective”. A spate of anti-immigration protests in the country are said to have a pronounced Islamophobic focus. We speak to an academic to explore Ireland’s relationship with issues of racism and immigration.South African soprano Golda Schultz talks about her role as Madeleine Lidoine in the opera, Dialogues of the Carmelites, which depicts the powerful and moving true story of 16 nuns executed in 1794. It is currently being staged at Glyndebourne. She describes how the role has strengthened her own Catholic faith.The Church of Scotland will have to close hundreds of its churches in the next few years and this isn't just a problem for Scottish Presbyterians, who now have twice as many buildings as they have ministers. Across the UK, six thousand churches and chapels have closed in the past decade. William Crawley speaks to the Reverend David Cameron, Co

The Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell talks to Sunday, days after the Church of England sacked its Independent Safeguarding Board. William Crawley hears from one of those sacked, Jasvinder Sanghera, and from Jane Chevous from Survivors Voices.How much is your vicar worth? Some Anglican clergy are calling for a pay rise of 9.5% to help them manage the increased cost of living. How does the package for clergy compare with other professions and what is a fair rate of pay in the current climate?This week Britain has been celebrating 75 years since the Empire Windrush docked at Tilbury, carrying people from the Carribean. They were the first of many people who were invited to Britain to help rebuild the country after the war. Barbara Blake Hannah was among the Windrush Generation. She became the first black TV news reporter in the UK, but suffered racism. The experience led her to return to Jamaica and to take up the Rastafari religion.It's been called the biggest consultation in human history. A globa

Roman Catholics in the Northeast are welcoming a new Bishop this weekend and digesting a damning report about the previous incumbent. An independent review by the CSSA says that Robert Byrne ignored safeguarding advice which put people at risk. We’ll be hearing from Chair of the Catholic Safeguarding Standards Agency Nazir Afzal.There’s an intense debate in Switzerland over a potential nationwide ban on so-called conversion therapy. The controversial practice is used around the world to try to change a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity. Our reporter Claire Jones has been to Switzerland to meet those working to change the law, and those who are against a legislative ban.In the ‘Valley of the Fallen’ near Madrid, forensic scientists have started exhuming bodies to try to identify some of those who died in the Spanish Civil War. Meanwhile the future of the vast monument there – and of the monks who look after it – has become a key issue in the current Spanish general election.We’re looking at the en