Secularism in the media

Religious settings second most common place for child abuse among institutions

More than 5,400 survivors of child sexual abuse have shared their experience and 5,104 personal accounts have been analysed for research purposes. Fifteen per cent said their abuse was in a school setting and six per cent said it was in a religious setting.

Premier Christian News

Government gives final warning over illegal Jewish weddings

Stamford Hill weddings during lockdown must halt immediately or face government intervention, the faith minister has warned Orthodox Jewish leaders.

Jewish News

‘For months they’ve broken every rule in the book’

Orthodox Jewish weddings with more than 300 guests have continued apace throughout lockdown, including one that took place this week, an investigation has found.

Jewish News

‘The lifestyle of many Charedim has become incompatible with Judaism’

Those who have attended illicit weddings under lockdown represent a self-indulgent sect that should be disowned by the rest of the Jewish world, says Daniel Greenberg.

The JC

Forced child marriage: Charities sound alarm over abuse during lockdown

Vulnerable children could be at risk of forced marriage after being "imprisoned at home" during the third national lockdown, charities have warned.

Evening Standard

Lord Carey’s permission to officiate reinstated

Lord Carey, a former Archbishop of Canterbury, has had his Permission to Officiate (PTO) restored, the diocese of Oxford has announced. His PTO was withdrawn in June last year over an allegation that emerged from the inquiry into how the late John Smyth had been able to abuse boys and young men without being exposed.

Church Times*

‘The man behind Justin Welby’

As well as being Welby's physical protector, Canon Porter has taken on the role of his bureaucratic gatekeeper, says Ysenda Maxtone-Graham.

The Spectator*

Polish abortion ruling ‘condemns women to torture’, claims human rights chief

After a court ruling in Poland led to a near total ban on abortion, a top human rights official has denounced the ruling, saying it imposes a severe limitation of women's rights and "condemns them to torture".

The Scotsman*

Fresh cover-up claims against former Papal secretary

A group of Polish politicians has pledged to press new accusations against Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz, former secretary of St John Paul II, after prosecutors refused to investigate TV documentary claims that he ignored and covered up abuse by priests in his Krakow archdiocese.

The Tablet*

US: Eight-year-old girl is expelled by Christian school after telling another girl she had crush on her

An eight-year-old girl has been expelled from her school in Oklahoma school after telling another girl that she had a crush on her.

Mail Online

Two men caned 77 times for having sex in Indonesia’s Aceh

Two men in Indonesia's conservative Aceh province were publicly caned each 77 times Thursday after neighbours reported them to Islamic religious police for having sex.

The Associated Press

India: Supreme Court refuses Tandav team protection from arrest for “hurting religious sentiments”

The makers and an actor of Amazon Prime web series "Tandav", who appealed for protection against arrest, have failed to get protection from the Supreme Court. The makers have been accused of "hurting religious sentiments", "promoting religious enmity" and "defiling a place of worship".

NDTV

secularism.org.uk

Challenging Religious Privilege

Your daily media briefing - Friday 29 January