from Religion Media Centre
The Chief Rabbi, Sir Ephraim Mirvis, has met the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dame Sarah Mullally, to express concern about the general synod’s recent decision to “hear” a document from Palestinian Christians about their plight – a decision he described as “deplorable”. The document Kairos II (A Moment of Truth: Faith in a Time of Genocide) said Palestinians are living through a time of “genocide, ethnic cleansing and forced displacement”. It described Israel’s actions in Gaza and the West Bank as genocide, apartheid and settler colonialism, and called on churches worldwide to stand in solidarity with Palestinians through non-violent resistance. The Chief Rabbi said at the time that the document was one-sided, contained falsehoods and risked damaging Jewish-Christian relations.
Sir Ephraim and Dame Sarah met last week, two weeks after the synod decision. In a post on Twitter / X, the Chief Rabbi said: “I shared with her the deep pain felt by many in the Jewish community on account of the Synod’s most deplorable decision and emphasised the need for the Church to seek ways to repair the damage that has been caused to Christian-Jewish relations”.
The Archbishop, also writing on Twitter / X, said she was “deeply saddened by the hurt and distress that so many in the Jewish community are feeling” and recognised “the profound connection that the Jewish people have to the State of Israel”. Her statement said she stood in solidarity with the Jewish community in this country: “Every person – Christian, Jewish and Muslim; Palestinian and Israeli – deserves to live in safety, dignity and peace … The Church of England’s vocation is to value and protect every faith in our shared national life, including the Jewish community who are an integral and essential part of our society”.
Statement by Sir Ephraim Mirvis, the Chief Rabbi of Britain, following a meeting with the Archbishop of Canterbury, Anglican Ink