Do I live in a no-go area?

In yesterday's Sunday Telegraph, the Bishop of Rochester, Michael Nazir-Ali, criticises multiculturalism in the UK and warns of no-go areas dominated by Muslims and governed by shariah law. You can read the article here. Tomorrow, I'll be walking my kids to school in one of the boroughs with the highest concentrations of Muslims in the country. The fact that we will see lots of hijabs, curry houses, Asian sweetshops and a couple of mosques on the way does not make it a no-go area and, frankly, it will be a pleasure for me to be back home after family sojourns in the Gloucestershire countryside.

The bishop's comments highlight just how complex the issue of Muslim presence in the UK is. There are legitimate questions as to the level of interaction between communities; those questions as legitimate for suburban white sink estates and leafy rural villages as much as they are for inner city Muslim communities. Indeed, for some of the local Muslim youth, shopping in downtown Solihull carries its own intimidating freight and potential for "no-go".

And then there are the bishop's references to our "Christian" country: its laws, values and character. I struggle even more here. I recognise a huge amount of Christian influence in Britain, a history that should not be erased from the collective memory, but it is a mixed legacy that is also infused with arrogance, privilege and some significant and good influences from secular modernity (NB - sadly it wasn't Christians who championed equal pay legislation and prohibitions against racial and gender discrimination).

Things aint so clear cut and, sadly, clumsy generalisations like those in the Sunday Telegraph article are in danger of feeding into a xenophobia that has little to do with the gospel we espouse as Christians. Surely a robust Christian faith does not require that  the Christian faith is privileged or that no other faith can be in the public square?

Comments

[hellisotherpeople]

Oh come on, Richard! Surely you aren’t comparing an afternoon’s stroll through Touchwood to a walk through the Handsworth riots of the early 90’s??? Are you seriously suggesting that there is an underlying religious divide within Solihull? The only serious divide that I can think of is between those who walk through John Lewis from the car park and those who can actually afford to stop and buy something. The only divides in Solihull are economic ones, not religious.

And no, of course you don’t live in a no-go area. Maybe Handsworth, Lozells, Aston, but not Sparkhill – not just yet, anyway.

Having said that, I personally would not walk through Sparkhill Park on my own after dark – but that is not anything to do with racial or religious divisions – more to do with personal experience and also disaffected youths who have been woefully let down by the governments of this country for at least the past 20 years. All divisions begin at home, and these spill over into the community. Young people then cling to whatever makes them feel like they belong – in the past this was linked to music – punk, mods, etc. Now it is linked to religion. But this is merely a symptom – the cause is a fundamental breakdown in society. Until that is addressed, then matters will only get more out of hand. Ignore bishops, mullahs and gurus and deal with the real issues – young, impressionable people who are just looking for a place to belong.

[Eastonrev]

I live in a majority Muslim area in Bristol and have spent much of my first year as the Vicar trying to dispel the spirit of fear that prevailed in our congregation. I had to address Bishop Michael's comments head on on Sunday because I felt they were unhelpful and unfortunately had gone beyond the Sunday Telegraph to the mainstream media that people might have heard.

I think that his comments say as much about culture change as anything else, he seems to be anxious to hold on to Christendom when many of us are looking forward to its demise so that the church in the UK can become more authentic. Just what kind of Christian Character does the Bishop see in our land, what part of Binge-drinking, overspending, debt ridden Celebrity obsessed Britain reflects the character of Christ?

One of the verses of scripture I have oft repeated since arriving in Easton is "There is no fear in love, perfect love casts out all fear" 1 John 4:18
May we all learn to walk in that love and not give in to the forces of fear that would drive us from the very areas where the reconciling love of Christ is most needed.