Baptist World Alliance (BWA) leaders are urging Baptists to show their support for their fellow Christians and those affected by the July 7 bombings in London by attending the July 27–31 BWA Centenary Baptist Congress.
BWA President Billy Kim, General Secretary Denton Lotz and incoming President David Coffey, general secretary of the Baptist Union of Great Britain, which is hosting the congress, expressed their condolences as well as their determination to continue with the BWA Congress in a statement after the bombings.
“In this period when many of our brothers and sisters are suffering from religious persecution and who live daily with the threat of terrorism, what better way to show our solidarity with the suffering of the world than to attend the BWA Congress?” the statement said. “Therefore, it is with faith in Christ and the courage He gives to believers worldwide that we affirm once again that the congress will indeed take place.”
They urged those who have not yet registered to attend to do so, saying, “Baptist attendance at the BWA Congress will not only be a sign of solidarity with our British brothers and sisters but our presence will be a confirmation of our strong faith that Jesus Christ rules and our faith is in Him.”
Already more than 11,500 from 107 countries are registered for the congress, and that number is expected to swell with people attending on day passes.
Of those, 64 Alabamians have registered to attend, according to Minnie Jackson with BWA. Jackson predicted that the number of attendees will grow as the dates for the congress draw near.
Along with the BWA leaders, religious leaders in England have urged that the blame for the bombings be laid on the Muslim extremists suspected of being responsible for the attacks, not the Muslim religion.
According to Mark Woods, acting editor of England’s The Baptist Times, there have been isolated attacks on mosques, and individual Muslims have been harassed. Immediately after the bombings, 30,000 hate e-mails were sent to the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) by a few individuals trying to crash the site, Woods reported.
The Times reported, however, the council has received many e-mails of support, and English leaders are stressing the need for unity among the country’s many faith groups.
The heads of Britain’s faith communities issued a joint statement July 10 after a service at Westminster Abbey, attended by Her Majesty the Queen, commemorating the 60th anniversary of the end of World War II. It was signed by Coffey as Free Churches moderator, Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor, Chief Rabbi Sir Jonathan Sacks and the Chair of the Council of Mosques and Imams, Sheikh Zaki Badawi.
Acknowledging the anniversary, the statement said, “We stand together now for a further purpose: to express our shared commitment to resisting and overcoming the evil of terrorism.
“Central to what we share as people of faith is a belief in God’s compassionate love for us. It is a love that compels us to cherish not to disfigure our common humanity.”
Pastor Kumar Rajagopalan, regional minister for racial justice for the London Baptist Association, expressed fears regarding the scapegoating of Muslims. The Christian community, Rajagopalan said, had a responsibility to challenge inappropriate language about Muslims, both inside and outside the Church. “We need to say, ‘That’s not what our Lord would do.’”
A joint statement from MCB and Churches Together in Britain and Ireland was released after the attacks. It said, “This criminal attack is condemned in the strongest possible terms. No good purpose can be achieved by such an indiscriminate and cruel use of terror.”
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