Question

To ask the hon. Member for Battersea, representing the Church Commissioners, what recent steps has the Church of England taken to help support persecuted Christians in other countries.

The National Church Institutions of the Church of England are in regular contact with the Prime Minister’s Special Envoy for Freedom of Religion and Belief. Since the publication of the Truro Review in 2019, the Archbishops’ Council has worked closely with the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office across a range of areas, including improving religious literacy among civil servants and strengthening knowledge and understanding of faith communities. The treatment of Christian communities worldwide is widely recognised as a barometer for the treatment of other minority groups, and persecution based on faith remains widespread in a large number of countries.

The Church of England engages internationally primarily through its associated charities and global NGOs, as well as through the Anglican Communion and by supporting initiatives such as the International Panel of Parliamentarians for Freedom of Religion or Belief. Through these channels, it works to support communities under pressure and to raise awareness at local, national and international levels. Bishops in the House of Lords also continue to raise these issues frequently. The Church is currently engaged in supporting communities affected by some of the world’s longest-running conflicts, including in Gaza and the West Bank, Iran, Sudan, India and Ukraine, and is closely monitoring developments in Nigeria

The General Synod of the Church Of England has recently approved the creation of a day in the liturgical calendar for the commemoration of the Twenty-One Martyrs of Libya, and the Church continues to support the Global Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church, observed on the first Sunday of November each year. At a diocesan and parish level, the Church of England continues to provide financial and practical support to a range of national and international charities, who are often best placed to deliver assistance directly to those in need on the ground.