Catholic leaders have called on people to ‘stand against antisemitism’ in the build up to Holocaust Memorial Day on 27th January.
The call comes as new figures, obtained by the PA news agency, reveal that antisemitic hate crimes recorded by the Metropolitan Police in the wake of Hamas’s October attack on Israel were more than 13 times the number for the same period in 2022.
A total of 679 antisemitic offences were recorded by the Met Police from 7th October to 7th November 2023 inclusive, compared with 50 in the equivalent period the previous year and 81 in 2021.
Various members of the Bishops’ conference of England and Wales have spoken out against increased antisemitic incidents. Cardinal Nichols, who is also the archbishop of Westminster, said: “At home, I appeal for restraint and the total avoidance of hateful language and action, as the impact of this conflict is felt in communities here.”
The rise in antisemitic offences was not confined to London, with increases also seen in West Yorkshire, Greater Manchester and West Midlands. Data obtained from smaller forces, or those covering areas with few towns or cities, typically showed low numbers of offences, often in single figures, meaning a clear trend was hard to determine.
This year, the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust is inviting people to join commemorations by lighting a candle in their windows that evening, as part of its “Light the Darkness” campaign, which will also see landmarks across the UK illuminated in purple.
Bishop Declan Lang, Chair of the Bishops’ International Affairs department, said: “We commit ourselves to stand against antisemitism, injustice and prejudice wherever it might be found. Together we remember the Holocaust and pray that love will triumph over evil.”
Bishop John Sherrington recently went on a pilgrimage to Poland during a study week organised by the Council for Christians and Jews with a focus on the Holocaust. Bishop Sherrington visited Warsaw, Łódź, and Krakow, where he met members of Jewish communities and followed the paths of some of the six million Jewish people who died in the Holocaust.
“The experiences of that week provide a deeper understanding and greater poignancy as we approach Holocaust Memorial Day on 27th January,” Bishop Sherrington said.
“Over the week, I learnt again and again that, ‘man is redeemed by love’ (Benedict XVI, Spe Salvi 26). Such love is human and fragile, yet it is a fragile love that brings hope and is a precious gift.”
Holocaust Memorial Day Trust chairwoman Laura Marks spoke about the theme for this year’s Holocaust Memorial Day, The Fragility of Freedom.
“The theme presents us all with an opportunity to reflect on the delicate nature of freedom. It also challenges us to defend our freedoms at every opportunity,” she said.
“As communities gather across the UK to light candles, let us commit to not taking our freedoms for granted and do more to create a safer, better world free of identity-based persecution.”
Picture: Holocaust Survivor Joan Salter MBE Copyright holder: Sam Churchill and the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust Picture by: Atalanta