CHURCH IS YOURS FOR £175,00

This article appears in today's Leicester Mercury:

Church is yours for £175,000

A buyer with £175,000 and a little imagination is needed to take over an empty city church.

St Barnabas, in New Humberstone, closed in 2010 when the Diocese of Leicester decided congregation numbers had dwindled too low to maintain the Grade-II listed Victorian building.

It has room for hundreds of worshippers but, before it closed, only about 20 people attended the Christian services in what has become a mostly Hindu neighbourhood.

The church has now been put on the market with Andrew Granger & Co.

Estate agent Elizabeth Lewin said: "St Barnabas is a fine example of Victorian architecture – it's a beautiful building and the gothic interior creates a great first impression.

"It's really important that we find a buyer who will be sympathetic to the building and its past.

"When we've sold churches in the past it's been about finding someone to stick around to get planning consent because applications about a church are going to be more considered than with another building of a similar age."

The church has planning permission for class B1, which means it could be used as a creche or for education, as well as its former use as a place of worship.

Other possibilities suggested by the estate agents include health centre, art gallery, museums or library.

Elizabeth said: "Because there's no parking it's limited to further development such as flats, but that's not to say someone can't come up with a far-out idea. A community use is most likely."

She said the new owner would find it challenging to get any major changes to the building approved by Leicester City Council.

Most churches are sold on to the open market, but a few are adopted by the Churches Conservation Trust because of their heritage value.

David Gillman, who works as a consultant on getting the best use out of empty churches, said St Barnabas could be hard to sell.

He said: "The church is very near a well-appointed Hindu temple, so there is little requirement for it as a place of worship for the large Hindu population in that area.

"It is a large building and it's not going to be easy to find a new use for it."

Leicester Victorian Society spokesman Graham Lees welcomed the decision to try to sell the church.

He said: "St Barnabas is one of the buildings we identified as one of the 10 most important city buildings at risk of falling into ruin.

"What we hope happens is that someone buys the building and is sympathetic to its character and significance.

"It is a great example of Victorian architecture and it is vital to retain this part of the city's past.

"We do not want it standing empty for ages. A quick sale would be most welcome."

Anyone interested in the building can ring Elizabeth on 01509 243720 or e-mail: elizabeth.lewin@ andrewgranger.co.uk

THE BIG QUESTIONS, LIVE FROM LEICESTER

BBC One's The Big Questions is broadcast live from Samworth Enterprise Academy, Leicester, this morning. I've said before that I'm no fan of this kind of show and have turned down several invitations to appear on them over the years. While I’m all in favour of honest open discussion, I favour more the statement attributed to 'Abdu'l-Bahá, that “if two people quarrel over some religious subjects, both of them are wrong.” I make an exception for today’s broadcast and watch it for the sake of the blog. I wrote about a previous edition of the programme broadcast from the same venue. There's a change in the format this time in that there's no panel of experts out front (which I think is an improvement). Nicky Campbell hosts the programme, on which three "big questions" are discussed:

1. "Is it time for the police to favour black candidates?"
2. "Is criticism of Israel anti-Semitic?"
3. "Should gay couples be allowed to marry?"

I recognise several members of the audience. Leicestershire Sikh Alliance was well represented by Raj Mann (who spoke on the first topic), Harjit Singh (who spoke on the second topic), Kartar Singh (who raises his hand to speak several times, but to no avail) and Jasdeep Singh Lamaar. Shaykh Ibrahim Mogra, Assiatant Secretary of the Muslim Council of Britain, spoke on the second and third topics. Revd Canon Dr David Jennings, Vicar of Burbage, spoke on all three topics. Also in the audience is Resham Singh Sandhu, former High Sheriff of Leicestershire and former Chair of Leicester Council of Faiths. Last time I watched this show, there were several members of Leicester Secular Society in the audience. This time round, though, I don't see anyone I recognise from the Secular Society.

I don't like how shouty and bad tempered these programmes can become. That's not the best way to address religious, ethical and moral issues in the public eye. A big part of the reason why I have generally negative feelings about The Big Questions is the fact that, while it is undoubtedly worthwhile for it to travel the country and come from a different locality each week, the people who make the major contributions to the discussion and the groups they represent are not from the area. That might be considered fair enough, since the topics discussed are national or international in nature. For instance, while discussing the first question, Nicky Campbell refers to the 2011 Census results for Leicester (admittedly, in a rather "off the cuff" manner) backing up the conventional and historical argument that it's important for the police force to be representative of the community they are policing. I would say it’s not right that there's no one in the studio from Leicestershire Police, nor any statement from them or any description of the nature of diversity within Leicestershire Police (figures for which are readily available; I've got them and so has just about everyone else in Leicester and Leicestershire who is interested). There’s no one from the Jewish communities of Leicester (nor anyone from Leicester involved in the Palestinian issue) to engage with the second question. A similar argument goes for the third topic. I can say that because I know the local scene well enough to be able to spot the “well kent faces” (or those conspicuous by their absence). But the casual viewer inside or outside Leicester might be led to the conclusion that they’re getting a sense or flavour of how these issues play in Leicester, when that’s not the case.

THIS WEEK'S VISITORS (2,325)

Regular update on the number of pageviews received from different parts of the world in the week just ending.

1. United States 878
2. United Kingdom 528
3. Russia 342
4. France 172
5. Taiwan 133
6. Germany 67
7. Poland 64
8. Ukraine 60
9. Spain 43
10. Romania 38

This week's total: 2,325 (last week: 2,447). These are aggregates of figures from the top ten countries only. Blogger's analytics doesn't show the numbers of pageviews below the tenth-ranking country and they don’t show the cumulative total including those additional countries, which is undoubtedly larger than the number shown above.

The world map at the top of this post is the graphic that I see on the stats page. The darker the green, the more pageviews from that country. I can see different versions of that map for "now" (i.e. in the last two hours), "today", "this week", "this month" and "all time". They're updated each time I look at them.

SIKHS MARK ANNIVERSARY OF 10TH GURU

This article appears in today's Leicester Mercury:

Sikhs mark anniversary of 10th guru

People were invited to share a meal with Sikh worshippers to celebrate the anniversary of the 10th guru.

The celebration took place at Guru Tegh Bahadur, in East Park Road, Spinney Hills, Leicester, on Sunday.

Guru Gobind Singh, the 10th guru, was founder of the order of the Khalsa, a baptism which formalises a promise to fight injustice.

Members of the public were invited to share food in the gurdwara, which provides between 10,000 and 20,000 free meals a week.

Raj Singh Mann said: "Under the order of the Khalsa, Sikhs are given a kind of uniform, called the five ks, including shorts, a kind of dagger and a steel bracelet.

"From this point, you are duty bound to fight injustice and the reason the guru gave us this duty is because if you walk away from trouble when someone needs your help, people will see a Sikh walking away from trouble.

"That is why Sikh people often jump in to help when someone is in trouble."

The anniversary took place earlier this month, in accordance with the lunar calendar, but prayers were said on Sunday in line with the Gregorian calendar.

CATHEDRAL REVAMP APPROVED

This article appears in today's Leicester Mercury:

Cathedral revamp approved

Plans to create a new public square outside Leicester Cathedral have been given the go-ahead.

The Cathedral Gardens project was approved by Leicester City Council's planning committee on Wednesday.

Church leaders said they were delighted to have gained permission for the £3 million scheme and hoped clearing the hurdle would make it easier to raise the cash they need to make it happen.

City mayor Sir Peter Soulsby has pledged to finance half of the scheme if the Diocese of Leicester can raise the rest.

Project director the Rev Pete Hobson said: "It's an important hurdle to clear because we do need to raise a lot of money and, understandably, there can be a reluctance to offer support to a project that doesn't have planning permission.

"This is a significant scheme for the city and we have worked very hard on it.

"We know we are dealing with a sensitive part of the city's heritage and we want to get it right."

English Heritage had raised concerns about some elements of the scheme, such as the types of flagstones used and the removal of listed railings, but it withdrew objections after the diocese revised the project.

However, Leicester Civic Society chairman Stuart Bailey said he remained concerned about a section of grade II-listed wall which will be reduced in height from seven feet to 16 inches to open the historic Guildhall building up to the new square.

He said: "This has gone through as an alteration to a listed structure which is being reduced in height, but in my view it is simply the destruction of a bit of the city's historic fabric which, once gone, will be lost forever."

The cathedral believes the wall dates from 1888 but Mr Bailey said he thought it was much older, a remnant of the medieval city.

He said: "It's actually irrelevant how old it is. It's listed so it should not be destroyed.

Mr Hobson said there was a "genuine difference of view" on the historic value of the wall.

The scheme will see the overhaul of the cathedral forecourt off Peacock Lane, which was built in 1987, with new lawns and paths installed.

Mr Hobson said the cathedral was anticipating a surge in visitors should human remains discovered by archeologists in a nearby car park turn out to be those of Richard III. He said he expected most of the work on the gardens would be done in 2014.

Anyone wishing to donate to the project should call Mr Hobson on 0116 261 5200.

DIVERSITY FAIR AT SOUTH LEICESTERSHIRE COLLEGE

Today South Leicestershire College is hosting its Diversity Fair - the climax of the college's Diversity Week. Leicester Council of Faiths was involved earlier in the week, when we offered a Faiths Panel for staff and students, Tuesday lunchtime. Today we put on display our full range of pop-up banners in an airy, bright and colourful alcove - just the kind of space I had in mind for the exhibition when it was created more than four years ago, though we've never been able to show it off in such a setting till today. We also have the two banners that we seem to have inherited from the University of Leicester: Mapping Faith and Place in Leicester and the Leicester Faith Trail.

In the photos above, Tony Nelson (Leicester Hebrew Congregation and Treasurer of Leicester Council of Faiths) is sitting with Humera Aziz (Learner Welfare Adviser, Brooksby Melton College). Humera and her colleague Nicola Welbourne were behind the Interfaith Events Day at Brooksby Melton College during Inter Faith Week last November, which we supported (see my blog entry for that event). I'd invited Humera to pop over and have a look at what was being done here today. Thanks to Zulqar Muhammad for showing Humera round the college during her brief visit this morning.

In the photo above, I'm with Ravinder Kaur from Leicestershire County Council's LWA: Living Without Abuse project. Ravinder did a stint on our exhibition in Highcross during Inter Faith Week 2012. LWA has its own display but Ravinder is good enough to sit a spell on our exhibition, late in the day.

Exhibiting downstairs:

• Charnwood Arts
• Choose My Support
• Helping Hands
• Jasmine House
• LAMP
• Royal Marines
• Trade Sexual Health
• Voluntary Action LeicesterShire

Exhibiting upstairs in The Eating Place:

• 2FUNKYarts
• Akwaaba Ayeh Mental Health Advocacy Project
• Gypsy And Traveller Equality (GATE)
• Headway
• Kaine Arts Community Education Management
• Labelled
• Leicestershire Aids Support Service (LASS)
• Leicestershire Police Prevent Engagement Team
• LWA: Living Without Abuse
• The Conservation Volunteers
• The Learning Support Centre
• The Race Equality Centre (TREC)

There's a Diversity Tucker Trail, allowing visitors to sample foods of different cultural origins. All nice and tasty - not to be confused with any other kind of "tucker trail" of which you may have heard!

Students can complete a Diversity Week Quiz as they make their way round the exhibits, with the chance to win high street shopping vouchers. Here are the multiple choice questions:

1. What does LGBT stand for?

• Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transexual
• Leicestershire Genital Bereavement Team
• Lesbian Gay Boxing Team

2. How many faiths are included in the Council of Faiths Leicester?

• 6
• 8
• 9

3. How many Eids do Muslims celebrate each year?

• 2
• 1
• 5

4. How many people do you think are effected [sic] by mental ill health?

• 1 in 10
• 1 in 6
• 1 in 4

5. What percentage of disabled people are born with their disability?

• 17%
• 56%
• 70%

6. What do these three celebrities have in common: Orlando Bloom; Keira Knightley; Mohammed Ali?

• Fear of spiders
• Dyslexia
• Asthma

7. Ramadan is?

• The first day of the Chinese New Year
• A month of fasting for Muslims
• The Hindu Festival of Lights

8. Which of the following is NOT protected by anti-discrimination law?

• Age
• Obesity
• Race
• Sex
• Sexual orientation
• Religion
• Disability
• Transgenderism

9. Diversity means?

• Celebrating and valuing difference
• Treating everyone the same
• Targeting help at individual groups

10. What minimum font size does the National Institute for the Blind recommend for user in printed public documents?

• 8-10 points [sic]
• 12-14 points
• 24+ points

Around 12 noon, Free lunches are distributed to everyone on the stalls. This leads to a classic diversity moment, when a Muslim hands a Jew their lunch bag containing a packet of Smoky Bacon crisps. There's nothing derived from a pig in these crisps of course; there's no meat content whatsoever since they are labelled as suitable for vegetarians. But it's the thought that counts - how we did laugh!

Now, if I had an award of my own to give for the best single part of the whole exhibition, I'd give it to The Conservation Volunteers, for their pop-up banner shown in the photo below.

On a personal note, walking the 20 minutes or so from my flat to the college this morning, I felt in need of a morale booster. By the time I was only a few minutes from my endpoint, I thought I'd hit Shuffle Songs on my iPod Classic, just to see which tune it might give me to set me up for the day. Of all the things it could have chosen, it offered up Eple by Royksopp, from their 2001 album Melody A.M. How lovely! I couldn't have chosen better myself - that tune always brings a smile to my face and puts a spring in my step. I've included the link to the video on the band's official website. The song itself is wonderfully bouncy and upbeat but the video is the most startlingly mind-bending experience. I've watched the video dozens of times over several years and will never get my head round it. It's unique - and it's probably my favourite music video ever. The more people watch it, the happier we shall be - click on the song title a few lines above, faithful reader, and feel the benefit.

FAITHS PANEL AT SOUTH LEICESTERSHIRE COLLEGE

It's Diversity Week at South Leicestershire College. Leicester Council of Faiths has been asked to make two contributions. On Thursday we'll be displaying our full range of pop-up banners for the whole day. Today, we're providing a "Faith Panel" to chat with staff and students.

Our panel is scheduled for lunchtime (1200-1400) so where better to set up than in the college cafeteria, which goes under the name of The Eating Place. This turns out to be an informal, easy-going couple of hours during which we get the chance to talk to a good number of interested (and interesting) people about our beliefs - and theirs.

I hope you can see our visit went well from the photo above: (at back) Helen Saunderson (Humanist); Kym Moore (staff member of SLC Equality & Diversity Group); Jan McDonald (Bahá'í); Sheila Markham (Leicester Hebrew Congregation); (in front) Brendan Grimley (Vocational Mentor, SLC staff); Zulqarnain Muhammad (staff member of SLC Equality & Diversity Group).

GOING ON BEYOND 1: INTRODUCTION & PERSONAL REFLECTION

First session in a new course entitled "Going On Beyond: Meditation and Mysticism in the World Faiths" at Christchurch, Clarendon Park. This nine-week course is presented as part of Christians Aware's Faith Awareness programme. It was originally intended as a ten-week course that should have started last Monday, but sub-zero temperature and slippery pavements led to a week's postponement.

The course has been devised - and is facilitated - by Ian Grayling and Kevin Commons (photo above) of the Leicester Serene Reflection Meditation Group, although a few of us met one afternoon last summer to set the course's outline and general aims. It's the latest course in a series that has so far covered "Mindfulness Through the Senses" (2010), "Mindfulness and Morality" (2011) and "Mindfulness and Wisdom" (2012) - all of which are covered in this blog.

There are 15 people attending this evening (including our facilitators). This programme has been designed as a means of helping those attending to explore the process of looking within as a means of deepening their understanding of their own faith as well as looking at mysticism within a range of different traditions. More specifically, the programme seeks to enable people to:

• Recognise ways of knowing through personal experience that goes beyond rational understanding;
• Deepen (or initiate) their won meditation or contemplative practice;
• Be mindful of similarity and difference in contemplative practice from different faith perspectives;
• Consider the practice of "meditation" as a means of underpinning daily living.

This opening session provides a "faith-neutral" introduction to the whole programme. The remaining sessions look at meditation or contemplative prayer and mysticism through the life of a well known practitioner from a sample of different faiths. Each of these sessions will comprise an introduction from a named speaker and explanation of the particular practice  of the chosen practitioner. The presenters will then lead a short period of meditation or contemplative prayer and the session will conclude with questions from the audience.

The programme, which employs a range of delivery techniques, including practical experience of a contemplative technique, aims to promote active and reflective learning in an atmosphere of mutual respect and trust.

This evening, Ian and Kevin renew our acquaintance with authorities and commentators whose names and insights we've come to know through these courses: James W. Fowler and his definitions of stages of faith; Alister Hardy and his research on religious experience; Zohar and Marshall and their work on spiritual intelligence. We do some pairs work discussing how Hardy's findings relate to our own lives - an exercise in active listening.

HOLOCAUST VICTIMS REMEMBERED AT COUNTY MEMORIALS

This article appears in today's Leicester Mercury:

Holocaust victims remembered at county memorials

The atrocities of the Nazi Holocaust were remembered during memorial events in the city and county.

A service was held in Queen's Park, Loughborough, yesterday lunchtime to mark Holocaust Memorial Day – held each year to coincide with the day Auschwitz was liberated in 1945.

Councillor Diane Wise, mayor of Charnwood, led the town's 13th Holocaust Memorial Service at the bandstand, commemorating Jewish lives lost during the Second World War.

"As Mayor of Charnwood, I was honoured to be invited to lead this memorial service," she said. "Although Auschwitz camp was liberated nearly 70 years ago, the effects of what occurred are still felt by many.

"I am proud Loughborough continues to host this service, a poignant reminder of the human costs of war."

The day was also marked by an exhibition in Charnwood Museum, which will run until Sunday. Victims were also due to be remembered at an event at the University of Leicester last night. Communities Together: Build a Bridge was due to be held at the Fraser Noble Hall, on University Road, and was to include displays of work by schoolchildren, on tackling hatred.

Organised by Leicester City Council, Leicester Council of Faiths, the School Development Support Agency and the university's Stanley Burton Centre for Holocaust Studies, the evening's programme included presentations by young people who spoke about visiting Auschwitz.

Assistant city mayor Councillor Manjula Sood said: "It is inspiring to see the creativity of young people and the importance of tackling all kinds of discrimination."

GATHERING CELEBRATES INDIA INDEPENDENCE

This article appears in today's Leicester Mercury:

Gathering celebrates India independence

More than 100 people gathered to celebrate the 63rd anniversary of India Republic Day.

People gave speeches about topical issues affecting the Indian community at a celebration at Belgrave Neighbourhood Centre, Rothley Street, Leicester, on Saturday night.

Jashvant Chauhan, vice-president of the Gujarat Hindu Association in Leicester, said: "It was very well-attended and the programme went very well.

"Lots of people spoke about different issues – the UN in India, the rape in Delhi, the protection that exists because of the constitution and how it has stood the test of time, and the contribution Indians have had in the past, and hopes for the future."

City mayor Sir Peter Soulsby also attended, alongside assistant mayors Manjula Sood and Piara Singh Clair.

India gained independence from Britain in August 1947, but a new constitution was not adopted until January 26, 1950 and it is celebrated on that day.