Transcription of Baroness Warsi's speech from her lecture at the University of Leicester, 20 January 2011
Source: Conservative Party Press Office
Sayeeda Warsi, Co-chairman of the Conservative Party, will tonight deliver the 2011 University of Leicester Sir Sigmund Sternberg Lecture in which she will discuss combating religious intolerance in Britain.
She will say:
Back in September I made a speech about faith at the Bishops Conference.
It was the first time that a Cabinet Minister had spoken so frankly about faith for many years.
I think it's fair to say that the speech caused a bit of a stir in some quarters.
The New Humanist Magazine ran a poll of their readers which ranked me the fifth most dangerous enemy of reason last year.
I was about to think that actually, I hadn't done too badly, when I discovered that the Koran-burning Pastor, Terry Jones, came one place below me!
But overall I believe the impact of the speech was really positive.
And the main thing I discovered by doing the speech was that there is a large, untapped appetite for a more mature discussion of faith in this country.
I sensed that people were fed up of the patronising, superficial way faith is discussed in certain quarters, including the media...
....and that sadly there has been a rise in a sloppy kind of religious illiteracy.
So it was important to take stock of where Britain is with faith.
And I am delighted to be here today to build on what I said.
Your University is helping to raise the whole standard of faith-based debate in this country.
And I know that some fantastic people have given the Sternberg lecture before me.
Professor Hans Kung has spoken about his idea of the "global ethic" and the common values of the main religions...
...Lord Carey has talked about the relationship between Islam and The West, and why the idea of a clash of civilisations can become a self-fulfilling prophecy...
...and Cardinal Cormac O'Connor has explored the current global position of Christianity.
But I want to start my speech today by paying tribute to Sir Sigmund Sternberg.
Although he has connections with the Labour Party, I hope he won't mind if I say that his life seems to me to be the epitome of the Big Society.
Since coming to Britain as a European Jew in the 1920s, he has spent his life helping to strengthen communities.
For me, as a Rotarian, a big part of that was what he did in the 1990s...
...when he re-established Rotary Clubs in Eastern Europe after the collapse of Communism.
But from the point of view of my subject today, it is his work with faith communities which is truly inspiring.
From helping to resolve a row at Auschwitz over a Catholic convent...
...to organising the first ever papal visit to a synagogue...
...to establishing the Three Faiths Forum with Reverend Marcus Braybrooke and Dr Badawi....
...Sir Sigmund has shown just how much one person can do to promote a richer, more tolerant, and a more integrated society.
And that brings me to the theme of my lecture today.
Around the Dinner Table
Liz Hudson-Oliff
Communications Director
Church of England
Diocese of Leicester
Reverend Jill Jackson
Anglican Priest
Younis Makda
Teacher
Mike Black
Depot Manager
Rose Gossage
Teacher
Ibrahim Mogra
Leicester Imam
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ITV Evening News: News at Ten' returnby LiverpoolFitzy200814,592 views
Why would an imam come from a foreign land into a place like the UK and try to convert brits to his belief system in the first place? Why not stay in his own land and try to convert hindus and christians there? Could it be the welfare state, is it an easier life, is there less suppression, is it a conquest, why? Our individual identities are being whittled away to create a robot mentality whereby all slaves are equal!
sinclair61 1 month ago
i know Richard very well he is a great friend
crisp2882 3 months ago in playlist More videos from radiodick69
Sorry to see that Cameron and Baroness Warsi have differing views on Islamophobia.
toddy1609 1 year ago