Religion in the United Kingdom

Lord Janner of Braunstone Excerpts

Thursday 22nd November 2012 Lords Chamber

[Lord Janner of Braunstone]

My Lords, I congratulate the noble Lord, Lord Singh, on this important debate in the Chamber today and I will be delighted to hear Members of our House from different religions speaking this evening.

Today, I would like to tell you about my own Jewish connections and the Jewish community’s role in society. I am going to speak specifically about Mitzvah Day. I am proud to be one of its community advocators. This community-based project was held last Sunday, 18 November, in the UK and in many other parts of the world. It is a day when the Jewish community comes together to help society, not financially, but by giving our most valuable asset: our time.

Mitzvah Day is devised from the fundamental Jewish teaching of tikkum olam which means literally in Hebrew, “to repair and to heal the world”. On this day, my Jewish community joins with communities of all faiths, working together to promote happiness, duty and the importance of communities supporting our own society. We can do this through planting trees, collecting food for the homeless, or speaking to individuals who do not have family nearby. These are essential duties that are built in religions and in society.

My very good friend, the right honourable Ed Miliband, the leader of the Opposition, recently described Mitzvah Day so accurately:

“It’s through thousands of small actions that we build our families and our communities. The fruits of Mitzvah—small tangible signs of hope and solidarity—show that the shared wealth of a nation is measured not so much in pounds and pence, but in the bonds of compassion, care, and community”.

Compassion, care and community come together.

We speak of the importance of one nation—Britain as a community. The role of religion is important and evident in this Motion. Through communities and understanding we are all united. The contribution made by religious communities to our society is outstanding and we should recognise and praise their input into our country.

I want to ask the Minister how communities are being commended for their role in society and how our Government are using their initiative to build a stronger society in Britain. We must recognise and celebrate our true diversity and continue to work with all our minorities in our fine country and to keep Britain as it is: a truly unique place in which we are very fortunate to live.