Photo: Bishop Christopher signing the Faith Leaders pledge in Coventry Cathedral.
On the 22nd January, the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) came into force. It breathes new life into global disarmament efforts and focuses attention on the catastrophic humanitarian impacts of the use and possession of nuclear weapons. You can read more about the treaty here.
In the House of Lords on the 21st January, Bishop Christopher encouraged the UK Government to engage constructively with the treaty, its signatories and their concerns. The transcript of the discussion is here, and you can watch the discussion here.
The Bishop’s intervention follows a letter to The Observer from November 2020, which he co-drafted and signed along with 30 bishops, including both Archbishops. He also gave this interview to the World Council of Churches on the subject.
Since then, Bishop Christopher has signed a Faith Leaders pledge for Yorkshire Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, an ICAN partner, in which he commits to making the moral case for the TPNW and to encourage the UK government to show its support. Faith Leaders across the world have been active in voicing their support for the treaty, including a group from Britain who have issued this statement.
Most recently, the Bishop has written in the Church Times on the subject, specifically calling on the government to show awareness of the concerns which have resulted in this treaty, and to send observers to the first meeting of states party to the treaty later this year. Read the article here.
With the government unlikely to change its approach in the immediate future, it will increasingly fall on civil society and faith communities to raise awareness of, and make the case for, the TPNW. Bishop Christopher hopes to continue building on the established momentum to raise the profile of the treaty and its benefits at a diocesan and national level, and warmly encourages everyone in the diocese to draw upon Coventry’s spirit of peace and reconciliation in joining with this effort.