Religious leaders in Harrogate have issued a plea for tolerance, calm and respect as the conflict in the Middle East continues.

Hasan Muhammad, the imam of the Harrogate mosque, Bernard Cohen, the president of the Harrogate synagogue, and Reverend Alan Garrow, the vicar of St Peter’s Church, met local MP Andrew Jones this morning to discuss the ongoing situation and the positions of Muslims and Jews in Harrogate and Knaresborough and nationwide.

Mr Muhammad, who is the imam of the Harrogate Islamic Association, said:

“It is good to stand together with Mr Cohen calling for peace and understanding between faiths and, specifically at this moment, between their followers.

“Harrogate people are well-known for being welcoming and accepting. These are values we should cherish as we live our lives in respect and understanding and celebrate both what makes us different and what we share. As-salamu alaykum.”

Mr Cohen, who is president of Harrogate Hebrew Congregation, said:

“The imam and I meeting today vividly demonstrates that although being of different faiths there is no difference in our humanity and our values of respect, tolerance, community and a desire for peace.

“We call on everyone in Harrogate and beyond to embrace these shared values and to exhibit them in all they do. Shalom.”

The meeting came after a weekend when hundreds of thousands of people attended a Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) demonstration in London on Saturday.

The march was marred by outbreaks of violence and intimidating behaviour, and the Metropolitan Police said that 145 people were arrested, the majority of them far-right counter-protesters.

Seven of these have since been charged with offences including possession of an offensive weapon and assault on an emergency worker.

Mr Jones said:

“I am grateful to the imam, the president of the synagogue and Rev Garrow for coming together to emphasise a message of tolerance, calm and respect. Islamophobic and antisemitic acts are unacceptable and I am pleased that we seem not to be experiencing an increase in this kind of hatred locally.

“This meeting is important because it demonstrates that whatever our beliefs we are compassionate beings sharing humanitarian values and respecting one another.”

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Who and what are Quakers?

There are about 210,000 Quakers across the world including a small community who practice the religion, formally known as the Religious Society of Friends, in Harrogate.

Gilly Charters has been one for 35 years after being brought up by atheist parents.

She and around 40 others worship once a week at the Friends Meeting House on Queen Parade.

Ms Charters explains what drew her to the Christian denomination:

“I came to the Quakers because I needed a place to explore my spiritual life where I wasn’t told how to think or made to sign up to rules or regulations. It provided a place for quiet discernment.

“The whole of life is sacred and we as human beings are sacred. I feel very strongly that true religion leads to respect for the earth and all life on it. These are the really important things for Quakers.”

Quakerism dates back centuries and has its origins in 17th century England. Many Quakers migrated to the USA and the religion is also practiced there.

But its sometimes old-fashioned image has been difficult to shake off.

Some people will have an image of the Quaker Porridge Oats man, with long hair, traditional clothing and hat. Ms Charters said that view of the religion belongs to the past.

“That image tends to mean Quakers are dead and gone or are a very old fashioned people, that we can’t exist anymore.

“But we do exist, there are not huge numbers of Quakers, but we are still active”.

The Friends Meeting House in Harrogate

At a Quaker meeting in Harrogate, Ms Charters says people worship together in silence before speaking messages to each other.

She explained:

“It can be about almost anything. Sometimes people will talk about what things are upsetting to them, for example, people who have experienced bereavement might talk about what that person meant to them in their life.

“Someone might talk about how important the environment is to them, or about what that person is doing to work for a better world. It’s all sort of things.”

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Quakers are not necessarily Christians and they don’t all worship the Bible.

Ms Charters added:

“A lot of Quakers would say they are Christians, it’s about having a sense of God’s presence. What people mean by God can be different. It’s a source of a lot of conservation between people. It’s finding a sense of what’s bigger than us. 

“A lot of Quakers believe in Jesus as a historical figure, but their route to this deeper sense of being is not through the life of Jesus, it’s not through death and resurrection. There’s a big variety.”

This weekend the Quakers along with HUFUD (Humanity United for Universal Demilitarisation) are organising a peace conference at the Friends Meeting House.

Many wars have been fought in the name of religion but the peace movement is something that the Quakers strongly identify with.

“I can’t believe in the death penalty because if everyone is unique and precious then how can I be part of a state that sanctions that? The same with war, how can I go and fight against a presence of equal being? 

“When people ask me, Why are you a Quaker, I say living on this is earth is hard work so when you’re working you need to be alongside a group of people who work in the same way. It helps keep me grounded.”

To find out more about the Harrogate Quakers, visit their website.

From the outside, it looks like a normal terraced house on a Harrogate backstreet, but inside its followers practice the ancient and mystical religion Buddhism.

Around 60 people in Harrogate are practicing Buddhists and visit Harrogate’s Dechen Buddhist Centre on Granville Road.

It has a shrine upstairs for meditation and a meeting room to discuss the teachings of the Buddha, a religious leader who lived more than 2,500 years ago in what is now Nepal.

Followers of Buddhism don’t worship a supreme god or deity. Instead, they focus on achieving their goal of enlightenment, or Nirvana, which they say is a state of inner peace and wisdom.

Buddhism has traditionally been most popular in East and Southeast Asia, but its influence is growing in the west.

David Bullock started following Buddhism 14 years ago after a local newspaper article tweaked his interest.

He said:

“I was looking for a religion and I knew Christianity wasn’t the one. I bought the Knaresborough Post one Friday evening and saw an article about a Buddhist Lama that had been to Harrogate. It gave a phone number, I rang that, and got to speak to someone. 

“I’ve never believed in God anyway. If there was a God and he’s as powerful as the Bible leads us to believe, then why can’t he stop all this violence in the world?”

Howard Quinn said Buddhism has helped him come to terms with a traumatic childhood.

He said:

“I gradually realised that was a set of experiences that stopped defining me, and that’s the thing of the teachings, they are about the rediscovery of the heart, it’s not an intellectual process.”

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Inner peace

The Buddha’s most important teachings, known as The Four Noble Truths, are essential to understanding the religion.

These teachings involve discarding negative emotions such as hatred, anger and jealousy.

The centre in Harrogate is visited by Lama Jampa Thaye twice a year. A Lama is a spiritual guide and has the authority to impart the Buddha’s teachings.

Greg Tunesi used to be a regular churchgoer but said joining Buddhism has been a life-changing experience.

“It’s brought a deep and profound inner peace and joy which is wonderful actually.

“Everybody is searching for true happiness and deep peace to avoid pain dissatisfaction and disappointment. That’s a glue that pulls everybody together, but we don’t always behave in a way that facilities joy. We get caught up in everyday stuff.”

In the shrine room.

Meditation is a key aspect of Buddhism and the path to enlightenment.

The centre offers meditation sessions every Wednesday at 10am and 7.15pm and on Saturdays at 11.15am.

Afterwards, they discuss a Buddhist teaching together and how it relates to their own lives and experiences.

Mr Tunesi said:

“Meditation gives us a real opportunity to observe and quieten that busy mind. Many of us think, ‘we are our thoughts’, but we’re much more. Our thoughts are random things that come and go.

“Once we’ve quietened the mind there’s an opportunity to really reflect on an aspect of the teachings and integrate it into our everyday existence.”

Goodness in life

Mr Quinn said many people come to Buddhism after facing trauma, illness or upheaval in their lives.

He said meditation and the teachings help soften the raw emotions that sometimes come with change.

Mr Quinn said:

“We appreciate what we have much more and see the goodness in life in a much clearer way. We spend much more time living in the moment and much less time reliving negative experiences and habits from the past or worrying what might happen in the future.”

Inside the Buddhist centre

Buddhists believe in karma, which is a philosophy that has transcended the religion and is something many of us are all familiar with.

Mr Tunesi added:

“Be kind and don’t be a cause of suffering, if the whole world was operating like that, goodness me, there wouldn’t be so many people tooting their horn if someone has held them up for a second!”

If you’re interested in learning more about the Dechen Buddhist Centre call 01423 881647 or email info@yorkshirebuddhistcommunity.com

Police have told the Muslim organisation planning to open the Harrogate district’s first mosque to include extra security measures due to safety fears.

Harrogate Islamic Association has applied for planning permission to convert the former Home Guard club on the corner of Tower Street and Belford Place into a place of worship.

As part of the planning process, the council consults some organisations to see if they lend support, recommend refusal or suggest alterations.

North Yorkshire Police has submitted a designing out crime report, which says the main crime associated with mosques is racially or religiously aggravated criminal damage.

It suggests that the plans include external lighting, iron railings, laminated glass, CCTV and intruder alarms.

Police also suggest an external post box to prevent arson.

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• Harrogate Islamic Association hopes to see off anti-mosque campaign

The mosque faces opposition from a leaflet campaign and Bristol planning expert Gavin Boby, who calls himself the Mosquebuster.

But many people posted supportive comments on social media when the Stray Ferret reported the opposition yesterday.

Harrogate Civic Society has also lent its support after rejecting two previous proposed sites for the mosque.

Henry Pankhurst, on behalf of the civic society, said:

“We are very hopeful that the building will be able to take its place, once repaired and refurbished, as a worthy neighbour to all of the notable nearby properties.

“Railings should be erected as above and windows should be of a design which is suitable for this historic building and the conservation area.

“Every care should be taken to preserve historic features internally as well as externally.”

A focus on Christian and Norse culture will be brought to a dramatic conclusion at Ripon Cathedral this evening.

At 7.30pm, the Hazelsong Theatre group will perform Whiteblade, featuring the 7th century Northumbrian King Oswald who was made a saint for his defence of the Catholic faith.

Subtitled ‘King Oswald, the Sword and the Cross’ it tells the story of a courageous man who pre-dates Wilfrid, the founder of Ripon Cathedral.

Andy Bates of Hazelsong, said:

“Seventh century Britain was a time of turmoil and warfare, where pagan fought Christian and Saxon battled Briton.

“In this time arose a great king, bearing both the blade and the cross, to fight for the people and the soul of the kingdom.”

Hazelsong Theatre group set off on Thursday’s dragon parade with musical accompaniment from The Brothers Gillespie

Those wishing to attend the performance can book free tickets on the Ripon Cathedral website.

Prior to tonight’s performance the legend of Sigurd the dragon slayer and Fafnir the dragon slain by the Viking warrior, takes centre stage.

A second dragon parade with a puppet of Fafnir, will set off from the cathedral today at 12.30 and make its way through city streets to the band stand at Spa Gardens.

Before then, between 9.30am and 12 noon, people will be able to visit the cathedral to make dragon sock puppets.

The famous Norse tale of the warrior and the dragon was represented in music and song on Thursday.

Local musicians were invited to bring their own instruments and join in music making at the cathedral

The Sigurd legend, which dates back more than a thousand years, was marked with a recital led by The Brothers Gillespie – James and Sam – who had earlier invited local people to join them and Hazelsong in an impromptu music-making session.

The Sigurd Stone

Next year the cathedral celebrates its 1350th anniversary and in the ancient building’s treasury is the Sigurd Stone – believed to have marked the tomb of a Norse settler who was buried in Ripon.

The prized and unusual artefact, combines Christian imagery in the shape of a cross and Norse mythology, depicting the warrior and the dragon.

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The Ripon chapel that survived medieval plague and modern pandemic

In Medieval times Magdalens Road was one of the principal routes into Ripon – a place that had grown in importance and religious significance from 672 AD when Wilfrid established the church where the city’s cathedral now stands.

That iconic building will be the focus of much attention next year. Services and celebrations are to be held to mark the 1350th anniversary since Ripon’s Patron Saint created the foundation upon which the city was built.

It is one of three Grade I listed buildings in Ripon, enjoying the same English Heritage (now Historic England) categorisation with the obelisk on Market Square.

That 82-foot structure, was built in 1702 and paid for by John Aislabie of Studley Royal water garden fame and, 18 years later, South Sea Bubble infamy.

In their prominent locations, Ripon’s cathedral and obelisk are two of the city’s best-known and loved Grade 1 listed buildings – but where is the third?

The answer takes us back down Magdalens Road and a small chapel that sits modestly in its well-kept grounds.

Dating back to the 12th century, the Chapel of the Hospital of St Mary Magdalen, completes Ripon’s Grade I set.

Founded by Thurstan of Caen, who was Archbishop of York from 1114 to 1140, the chapel is the only complete fragment of any of Ripon’s medieval hospitals to survive from the time of its foundation.

It had sisters and a priest, whose duties were to feed and shelter lepers, maintain blind priests born in Ripon, and give alms to the poor.

Anne Priestley, who rings the bell to beckon the Sunday congregation to the chapel

For Anne Priestley and Joyce Pearson, it is a building that they have marvelled over for years.

They live in the Almshouses of the Hospital of St Mary Magdalene, across the road and are two of the three keyholders for anybody wanting to visit and find out more about this hidden and historically-important gem.

Ms Priestley, said:

“This was the site of Ripon’s leper hospital – one of many created in England during the medieval period when leprosy was sweeping the land.”

In an echo, that comes all the way back to today, she said:

“The disease was far-reaching and a strain of it was thought to have been brought back to this country from men infected during the crusades.”

She added:

“Over nearly 1,000 years, this chapel has survived leprosy, the Black Death, plague, Spanish flu and now the covid pandemic.”

Keyholder Joyce Pearson, with her dog Eddie, says visitors are always welcome

Eucharist services, led by a roster of retired clergy, are held each Sunday at 10am and the chapel’s bell is rung for five minutes beforehand to beckon a congregation of up to 20.

Among that congregation is Ms Pearson, who said:

“We welcome visitors and most of them are amazed when they hear about the chapel’s history. It is very much one of Ripon’s hidden gems.”

Apart from the Sunday morning services, the chapel remains locked, but people who would like to look around it, can call on the keyholders who live at 44, 50 and 52 Magdalens Road.

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North Yorkshire Police has issued advice to church authorities to keep premises locked when unattended to deter theft.

The advice has been sent out in pamphlets to churches across the region and has been questioned by some who believe the premises should stay open throughout the day.

The full advice can be seen on the North Yorkshire Police website and also includes locking away any valuable items and chaining antique furniture to the floor and wall.

Churches have historically been open to the community at most times throughout the day for prayer and services. Most have been closed in the past year due to covid.

C B Newsham is the director of the Parish Church Photographic Survey and saw the police notice whilst taking photographs in a Harrogate church.

He expressed his dismay at the advice on Twitter;

https://twitter.com/cbnewham/status/1400102182716854273

He said;

“If a church is locked then it presents a more tempting target for a thief […] because a locked building says “I’m locked because I have valuables inside”. Most churches have very little worth stealing inside them – something easily seen if the church is open. If it’s locked, then a lot of damage can be done gaining access. Thousands of pounds-worth of damage with nothing stolen.”

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Reverend Robb Wainwright, associate Priest for Burton Leonard and Bishop Monkton, is in agreement;

“I am very much in favour of churches remaining open where it is practicable to do so. In many rural locations just organising a key holder and an opening rota may be a problem, especially in winter.”

North Yorkshire Police has not yet responded with comment on the issue.

Ripon Cathedral and two churches in Knaresborough will be holding services this evening to allow congregations to offer their condolences.

Ripon Cathedral is holding a service of evensong at 6pm today to mark the death of the Duke of Edinburgh.

The cathedral told its congregation, via Facebook, that the service will include a reflection from the Dean of Ripon, the Very Rev John Dobson DL. The service will be sung by the lay clerks of the cathedral’s choir.

Prince Philip died last Friday, aged 99

The Lord Lieutenant of North Yorkshire, Jo Ropner, will be attending.

The tenor bell will toll ahead of the service, half-muffled.

Guests will require a ticket, which can be booked here, and the cathedral asks everyone to be seated for 5.45pm.

Prince Philip died at Windsor Castle last Friday, aged 99.

During the period of mourning the cathedral has been open to visitors. People have been invited take a candle and a prayer card and sit in the cathedral to reflect.

Read more:

• Prayers were said for Prince Philip at Ripon Cathedral last weekend.
• Image Gallery: Prince Philip in the Harrogate district.

In Knaresborough, the Parish Church of St John the Baptist and the Parish Church of St Mary the Virgin in Goldsborough will be open for prayer vigils.

Due to covid restrictions the churches have said they will not be offering books of condolence.

All of this evening’s services will be held in line with coronavirus restrictions.