Bishops of the Church of England stood together against riots that began after the stabbing deaths of three young girls — Bebe King, 6; Elsie Dot Stancombe, 7; and Alice da Silva Aguiar, 9 — while they were at a dance class July 29.
Their accused killer, Axel Muganwa Rudakubana, 17, is the son of Rwandan parents living in Cardiff. False rumors spread on social media that he was a Muslim and an asylum-seeker who arrived in England in 2023. Neighbors of his parents described the family as deeply involved in church life.
“I pray for our clergy and the church family in Southport and for the way they continue to respond and live out the cure of souls in their community,” wrote Bishop John Perumbalath of Liverpool, whose jurisdiction includes Southport. “I visited some of our churches which were open, offering a compassionate ear and space for prayer or reflection. The dust will settle for the media and the world will move on to other news, but our congregations will be there bringing a hurt, shocked, yet resilient community together.”
The Archbishop of Canterbury addressed the riots in three different forums. He signed a letter to The Times with four other national faith leaders; Churches Together in England, of which he is president, issued a statement; and he was especially pointed in an interview on Radio 4’s Today program.
“What is happening here is manipulation — we know that — by people on social media, people abroad, and that needs to be strongly resisted,” Archbishop Justin Welby said in the radio interview, as reported by Hattie Williams in Church Times.
“There is a use of people in this way which is the most ridiculous, appalling, and immoral thing. … They [the rioters] talk about defending this country’s Christian values. … Jesus said: ‘Love God, love your neighbor, love your enemy.’ And when he was asked who your neighbor is, the example he gave was someone who had been an historic enemy of the Jews.”
Bishop Helen-Ann Macleod Hartley of Newcastle also named the three victims and condemned the violence that followed their violent deaths.
“The violence that has followed in towns and cities across our nation has been despicable,” she said. “There is no place for racism and hate anywhere and at any time, particularly towards faith communities, mosques, and vulnerable people who have sought refuge and asylum, and I condemn this utterly.”