Michael Nazir-Ali
Encyclopedia
Michael James Nazir-Ali (born 19 August 1949) was the 106th Bishop of Rochester
in the Church of England
: he retired in September 2009, taking up a position as director of the Oxford Centre for Training, Research, Advocacy and Dialogue. He holds dual citizenship of both Pakistan and Britain.
, Pakistan
to Christian parents, James and Patience Nazir-Ali. His father converted from Islam. He attended the Roman Catholic-run St Patrick's school in Karachi
and began attending Roman Catholic services and identifying as Christian at the age of 15; he was formally received into the Church of Pakistan
aged 20.
and later studied economics, Islamic history and sociology at the University of Karachi
(BA
1970). He studied in preparation for ordination at Ridley Hall, Cambridge
(1970) and undertook postgraduate studies in theology at St Edmund Hall, Oxford
(BLitt 1974, MLitt
1981), Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge
(MLitt
1976) (where he joined the Cambridge University Liberal Club) and the Australian College of Theology
(ThD
1983). He has also studied at the Center for the Study of World Religions at Harvard Divinity School
and in 2005 he was awarded the Lambeth DD
. He has a number of other doctorates. His particular academic interests include comparative literature
and comparative philosophy of religion
. In addition to teaching appointments in colleges and universities in many parts of the world, he has been a tutor in the University of Cambridge
, Senior Tutor of Karachi Theological College and Visiting Professor of Theology and Religious Studies in the University of Greenwich
. He has been elected an Honorary Fellow of his colleges at Oxford
(St Edmund Hall
) and Cambridge
(Fitzwilliam
). From 1986 until 1989, while he was assistant to the Archbishop of Canterbury
and Co-ordinator of Studies and Education for the Lambeth Conference, he was an honorary curate of St Giles', Oxford
and St Philip and St James with St Margaret
.
and Lahore
, and became the first Bishop of Raiwind
in West Punjab (1984–86) — at the time, the youngest bishop in the Anglican Communion. When his life was endangered in Pakistan in 1986, Robert Runcie
, the Archbishop of Canterbury, arranged for his refuge in England. Nazir-Ali says, "...the reason behind some of the difficulties I was facing was removed when General Zia was killed - unfortunately for him, and I am now not doing the work that I was doing at the time with the very poor." He became an assistant to the Archbishop at Lambeth
and assisted with the planning of the 1988 Lambeth Conference; he was General Secretary of the Church Mission Society 1989-1994 and concurrently Assistant Bishop of Southwark
. He was appointed Bishop of Rochester, England in 1994, and in 1999 entered the House of Lords
as one of the "Lords Spiritual" because of his seniority in episcopal office, the first religious leader from Asia to serve there. He was one of the final two candidates for Archbishop of Canterbury, though Rowan Williams
was appointed.
Between 1997 and 2003. he was chairman of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority
's ethics and law committee. He is a leader of the Network for Inter-faith Concerns of the Anglican Communion.
In his statement, he had gone on to say when it was right for couples not to have children. Patrons and counsellors would need to advise couples in such circumstances as to what was right for them.
Because of this statement, it is claimed that Nazir-Ali believed that married couples had a duty to have children, and those who remained childless were "self-indulgent" Although he views having children a basic part of a good marriage, he has denied ever labeling couples who did not have children "self-indulgent", claiming it was "pure invention".
as Bishop of Reading in 2003. The others were the Bishops of Bradford, Carlisle, Chester, Chichester, Exeter, Liverpool, Southwell and Winchester.
In October 2007, he told the Daily Telegraph that he would not attend the 2008 Lambeth Conference because he would find it "very difficult" to be in Council following the actions of the Episcopal Church
in the United States in favour of homosexuality, which he believes are destroying the unity of the Anglican Communion.
He has been "accused of pandering to hate and homophobia" after publishing a statement, on the day a gay pride parade took place in London, calling for homosexuals to "repent and be changed".
After he was reported in the press as saying homosexuals should "repent and be changed", he published a statement saying that the context was that all us of should repent, walk with Christ and be transformed by the renewal of their minds. When asked whether this included homosexuals, he had said it included everybody and went on to give a Christian view of human sexuality, marriage and the family.
said "We would normally expect a bishop to display more humility and work towards bringing communities closer together rather than contributing towards fostering greater divisions."
had turned "already separate communities into 'no-go' areas" and claimed that there had been attempts to "impose an 'Islamic' character on certain areas", citing the amplification of the call to prayer from mosques as an example. He criticised the government's integration policy as "an agenda which still lacks the underpinning of a moral and spiritual vision", and asked that the government make a public affirmation of the "Christian roots of British society".
These comments resulted in some debate and criticism, including a response from the Muslim Council of Britain, who said the mosque call was no different from church bells ringing, and Nick Clegg
, leader of the Liberal Democrats, who described the claims as "a gross caricature of reality". Conservative home affairs spokesman David Davis
said the bishop had rightly drawn attention to a "deeply serious problem" and that Labour's support for multiculturalism risked creating a situation of "voluntary apartheid".
The Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government
, Hazel Blears
responded to Nazir-Ali's comments by stating that Britain was a "secular democracy", and challenged him to name specific 'no go' areas. but the Chair of the Equality Commission, Trevor Phillips
, agreed with his analysis of the situation. Nazir-Ali has since received death threats against himself and his family, and he is now under escort by the Kent police; however, he says his "overflowing postbag" has been "overwhelmingly supportive", with people offering their own experience.
magazine caused controversy in the United Kingdom, in which Nazir-Ali called for Christianity to regain a prominent position in public life and blamed the "newfangled and insecurely founded doctrine of multiculturalism
" for entrenching the segregation of communities. Nazir-Ali argued that the decline of Christianity and the rise of liberal values in the UK during the 1960s had created a moral vacuum which radical Islam threatened to fill. He wrote that "We have argued that it is necessary to understand where we have come from, to guide us to where we are going, and to bring us back when we wander too far from the path of national destiny." The Guardian
newspaper devoted its leader to criticising Nazir-Ali, although it described his writing as "neatly underlining [Standpoint]'s expressed intent ‘to defend and celebrate Western civilisation’". Nazir-Ali was condemned by the Ramadhan foundation and the President of the National Secular Society
, who accused him of "doing the BNP’s work", but was praised by The Daily Telegraph
centre-right newspaper.
. They were married in 1972 and have two adult sons, Shammy (Shamoun) and Ross.
His pastimes include hockey
, cricket
, table tennis
and Scrabble
as well as writing poetry in English and Persian and listening to music.
and many other articles in newspapers and journals
Bishop of Rochester
The Bishop of Rochester is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Rochester in the Province of Canterbury.The diocese covers the west of the county of Kent and is centred in the city of Rochester where the bishop's seat is located at the Cathedral Church of Christ and the Blessed Virgin...
in the Church of England
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
: he retired in September 2009, taking up a position as director of the Oxford Centre for Training, Research, Advocacy and Dialogue. He holds dual citizenship of both Pakistan and Britain.
Background
Michael Nazir-Ali was born in KarachiKarachi
Karachi is the largest city, main seaport and the main financial centre of Pakistan, as well as the capital of the province of Sindh. The city has an estimated population of 13 to 15 million, while the total metropolitan area has a population of over 18 million...
, Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
to Christian parents, James and Patience Nazir-Ali. His father converted from Islam. He attended the Roman Catholic-run St Patrick's school in Karachi
Karachi
Karachi is the largest city, main seaport and the main financial centre of Pakistan, as well as the capital of the province of Sindh. The city has an estimated population of 13 to 15 million, while the total metropolitan area has a population of over 18 million...
and began attending Roman Catholic services and identifying as Christian at the age of 15; he was formally received into the Church of Pakistan
Church of Pakistan
The Church of Pakistan is a united church in Pakistan, which is part of the Anglican Communion and a member church of the World Methodist Council. It was established in 1970 with a union of Anglicans, Scottish Presbyterians , Methodists, and Lutherans. It is the only United Church in the South...
aged 20.
Academic career
Nazir-Ali attended Saint Patrick's High School, KarachiSaint Patrick's High School, Karachi
St Patrick's High School, located in Saddar Town in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan, is one of the oldest educational institutions in Pakistan. The principal is Fr. Joseph Paul and vice principal Fr. Nobert Mendonca.- History :...
and later studied economics, Islamic history and sociology at the University of Karachi
University of Karachi
The University of Karachi is a public university located in Karachi, Pakistan. It serves an on-campus student population of more than 24,000. According to the Higher Education Commission of Pakistan, it is ranked among the top three universities of the country...
(BA
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
1970). He studied in preparation for ordination at Ridley Hall, Cambridge
Ridley Hall, Cambridge
Ridley Hall is a theological college located in Sidgwick Avenue in Cambridge in the United Kingdom, which trains intending ministers for the Church of England and other churches. It was founded in 1881 and named in memory of Nicholas Ridley, a leading protestant theologian of the sixteenth century...
(1970) and undertook postgraduate studies in theology at St Edmund Hall, Oxford
St Edmund Hall, Oxford
St Edmund Hall is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. Better known within the University by its nickname, "Teddy Hall", the college has a claim to being "the oldest academical society for the education of undergraduates in any university"...
(BLitt 1974, MLitt
Master of Letters
The Master of Letters is a postgraduate degree.- United Kingdom :The MLitt is a postgraduate degree awarded by a select few British and Irish universities, predominantly within the ancient English and Scottish universities.- England :Within the English University system MLitts are not universally...
1981), Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge
Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge
Fitzwilliam College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Cambridge in England.The college traces its origins back to 1869 and the foundation of the Non-Collegiate Students Board, a venture intended to offer students from less financially privileged backgrounds a chance to study...
(MLitt
Master of Letters
The Master of Letters is a postgraduate degree.- United Kingdom :The MLitt is a postgraduate degree awarded by a select few British and Irish universities, predominantly within the ancient English and Scottish universities.- England :Within the English University system MLitts are not universally...
1976) (where he joined the Cambridge University Liberal Club) and the Australian College of Theology
Australian College of Theology
The Australian College of Theology is an Australian theological education provider. The college was one of the first Australian non-university providers to offer an accredited bachelor's degree and a research doctorate. Over 15,000 people have graduated since the foundation of the college,...
(ThD
Doctor of Philosophy
Doctor of Philosophy, abbreviated as Ph.D., PhD, D.Phil., or DPhil , in English-speaking countries, is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities...
1983). He has also studied at the Center for the Study of World Religions at Harvard Divinity School
Harvard Divinity School
Harvard Divinity School is one of the constituent schools of Harvard University, located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in the United States. The School's mission is to train and educate its students either in the academic study of religion, or for the practice of a religious ministry or other public...
and in 2005 he was awarded the Lambeth DD
Lambeth degree
A Lambeth degree is an academic degree conferred by the Archbishop of Canterbury under the authority of the Ecclesiastical Licences Act 1533 as successor of the papal legate in England...
. He has a number of other doctorates. His particular academic interests include comparative literature
Comparative literature
Comparative literature is an academic field dealing with the literature of two or more different linguistic, cultural or national groups...
and comparative philosophy of religion
Philosophy of religion
Philosophy of religion is a branch of philosophy concerned with questions regarding religion, including the nature and existence of God, the examination of religious experience, analysis of religious language and texts, and the relationship of religion and science...
. In addition to teaching appointments in colleges and universities in many parts of the world, he has been a tutor in the University of Cambridge
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
, Senior Tutor of Karachi Theological College and Visiting Professor of Theology and Religious Studies in the University of Greenwich
University of Greenwich
The University of Greenwich is a British university located in the London Borough of Greenwich, London, England. The main campus is located on the grounds of the Old Royal Naval College, a central location within the Maritime Greenwich UNESCO World Heritage Site.-History:The history of the...
. He has been elected an Honorary Fellow of his colleges at Oxford
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
(St Edmund Hall
St Edmund Hall, Oxford
St Edmund Hall is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. Better known within the University by its nickname, "Teddy Hall", the college has a claim to being "the oldest academical society for the education of undergraduates in any university"...
) and Cambridge
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
(Fitzwilliam
Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge
Fitzwilliam College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Cambridge in England.The college traces its origins back to 1869 and the foundation of the Non-Collegiate Students Board, a venture intended to offer students from less financially privileged backgrounds a chance to study...
). From 1986 until 1989, while he was assistant to the Archbishop of Canterbury
Archbishop of Canterbury
The Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion, and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. In his role as head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop leads the third largest group...
and Co-ordinator of Studies and Education for the Lambeth Conference, he was an honorary curate of St Giles', Oxford
St Giles', Oxford
St Giles is a wide street leading north from the centre of Oxford, England. At its northern end, the road divides into Woodstock Road to the left and Banbury Road to the right, both major roads through North Oxford. At the southern end, the road continues as Magdalen Street at the junction with...
and St Philip and St James with St Margaret
St Margaret's Road
St Margaret's Road is a road in North Oxford, England. It runs between Kingston Road to the west and Banbury Road to the east, crossing Woodstock Road. To the south are Farndon Road to the west and Canterbury Road to the east...
.
Ecclesiastical and public career
He was ordained an Anglican priest in 1976 and worked in KarachiKarachi
Karachi is the largest city, main seaport and the main financial centre of Pakistan, as well as the capital of the province of Sindh. The city has an estimated population of 13 to 15 million, while the total metropolitan area has a population of over 18 million...
and Lahore
Lahore
Lahore is the capital of the Pakistani province of Punjab and the second largest city in the country. With a rich and fabulous history dating back to over a thousand years ago, Lahore is no doubt Pakistan's cultural capital. One of the most densely populated cities in the world, Lahore remains a...
, and became the first Bishop of Raiwind
Raiwind
Raiwind is a town in the Punjab province of Pakistan. It is part of the Nishter Town subdivision of Lahore District and is located at 31°15'16N 74°13'4E with an altitude of 203 metres and lies about 25 km from Lahore, the capital of the Punjab...
in West Punjab (1984–86) — at the time, the youngest bishop in the Anglican Communion. When his life was endangered in Pakistan in 1986, Robert Runcie
Robert Runcie
Robert Alexander Kennedy Runcie, Baron Runcie, PC, MC was Archbishop of Canterbury from 1980 to 1991.-Early life:...
, the Archbishop of Canterbury, arranged for his refuge in England. Nazir-Ali says, "...the reason behind some of the difficulties I was facing was removed when General Zia was killed - unfortunately for him, and I am now not doing the work that I was doing at the time with the very poor." He became an assistant to the Archbishop at Lambeth
Lambeth
Lambeth is a district of south London, England, and part of the London Borough of Lambeth. It is situated southeast of Charing Cross.-Toponymy:...
and assisted with the planning of the 1988 Lambeth Conference; he was General Secretary of the Church Mission Society 1989-1994 and concurrently Assistant Bishop of Southwark
Southwark
Southwark is a district of south London, England, and the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Southwark. Situated east of Charing Cross, it forms one of the oldest parts of London and fronts the River Thames to the north...
. He was appointed Bishop of Rochester, England in 1994, and in 1999 entered the House of Lords
House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....
as one of the "Lords Spiritual" because of his seniority in episcopal office, the first religious leader from Asia to serve there. He was one of the final two candidates for Archbishop of Canterbury, though Rowan Williams
Rowan Williams
Rowan Douglas Williams FRSL, FBA, FLSW is an Anglican bishop, poet and theologian. He is the 104th and current Archbishop of Canterbury, Metropolitan of the Province of Canterbury and Primate of All England, offices he has held since early 2003.Williams was previously Bishop of Monmouth and...
was appointed.
Between 1997 and 2003. he was chairman of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority
Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority
The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority is a statutory body in the United Kingdom that regulates and inspects all UK clinics providing in vitro fertilisation, artificial insemination and the storage of human eggs, sperm or embryos. It also regulates Human Embryo research...
's ethics and law committee. He is a leader of the Network for Inter-faith Concerns of the Anglican Communion.
Views
Nazir-Ali is generally on the Evangelical wing of Anglicanism, describing himself as being "evangelical and catholic". He appointed the first woman archdeacon in the Church of England.Marriage and children
In 2000, Nazir-Ali wrote,
It is very important for the Church to continue saying that having children and their nurture is a basic good of marriage and not an optional extra. Just as a marriage is not complete without mutual support, companionship and love, so there is a real lack if the intention is never to have children, regardless of circumstances. This signals that marriage is not a matter of self-indulgence. In our age, such teaching is crucial."
In his statement, he had gone on to say when it was right for couples not to have children. Patrons and counsellors would need to advise couples in such circumstances as to what was right for them.
Because of this statement, it is claimed that Nazir-Ali believed that married couples had a duty to have children, and those who remained childless were "self-indulgent" Although he views having children a basic part of a good marriage, he has denied ever labeling couples who did not have children "self-indulgent", claiming it was "pure invention".
Homosexuality
Nazir-Ali opposes the ordination of non-celibate gay and lesbian people as clergy and the blessing of same-sex unions. He was one of the bishops who signed a letter against Rowan Williams' appointment of the Reverend Jeffrey JohnJeffrey John
Jeffrey Philip Hywel John SCP is a Church of England priest and the current Dean of St Albans. He made headlines in 2003 when he was the first person to have openly been in a same-sex relationship to be nominated as a Church of England bishop...
as Bishop of Reading in 2003. The others were the Bishops of Bradford, Carlisle, Chester, Chichester, Exeter, Liverpool, Southwell and Winchester.
In October 2007, he told the Daily Telegraph that he would not attend the 2008 Lambeth Conference because he would find it "very difficult" to be in Council following the actions of the Episcopal Church
Episcopal Church (United States)
The Episcopal Church is a mainline Anglican Christian church found mainly in the United States , but also in Honduras, Taiwan, Colombia, Ecuador, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, the British Virgin Islands and parts of Europe...
in the United States in favour of homosexuality, which he believes are destroying the unity of the Anglican Communion.
He has been "accused of pandering to hate and homophobia" after publishing a statement, on the day a gay pride parade took place in London, calling for homosexuals to "repent and be changed".
After he was reported in the press as saying homosexuals should "repent and be changed", he published a statement saying that the context was that all us of should repent, walk with Christ and be transformed by the renewal of their minds. When asked whether this included homosexuals, he had said it included everybody and went on to give a Christian view of human sexuality, marriage and the family.
Relations with Muslims
Nazir-Ali has become a prominent spokesman for an engagement between Christianity and Islam. He is frequently quoted in the press. In November 2006 Nazir-Ali criticised the "dual psychology" of some Muslims who seek both "victimhood and domination". He said it would never be possible to satisfy all of the demands made by Muslims because "their complaint often boils down to the position that it is always right to intervene when Muslims are victims... and always wrong when Muslims are the oppressors or terrorists". In reference to conflict in Bosnia, Kosovo and Afghanistan, he said "Given the world view that has given rise to such grievances, there can never be sufficient appeasement and new demands will continue to be made." In response, the Muslim Council of BritainMuslim Council of Britain
The Muslim Council of Britain is a self-appointed umbrella body for national, regional, local and specialist organisations and institutions from different ethnic and sectarian backgrounds within British Islamic society. It was established in 1997 to help Muslims, to increase education about the...
said "We would normally expect a bishop to display more humility and work towards bringing communities closer together rather than contributing towards fostering greater divisions."
No-go areas
In January 2008 Nazir-Ali wrote that Islamic extremismIslamic extremism
Islamic extremism refers to two related and partially overlapping but also distinct aspects of extremist interpretations and pursuits of Islamic ideology:...
had turned "already separate communities into 'no-go' areas" and claimed that there had been attempts to "impose an 'Islamic' character on certain areas", citing the amplification of the call to prayer from mosques as an example. He criticised the government's integration policy as "an agenda which still lacks the underpinning of a moral and spiritual vision", and asked that the government make a public affirmation of the "Christian roots of British society".
These comments resulted in some debate and criticism, including a response from the Muslim Council of Britain, who said the mosque call was no different from church bells ringing, and Nick Clegg
Nick Clegg
Nicholas William Peter "Nick" Clegg is a British Liberal Democrat politician who is currently the Deputy Prime Minister, Lord President of the Council and Minister for Constitutional and Political Reform in the coalition government of which David Cameron is the Prime Minister...
, leader of the Liberal Democrats, who described the claims as "a gross caricature of reality". Conservative home affairs spokesman David Davis
David Davis (British politician)
David Michael Davis is a British Conservative Party politician who is the Member of Parliament for the constituency of Haltemprice and Howden...
said the bishop had rightly drawn attention to a "deeply serious problem" and that Labour's support for multiculturalism risked creating a situation of "voluntary apartheid".
The Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government
Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government
The Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, is a Cabinet position heading the UK's Department for Communities and Local Government....
, Hazel Blears
Hazel Blears
Hazel Anne Blears is a British Labour Party politician, who has been the Member of Parliament for Salford and Eccles since 2010 and was previously the MP for Salford since 1997...
responded to Nazir-Ali's comments by stating that Britain was a "secular democracy", and challenged him to name specific 'no go' areas. but the Chair of the Equality Commission, Trevor Phillips
Trevor Phillips
Trevor Phillips OBE chairs the Equality and Human Rights Commission and is a former television executive and presenter...
, agreed with his analysis of the situation. Nazir-Ali has since received death threats against himself and his family, and he is now under escort by the Kent police; however, he says his "overflowing postbag" has been "overwhelmingly supportive", with people offering their own experience.
Church in the public square
In the June 2008 issue of Standpoint magazine, Nazir-Ali called for the church to regain a prominent position in public life and blamed the "newfangled and insecurely founded doctrine of multiculturalism" for entrenching the segregation of communities. He claimed that the decline of Christianity and the rise of liberal values in the UK during the 1960s had created a moral vacuum with radical Islam filling the gap. He worote that "We have argued that it is necessary to understand where we have come from, to guide us to where we are going, and to bring us back when we wander too far from the path of national destiny."Multiculturalism
The launch edition of the StandpointStandpoint (magazine)
Standpoint is a monthly British cultural and political magazine. Its premier issue was published at the end of May 2008 – the first launch of a major current affairs publication in the UK in more than a decade....
magazine caused controversy in the United Kingdom, in which Nazir-Ali called for Christianity to regain a prominent position in public life and blamed the "newfangled and insecurely founded doctrine of multiculturalism
Multiculturalism
Multiculturalism is the appreciation, acceptance or promotion of multiple cultures, applied to the demographic make-up of a specific place, usually at the organizational level, e.g...
" for entrenching the segregation of communities. Nazir-Ali argued that the decline of Christianity and the rise of liberal values in the UK during the 1960s had created a moral vacuum which radical Islam threatened to fill. He wrote that "We have argued that it is necessary to understand where we have come from, to guide us to where we are going, and to bring us back when we wander too far from the path of national destiny." The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
newspaper devoted its leader to criticising Nazir-Ali, although it described his writing as "neatly underlining [Standpoint]'s expressed intent ‘to defend and celebrate Western civilisation’". Nazir-Ali was condemned by the Ramadhan foundation and the President of the National Secular Society
National Secular Society
The National Secular Society is a British campaigning organisation that promotes secularism and the separation of church and state. It holds that no-one should gain advantage or disadvantage because of their religion or lack of religion. It was founded by Charles Bradlaugh in 1866...
, who accused him of "doing the BNP’s work", but was praised by The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
centre-right newspaper.
Family
Nazir-Ali met his wife, Valerie Cree, who is English, in CambridgeCambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
. They were married in 1972 and have two adult sons, Shammy (Shamoun) and Ross.
His pastimes include hockey
Hockey
Hockey is a family of sports in which two teams play against each other by trying to maneuver a ball or a puck into the opponent's goal using a hockey stick.-Etymology:...
, cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
, table tennis
Table tennis
Table tennis, also known as ping-pong, is a sport in which two or four players hit a lightweight, hollow ball back and forth using table tennis rackets. The game takes place on a hard table divided by a net...
and Scrabble
Scrabble
Scrabble is a word game in which two to four players score points by forming words from individual lettered tiles on a game board marked with a 15-by-15 grid. The words are formed across and down in crossword fashion and must appear in a standard dictionary. Official reference works provide a list...
as well as writing poetry in English and Persian and listening to music.
Publications
Nazir-Ali's published writings include the following:- Islam: A Christian Perspective (1983)
- Frontiers in Christian-Muslim Encounters (1987)
- From Everywhere to Everywhere: A World View of Christian Mission (1990)
- Thinking globally, acting locally (1992)
- Mission and Dialogue: Proclaiming the Gospel Afresh in Every Age (1995)
- The Mystery of Faith (1995)
- Citizens and Exiles: Christian Faith in a Plural World (2000)
- Shapes of the Church to Come (2001)
- Understanding My Muslim Neighbour (2003)
- Conviction And Conflict: Islam, Christianity And World Order (2005)
- The Unique and Universal Christ (2008)
and many other articles in newspapers and journals
External links
- Biography of Nazir-Ali from the Diocese of Rochester
- Bishop calls for veil legislation BBC NewsBBC NewsBBC News is the department of the British Broadcasting Corporation responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs. The department is the world's largest broadcast news organisation and generates about 120 hours of radio and television output each day, as well as online...
2006-12-24 - Bishop warns of extremist dangers BBC NewsBBC NewsBBC News is the department of the British Broadcasting Corporation responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs. The department is the world's largest broadcast news organisation and generates about 120 hours of radio and television output each day, as well as online...
2006-12-31 - Bishop against 'IVF for lesbians' BBC NewsBBC NewsBBC News is the department of the British Broadcasting Corporation responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs. The department is the world's largest broadcast news organisation and generates about 120 hours of radio and television output each day, as well as online...
2007-09-14 - Blair 'nutter' fear angers bishop BBC NewsBBC NewsBBC News is the department of the British Broadcasting Corporation responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs. The department is the world's largest broadcast news organisation and generates about 120 hours of radio and television output each day, as well as online...
2007-11-25 - Profile: Michael Nazir-Ali BBC NewsBBC NewsBBC News is the department of the British Broadcasting Corporation responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs. The department is the world's largest broadcast news organisation and generates about 120 hours of radio and television output each day, as well as online...
2008-01-06 - Bishop warns of 'Islamic areas' BBC NewsBBC NewsBBC News is the department of the British Broadcasting Corporation responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs. The department is the world's largest broadcast news organisation and generates about 120 hours of radio and television output each day, as well as online...
2008-01-06 - Extremism flourished as UK lost Christianity The Sunday Telegraph 2008-01-07