Reporters: A tipper truck, packed with explosives, went off in the City of London this morning. It killed one man and injured more than a hundred… The blast happened just before half past ten near the NatWest tower… The explosion was so powerful that the church, which used to occupy the space between these two office blocks, collapsed…
Rabbi Sacks: April 1993. A massive IRA bomb explodes in the heart of the City of London. St. Ethelburga's Church, built over 600 years ago, is laid waste by a sectarian conflict whose roots are even older.
Each year on Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, we reflect on how religion shapes our lives. Often it's at the heart of conflict, and it can be part of the problem, but equally it can be part of the solution.
St. Ethelburga's has risen from the ruins, rededicated to the pursuit of peace through dialogue, mutual respect and faith.
In May this year, I was among a group of religious leaders who welcomed the Prince of Wales to St. Ethelburga's. He'd come to open The Tent, a new space created in the churchyard based on traditional Bedouin design.
Inside, people of all faiths and backgrounds can come together and talk as equals in safety and privacy. All we took in with us were our scriptures and our prayers.
Prince [now King] Charles: If only we could understand each other's groupings to understand the mysterious, and not overdo the way in which we decide that we know everything, we might perhaps reduce the level of conflict and violence and misunderstanding. And to me it all comes back to good manners.
Rabbi Sacks: The Tent at St. Ethelburga's represents a belief that Britain is richer for its religious diversity. And yet there are some who question this, suggesting that for our society to flourish, minorities must be willing not only to integrate, but to assimilate. I think the story of Britain and Britain's Jews proves otherwise.
This part of London is actually very significant for British Jews. Until 350 years ago, Jewish practice was illegal in Britain. The handful of Jews who lived and traded here had to keep their identity and their worship secret.
All that changed in 1656, when a Dutch rabbi, Manasseh ben Israel, successfully petitioned Oliver Cromwell for the right to live openly and practise freely. This is Creechurch Lane, barely a stone's throw from St. Ethelburga's. And it was here that the first synagogue was established in 1657. When that proved too small, another larger synagogue, Bevis Marks, was built just round the corner in 1701.
In June this year, Bevis Marks played host to a service to mark the 350th anniversary of the readmission of Jews to Britain.
During the English Civil War, Oliver Cromwell had learned the hard way that you can't coerce people into like-mindedness. Social harmony requires not unison, but the blending of different voices attuned to and listening to one another.
Rabbi Abraham Levy: And we welcome you all to a service of celebration. The synagogue at Bevis Marks was opened in 1701, 45 years after the readmission of the Jews to England.
Rabbi Sacks: Cromwell saw that Jews had something special to offer Britain, not in spite of their religion and culture, but because of it.
Prime Minister Rt. Hon. Tony Blair MP: It is impossible to imagine the modern United Kingdom without the Jewish community. Arts, sciences, commerce, politics, the world of learning and thought, philanthropy and many more areas. All of these have been illuminated by the names of distinguished Jews who have made their mark and help to make our country a better place.
Rabbi Sacks: The Jews who founded Bevis Marks were from Spain and Portugal. For this year's event, though, Jews of all traditions came together, all of us proud to regard Britain as our home.
Child: Now us Jews are free in England, I cannot picture a better home. In other countries we were tortured, we were slaves all through the land. No food was given, our religion was forbidden. We can not now pray, we even managed to say, that I am a Jew, but now, an English citizen too.
Rabbi Sacks: Exile has been a defining factor in our history and Jews have had to develop a faith that transcends mere geography. Two and a half thousand years ago, with Israel a defeated kingdom and the Great Temple of Solomon the sacred hub of our faith in ruins, a weeping psalmist sat by the rivers of Babylon and asked,”How shall we sing the Lord's song in a strange land?”
And actually the question contained the answer.
Singing the Lord's song, prayer, enabled Jews then and now to feel at home anywhere.
The Prophet Jeremiah's advice to the Jews in Babylon was simple. “Seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it because if it prospers, you too will prosper.”
Over the last 350 years, this principle has helped successive waves of Jewish immigrants to find their feet here. This is God Save the Queen in Hebrew.
To find out more about the Jews who brought our faith back to Britain, I went to University College London and spoke to the historian Sir Martin Gilbert.
Rabbi Sacks: Martin, who were those first Jews?
Sir Martin Gilbert: They were Jews who had come to England about 30 years before Cromwell became Lord Protector. And they settled down, they flourished, there were some 200 or 300 of them. But they were worried because since the expulsion of the Jews in 1290, there'd be no formal edict allowing them to return.
Rabbi Sacks: And they found their defender, as it were, in this man, Manasseh ben Israel. Tell me a little about him.
Martin: He was born in Madeira, part of the secret Jewish community there. And he was one of those who believed that the nation of Israel, the Jewish nation, would have its great moment when the Jews were everywhere in the world. Then the Messiah would come when we were, as it were, living everywhere. And he said if only then the Jews can be legally and formally in England, then they'll be throughout the world.
And he turned to the book of Daniel, and in the book of Daniel it says, “And when the dispersion of the holy people shall be completed in all places, then shall all these things be completed.” In other words, then the Messiah will return.
Rabbi Sacks: Do you think Cromwell listened to that?
Martin: The Divines listened to it. And, you know, Cromwell was dependent as much on the Divines as upon his soldiers and upon his merchants. Of course, in those days the enemy was Spain, and Spain was the persecutor of the Jews. So there was a natural affinity which Cromwell understood from the start.
Rabbi Sacks: Although the Jewish community here was established in the 17th century, most British Jews trace their roots to a much later wave of East European migrants who came here in the late 1800s, fleeing poverty and persecution.
This is newly arrived, isn't it, from Eastern Europe? The large immigration where my parents and grandparents came over in the 1880s. Many of them were quite poor. They settled in the East End. What allowed them to function and, as it were, integrate?
Martin: I've always felt that it was the achievements of the Jews who were in Britain at the time of Cromwell and what they were able to build up in the century, century and a half, that lay ahead, building the community numerically from several hundred to more than 20,000. And building up the institutions of the community, you know, the soup kitchens and things to help those that were in distress, but also those organisations that would raise your abilities. Education. Of course, the Jewish Free School had been here before. Widows and orphans. You see, this was before widows and orphans' pensions had come into Britain, and all these things really, they brought with them.
Rabbi Sacks: It was that old tradition, 2,000 years old, from Hillel, “If I am not for myself, who will be? But if I am only for myself, what am I?”
Martin: Exactly.
Rabbi Sacks: For nearly 300 years, London's East End was a magnet for Jews fleeing poverty or persecution. And yet, looking at it today, it's hard to imagine that this area was once known as Little Jerusalem.
Now, it's Banglatown. No doubt in the future, it will be called something else again, as the latest immigrant community from Bangladesh makes way for someone else. What each community has learned is that it's only by remembering who you are and what you stand for that you find the confidence to contribute to British society.
Dr. Anne Kershen, Author: Well, Chief Rabbi, we're standing in Spitalfields, which for centuries has been a first point of settlement for immigrants. They came off the boat at the Pool of London, in that direction, and they would make their way to Spitalfields, which is right on the boundary of the City of London.
Rabbi Sacks: Tell me something of the history of the different groups that have passed through here.
Dr. Kershen: Well, it began really with the Huguenots at the end of the 17th century. They were persecuted because of their religious persuasion. They were Calvinists in a Catholic country, and they were the first people to take refuge and introduce the word ‘refugee’ into this country.
But in terms of Spitalfields, the large-scale immigrant settlement began toward the end of the 19th century, when Eastern European Jews, both seeking economic advantage and escaping the pogroms, made their way westward, and some 120,000 settled in the area around us.
Rabbi Sacks: I think all those communities had real pains of entry, and I imagine people were suspicious and even a little hostile.
Dr. Kershen: People were suspicious. The Jewish community here at the end of the 19th century were not referred to as Jews. They were referred to as aliens, as outsiders. In fact, at a meeting in 1903, the local Member of Parliament, Major William Evans Gordon, actually said, “There is hardly an Englishman in this room who does not live under the constant danger of being driven from his home, pushed out into the streets, not by the natural increase of our own population, but by the off-scum of Europe.”
Now, that was said in 1903. It's not very different to the kind of language and expressions that are actually used today.
Rabbi Sacks: And what actually became of that off-scum of Europe?
Dr. Kershen: Exactly.
Rabbi Sacks: Some of them as brilliant…
Dr. Kershen: They've made an incredible contribution to British society, at all levels.
Leo Epstein: My name is Leo Epstein.
Rabbi Sacks: Leo, lovely to meet you.
Leo: Thank you. I'm the last Jewish trader in Brick Lane. This August, I'll have been here for 50 years.
Rabbi Sacks: Incredible.
Leo: And we hope to stay. Everyone's moved out and we want to stay. We get on very well with all our neighbours. Extremely well.
Rabbi Sacks: So you teach them a little bit of Yiddish, Leo?
Leo: I try, I try.
Rabbi Sacks: Lovely to see you.
Leo: Thank you very much.
Dr. Kershen: If we move on, we're standing outside, I think, one of the most interesting buildings in terms of its continuity of immigrant groups and its tolerance. This is Christchurch School. It moved here in 1743. And, by the end of the 19th century, the student body was predominantly Jewish.
And in fact, if we look at that drainpipe over there, they wanted to use the school for Hebrew classes, so in order to conform with the requirements - so I've been told - there is a Star of David on the drainpipe over there.
Rabbi Sacks: Well, that's a bit of tolerance in action, isn't it?
Dr. Kershen: Absolutely.
Rabbi Sacks: Star of David on a Christian school.
Dr. Kershen: On Christchurch School.
Rabbi Sacks: And it says a lot about the Church of England, doesn't it? That it was willing to say, you are welcome here and let us help you on your way to integrate. In a way, that tolerance has remained because you now have a largely Muslim student body.
And this speaks so much about the Spitalfields area and the continuity.
[they both say hello to some passing children]
Rabbi Sacks: So that could have been...
Dr. Kershen: It could have been 100 years ago.
Rabbi Sacks: It could have been our grandparents.
Dr. Kershen: Could indeed. Could indeed.
This is one of the most significant buildings in Spitalfields. It was built in 1743 as La Neuve Eglise, which was a church specifically for the Huguenot community. A French church. And then at the end of the 19th century, it became a synagogue.
And again, when the Jewish community had moved away by the end of the 1960s, there was no longer a need for such a big synagogue. And in 1974, it was sold to the Bengali community.
Rabbi Sacks: So the religion has changed, the accents, the language, but the social function has stayed.
What intrigues me, and of course this building symbolises it, is that at the heart of all these community networks was a place of worship. Why was that?
Dr. Kershen: Because a stranger in a strange land needs something to hold on to, something to give them strength. And so it evolved much more into a community centre, irrespective of the structure.
Rabbi Sacks: If the first instinct of an immigrant community is survival and the second, acceptance, then the next is always representation. For Jews in Britain, this took a long time. In fact, it wasn't until 1847 that Lionel de Rothschild became the first practising Jew to be elected as a Member of Parliament.
As the current Speaker, Michael Martin, explained to me, Rothschild had to wait a further 11 years before he was allowed to take his seat, because he refused to swear Parliament's Christian Oath of Allegiance.
The Rt. Hon. Michael J. Martin, MP, Speaker of the House of Commons: What an injustice that we had to wait until 1858, which is not all that far away. I mean, it was beginning… to my great-grandparents. And that 11 years, knowing politicians as I do, that there would be some who would probably say, ‘Look, Lionel, why don't you just take the Christian oath? And then you're in. And then you can argue for the Jewish people once you're in.’
But here's a man that had principle and was true to himself and said, ‘No, that's not good enough. I must be able to take the oath of my faith.’
It's said that when he finally gained admission, he slipped away and went to a little synagogue and prayed to God that this elevation might not mean the diminution of his faith. Do you think that to be part of British society, we have to give up a little of our faith as Jews or Muslims or Sikhs?
Michael: No, far from it, Rabbi. There's an old saying up in Glasgow, ‘Don't forget where you came from.’ And I think that I can identify with Lionel being congratulated and he said, ‘No, I mustn't forget myself. I must have a quiet moment.’
And it was one of the things I addressed when I became Speaker. I was able to learn more about the Jewish faith. I then discovered, well, Hanukkah was being celebrated here, in offices, committee rooms. And I said, you must come to Speaker's House. Hanukkah must be celebrated in a home, not in an office.
Rabbi Sacks: And I remembered you did something quite extraordinary after that first time that we lit the candles here.
Michael: Yes, there's a long tradition of the Speaker building up a silver collection. And I tell you, Rabbi, it was the first time... My officials were great people for telling me I could do anything. Do anything you want.
But then when I put an idea forward, they all said, ‘No, no, you can't do that, Mr Speaker.’ And I said to them, I said, ‘I want a menorah.’ I said, ‘Now, don't tell me I can't do it, I'm doing it.’
Rabbi Sacks: And that's it behind us, isn't it?
Michael: That's the menorah behind us.
Rabbi Sacks: You had this specially made.
Michael: Specially made.
It's about respecting and allowing the Jewish community to flourish. That's what I want to see. And any other faith to flourish. And we should understand them.
Rabbi Sacks: We've spoken about Christians and Jews, but of course today Britain is much more diverse.
Michael: Yes.
Rabbi Sacks: And do you feel that we've gained thereby here in the political life of this country?
Michael: Oh, we've gained immensely. I don't think that the religious communities in the United Kingdom get the credit they deserve. Because when it comes to care of the elderly, and the men and women who are unfortunately living rough, you will find religious groups out there helping, being social workers. Now if they weren't there, what a strain it would put on our statutory authorities.
Master of Ceremonies: My Lords, ladies and gentlemen, pray silence for Mr Speaker.
Michael: What an honour you have given me this evening, that you've allowed me to entertain you here, to celebrate the 350th anniversary of Oliver Cromwell allowing you to be a community in your own right.
Woman: Here’s Baron Lionel de Rothschild, coming in to take his oath.
Rabbi Sacks: The Speaker's reception celebrated the work of Jews, whose religion inspires them quietly to give their time to the service of others.
To them, and to me, that's the essence of Jewish faith. But it's not just our religion which teaches that sort of social responsibility.
Some months ago, I met a group of young Muslim professionals who told me about a project they'd set up, called the City Circle.
Rabbi Sacks: Hi there.
Amana Humayun: Hello there.
Rabbi Sacks: It's nice to meet you.
Amana: Good to see you. Welcome to the Supplementary School.
Rabbi Sacks: Deeply religious, they also feel deeply British. For them, there's no contradiction between those two identities.
Rokhsana Fiaz, Co-Founder, The City Circle: We're here to encourage young Muslims, and Muslims generally, to give back to the community, and make sure that they're exposed to a distinct British-shaped Muslim identity.
Rabbi Sacks: Do you find the kids feel threatened when they're being asked to be two things at once, British and Muslim, Muslim and British?
Sobia Razzaq, Parent: All my children were born in London, so this is all they know. This is their home. I think it's a two-pronged process. One is to make them feel comfortable in their own skin. The other part is that we belong as part of another community, and that community is made up of different people from different faiths. And so what we're trying to do is try to engage them to be confident about that, but contribute as well.
Rabbi Sacks: This is...
Child: Noah book.
Rabbi Sacks: Uh-huh, and his ark. Yeah? He built an ark because... Why was that? Do you know? I think there was going to be a lot of rain, wasn't there? Yeah?
If I look at the Jewish experience over 350 years, it wasn't easy, and there are tensions. You've been expected to integrate really quite fast, and there must be some strains, aren't there?
Amana: I think there are. The interesting point is that you get that challenge not only from people who think that, OK, you're integrating too much and, you know, you're losing the way and you're becoming too British. You sometimes get the challenge from people at the other end of the spectrum, who have that sense of embarrassment at retaining culture and retaining religion and retaining language. And I must admit, as a child growing up, for example, I used to feel very embarrassed when my mum spoke to me in Urdu or Punjabi and I'd shy away from it.
And it's only, I think, now, as an adult and having been exposed to different cultures, that I can see the richness in having an extra language. It can only be an advantage.
Rabbi Sacks: Hi, Sana.
Amana: I think Sana over there is working on some English.
Rabbi Sacks: Oh, Shakespeare?
Sana: Yeah, I've read about Tempest, Romeo and Juliet. Like, every story I've read so far is good, but they all seem to be sad stories.
Rokhsana: In terms of what we're trying to achieve at City Circle, it's about presenting our faith as a faith that isn't insular. So, for us, it's about challenging our own community and sometimes we have to press our fast-forward button as well because the basic tenets of our faith encourage us to be neighbourly and brotherly and sisterly to non-Muslims as well as Muslims.
Rabbi Sacks: I'm very struck by the fact that, although our stories are uniquely ours, there's something very common to them.
But if you're confident in who you are, that will give you the confidence not to feel threatened by difference and to feel, yes, I have something to give. So I'm really thrilled by what you're doing and I wish you every success. Oh, thank you so much.
Child: We made you a card for the festival.
Rabbi Sacks: Oh thank you so much. What’s it say?
Child: It says Rosh Hashanah.
Rabbi Sacks: Rosh Hashanah. That’s our New Year.
And this is ?
Child: Shalom.
Rabbi Sacks: And this is L'Shanah Tovah, which means, have a good year. That is so very sweet of you. Thank you very much indeed. I think that's lovely.
In recent months, a number of influential figures have questioned whether multiculturalism works in Britain. Some feel there are now so many different cultures rubbing shoulders here that Britishness has become meaningless. Others are alienated from mainstream British culture. They feel they have no voice and no stake in it. When that happens, religion can lead you away from, not into, the wider society.
Except that the Bible teaches us that our particular identities are part of a larger identity - humanity. We're all different, but we're all in God's image, which means that difference isn't a curse, but a blessing.
And yet, diversity remains a challenge. Religious diversity, perhaps most of all.
In the Book of Exodus, as Moses tries to forge a new society out of a squabbling rabble of escaping slaves, God gives him a solution. He tells Moses to get the people to build something together. A Mishkan, a tabernacle, a portable house of God. Moses asks every man and woman to contribute something to the building of the Tabernacle.
Some bring gold, some silver, some bronze. Others give of their time or their skills. And out of this collective, the building comes.
Had they all given the same thing, they couldn't have made the Tabernacle. Difference, diversity, was of the essence. But it was diversity focused on a shared goal.
Priest: The Tent is going to help us to open up new networks, an invitation to all kinds of friends to participate in the work. And in the best traditions of Bedouin hospitality, I hope that you will know and believe that this is your home too.
Rabbi Sacks: The Tent at St. Ethelburga's isn't the Tabernacle. It's more a statement by people of faith that we all want to build one. Our Mishkan, our project, is building the kind of British society to which people of all faiths are committed and in which each of us feels we belong. We have to work together because none of us can make it on our own. But the more we do so, the more complex and beautiful will be the result.
And so, as we approach Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, on this 350th anniversary, if there's one message that speaks to me, it's how Jews really didn't have to lose their identity to become integrated into Britain.
And neither do any of us.
Because it's by being what only we are that we contribute what only we can give.
Society is the home we build together, bringing our different gifts to the common good, remembering what Britain has given us and giving back in return. We cease to be strangers in a strange land and find instead that we're at home.
