A senior bishop in the Church of England has hit out at fake claims that “Christmas has been cancelled” and criticised those seeking to politicise Christianity ahead of a carols event organised by anti-migrant activist Tommy Robinson.
Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, has urged supporters of his Unite the Kingdom movement to “put the Christ back into Christmas” this Saturday with an outdoor event in Whitehall.
In a significant intervention, the Right Reverend David Walker, the Bishop of Manchester, has said it is “offensive” that people are “appropriating this great Christian festival of light triumphing over darkness as a prop in a dim culture war”.
Writing for The Independent, Dr Walker said: “Each year we see a rather strange tradition: familiar claims that somewhere, someone is trying to ‘ban’ Christmas.”
He warned that populists are keen to scour the internet in search of “something, anything, to show that Christmas is supposedly being taken away”.
He continued: “While they focus on something different each time, at heart it’s usually the same tale: that some ‘other’ out there wants to erase the traditional idea of Christmas. Sometimes it is said to be a shadowy but somehow ubiquitous ‘woke’ elite, sometimes minorities, and often people of other faiths.
“The people behind these stories are not doing this to share the message of Christmas – of joy and love – but to spread division.”
He hailed Christmas as “one moment in the year when, even in our more secular society, the powerful message of love, of God coming and living among us as one of us, cuts through”.
This holiday season, Dr Walker, who has been bishop of Manchester since 2013, called on believers and non-believers to “look up towards the angels proclaiming peace on Earth and goodwill to all, rather than scroll down in the comments”.
The intervention comes ahead of a Christmas carols event organised in London by the far-right activist, Robinson.
In preparation for Saturday’s event, Robinson has been sharing claims on X (Twitter) that Christmas is “cancelled” in Paris or that Muslims in Manchester were “disrespecting” a Christmas market.
The anti-migrant campaigner has planned a follow-up event to his Unite the Kingdom march, which saw more than 100,000 people turn out for what was billed as a “free speech” protest and included Elon Musk telling the crowd that “violence is coming to you” and “you either fight back or you die”.
Robinson, who has been speaking more about Christianity since coming out of prison in May this year, has promised speeches and music at the Whitehall event on Saturday. In a recent video posted to X, he told his followers: “We can’t keep moaning in this country, saying ‘It’s a Christian country’... unless we are going to celebrate and identify as Christians and be Christians.”
He has pledged that Saturday’s event “will not be a political protest”.
Writing in The Independent, Dr Walker said: “It is a precious time of year. And in the times in which we’re living, its simple but powerful message, sung by angels – peace on Earth, goodwill to all – could scarcely seem more urgent.
“Yet – each year we see a rather strange tradition: familiar claims that somewhere, someone is trying to ‘ban’ Christmas.”
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Referring to stories about Christmas being “taken away”, he said: “For all the talk of defending the Christian essence of Christmas, they are doing the very opposite: reducing the majesty and mystery of the birth of Jesus, God coming to live among us, to silly stories about the labelling of consumer products.”
His intervention comes as the Church of England posted a video on their social media account on Friday, challenging claims that Christmas is under threat.
“Every year, we hear stories that somehow Christmas is being cancelled, or that somehow the joy of Christmas is under threat,” the video said.
“It’s news to us, because in every church, every parish, every Cathedral in every corner of our country, you will find a story of hope and love.”
The post added: “It's Christmas. It belongs to us all, and everyone's invited.”
Meanwhile the bishop of Southwark, the bishop of Croydon, the bishop of Kingston, and the bishop of Woolwich issued a joint statement condemning “any co-opting or corrupting of the Christian faith to exclude others”.
They said: “We are gravely concerned about the use of Christian symbols and rhetoric to apparently justify racism and anti-migrant rhetoric.”
The bishops spoke directly to Robinson’s supporters, saying: “We would encourage them to think again, to consider what kind of world they want to be a part of – and to choose compassion and understanding over hostility and conflict.”
Robinson has seen some support from Christians outside of the Church of England, with Ceirion Dewar, who is listed as a Bishop in the Confessing Anglican Church, featuring in the trailer for the event.
Chris Wickland, a pastor from the Living Word Church Network, is also pictured in the promotional material, as is Rikki Doolan, a musician who wrote a “theme song” for the Unite the Kingdom rally.
The Right Reverend Arun Arora, the bishop of Kirstall and the Church of England’s co-lead on racial justice, told The Independent last weekend that the Church had a duty to “confront and resist the capture of Christian language and symbols by populist forces”.
Speaking about Robinson’s recent activism, Bishop Arun said: “I rejoice that Stephen Yaxley-Lennon has recently come to faith in prison. Having experienced the wide mercy of God’s grace, Stephen does not now have the right to deny it to others.
“Having embraced and accepted God’s welcome, he can’t now restrict it from others who may be equally lost. Nor does he have the right to subvert the faith so that it serves his purposes rather than the other way round.”
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