Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby
Archbishop of Canterbury Justin WelbyPhoto: Reuters

The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby on Thursday condemned the rising anti-Semitism in Britain and encouraged other faith communities not to give in to it, or to other forms of racism.

“We’ve seen a very sharp rise over the last year or so in anti-Semitic expression. It is absolutely intolerable,” Welby told a gathering of Jewish, Hindu, Sikh and Muslim leaders at a Lambeth Palace reception for interfaith dialogue.

“It is a deep shame that [anti-Semitism] is everywhere… it’s deeply embedded in so much of our culture in this country, as is racism.”

Welby said he was “not looking at any political party,” yet his comments follow harsh criticism of the Labour Party, led by Jeremy Corbyn, over anti-Semitic remarks by many of its members.

Welby further warned against “attacks on mosques, dangerous political rhetoric, playing with words that raise tensions. The unthinking, ignorant, fearful nature of much phobia about different faith traditions.”

Christianity is the largest religion in Britain. Out of a total population of 64 million, there are around 3 million Muslims, 900,000 Hindus, 700,000 Sikhs and 300,000 Jews.