It is with extreme sadness that I acknowledge a child from Christ Church, Church of England Secondary Academy has lost their life following a fatal stabbing incident on Tuesday afternoon.
As the police continue to investigate this devastating incident, my prayers and deepest sympathies are with his family and friends and all affected by this distressing news at Christ Church School, as we begin to comprehend the far-reaching extent of this tragedy.
The Rt. Revd Michael Volland, Bishop of Birmingham
A sermon that the Rt Rev Dr Michael Volland, Bishop of Birmingham will deliver at service on Sunday 26 January 2025
Gospel reading: John 11: 17-37
'Today we are mourning the tragic loss of 12-year-old Leo Ross. On Tuesday this past week, his precious life was cut short by a senseless act of violence. This took place just twenty minutes away from where we have gathered for worship. People in Birmingham and the region, across the UK and beyond are people are shocked, appalled, hurting and confused.
As we gather in the presence of God, our thoughts and prayers are with Leo’s family and friends. We pray they experience God’s comfort and strength, and know they are loved and held by the wider community; a community which has rallied in support; a community in which care and compassion has been shown to many of those struggling to come to terms with what has happened among us.
Before going on, I would like to pay tribute to those who endeavoured to help Leo; members of the public, police and paramedics, the air ambulance team and hospital staff. We are deeply grateful for their efforts and are thankful that we live in a society in which people are ready and willing to do all they can to assist in very challenging circumstances.
When Leo was attacked, he was on his way home from school. I must pay tribute to the
headteacher, staff, pupils and chaplain at Christ Church, Church of England Secondary
Academy. The school community have shown wonderful support for one another and are an example to us and others of what genuine care in a time of deep distress can look like.
When something as tragic and senseless as this happens, we are left asking why?
And we might find ourselves asking how God could have allowed such a terrible thing to take place. In our gospel reading we heard about Jesus arriving at the tomb of his friend, Lazarus. We are told that Mary, the sister of the dead man, came out to meet Jesus. She said, ‘Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.’ Like us, Mary was wondering why the tragedy she was experiencing could have been allowed to happen. When Jesus saw the grief of Mary and her relatives, we are told he was ‘greatly disturbed in his spirit’. The grieving family show Jesus the tomb and he begins to weep. God’s own son was deeply, profoundly moved at the distress of those who had loved Lazarus, and at the utter senselessness of death.
We cannot know why this has happened. There is no reason or rationale for Leo losing his life in this way. It is a tragedy, and it leaves us hurting and confused, and possibly anxious that something like this could happen again.
What we can know, as people of faith, is that God is with us in the middle of this darkest of times and that God is faithful and able to help us, comfort us, and take away our fear. As a person of Christain faith, I chose to believe Jesus when he says in this morning’s gospel reading, ‘I am the resurrec:on and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die.’ Because of what I read in the bible, I chose to believe that violence and death grieve God, that God is able to comfort and strengthen us in our pain, and that there is hope of a future resurrection because of what Jesus did for us on the cross.
Before I finish, it feels important to say something about our responsibility as a society for our young people. We are all asking ourselves, how is it that children are killing other children? What kind of society are we creating in which young people regularly commit violence against each other? Clearly something is very wrong. For a significant number of young people in our communities there is a failure to connect, a loss of meaning, an absence of purpose and a famine of hope. Of course, not every young person in this situation becomes violent towards others, but these factors make violence more likely. As the adults in the room, we need to do better. We have to take responsibility for our young people in a new way. Clearly what we are doing – or failing to do – is not working. The responsibility falls on all of us; on government and agencies, institutions and businesses, and yes, on individuals, families and communities.
For the sake of our young people, their futures, and all our futures, we need to resolve to make a new and hopeful future for young people our highest priority. It will not be straight forward or cheap but, given where we find ourselves, we have no choice but to give our young people all the attention, creativity and resource they need. And alongside those things, shaping a hopeful future for our young people will also require love. Without love there will be little change. If we love our young people, we will see their pain and step up to help create a better future.
Our faith in Jesus opens our hearts and allows them to be filled with God’s love and so, I encourage us to start by directing some of this love towards our young people. Love like this will remind us to continue to pray for Leo’s family, friends and community. It will also motivate us to take our part – however small – in shaping a society in which our children and young people are safe and can flourish; because they know they are loved, and because they feel connected, and have deep meaning, real purpose and life-giving hope. Amen.'