U.K. Pastors Are Growing Beards for an Unexpected Reason
These days most guys who grow long, bushy beards get labeled as hipsters trying to morph into microbrewing lumberjacks from the 1890s. But the laughing wink and nod folks give to the hairy, Portlandia-style stereotype isn’t always extended when the men growing the beards are Muslim—or perceived to be Muslim.
Now, two ministers in predominantly Muslim areas of London are being praised by a prominent Church of England official for growing beards to signal solidarity across ethnic and religious lines in the community....