THE Crusaders, the Christian youth organisation, is having to change its identity after more than 100 years because of claims that its name is anti-Islamic, Marc Horne writes.

The evangelical movement, with more than 20,000 members and championed by Sir Cliff Richard, will be known as the Urban Saints from January as schools and charities said its name might be offensive to Muslims. They claimed it was too closely associated with the crusades, the military campaigns in the 11th and 13th centuries to recapture Jerusalem and the Holy Land from the Muslims.

“Our new identity is part of a recognition that we are now a 21st-century organisation and are not still stuck in the last century,” said Matt Summerfield, executive director. “There are some people who love the name Crusaders, but we recognise that others get very offended by it, as they think we are harking back to the historical crusades.”

Some schools and fundraising groups had rebuffed approaches from Crusaders because of the “emotive” nature of their name, he said.

“We have had situations with certain schools who felt they couldn’t run clubs under our name because they have a number of Muslim pupils. People are very wary these days about the possibility of being portrayed as politically incorrect and insensitive to other faiths.” But the name change would not alter the Christian character of the organisation.

Rob Rawson, director of Crusaders Scotland, said the name Urban Saints was more relevant. “In the west of Scotland the term ‘saints’ often has Catholic overtones. We are stressing that the name is based on the biblical term — basically a follower of Christ. Crusaders is a strong, almost aggressive name which was fine in 1906, but is certainly not appropriate in 2006.”

The rebrand was formally announced at an Albert Hall concert in London last night when 3,500 youngsters watched Christian rock bands and dance acts.

Richard, who topped the charts with the religious anthems Saviour’s Day and Millennium Prayer, at first had reservations about the rebrand. “Sir Cliff’s reaction when he first heard the new name was that it would take some digesting,” said Bill Latham, his long-term manager and close friend. “It is fair to say that Urban Saints was not a name that appealed to him immediately.

“He had a chat with the executive director of the Crusaders and the reasons behind the new name were explained to him. Now Sir Cliff is more well disposed to it than he was immediately, although he accepts that Crusaders was an outdated name.”

Phil Gallie, the conservative MSP, was appalled that the Crusaders felt compelled to abandon a century of tradition. “Anyone with a modicum of common sense would recognise that the word Crusader doesn’t necessarily refer to Richard the Lionheart,” he said.

“These politically correct gurus who forced this group to change their name are off their trolleys and should be ashamed of themselves.”

Muslim leaders applauded the change. Sajid Quayem, of the Islamic Society of Britain, said: “The term crusader is still seen as offensive by many Muslims and Christians, particularly after George Bush misguidedly referred to the war in Iraq as a crusade. The name Urban Saints is quite groovy and will not cause offence to anybody.”

Times Recommends

• The real-life adventures of Tintin the spy
• Our universities face a radical upheaval
• Doctor Who