British Favor Religious Values

Robert Pigott, Religious Affairs correspondent for the BBC reports that . . .

A BBC poll suggests that most people want religion and the values derived from it to play an important role in British public life.

Of 1,045 people questioned by ComRes, 62% were in favour.

Meanwhile, 63% of those questioned agreed that laws should respect and be influenced by the UK's traditional religious values.

The findings contrast with calls from some politicians and secularist groups to exclude faith from the public arena.

There is that word militant again (with all due respect to non-militant Atheists, now that the BBC has adopted it I will continue to use it):

. . . Secularists, including an increasingly militant atheist movement, have stepped up their campaign to "free" the public from what they see as the burden of a lingering attachment to religious belief.

In her reporting on the poll , Jennifer Gold in Christian Today wove in this aspect of the story:

Debate over the place of religion in public life has become a media talking point in recent months with a number of high profile cases involving claims of discrimination in the workplace by Christians.

In recent weeks, Christian nurse Caroline Petrie was reinstated after she was suspended for offering to pray for a patient and school receptionist Jennie Cain faces disciplinary action after asking friends to pray for her family when her five-year-old daughter was told off by a teacher for sharing her Christian beliefs with a classmate.

Both women were defended by the Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu, who challenged the notion that employees should be disciplined for speaking with others about their trust in God.

Both cases reveal “a seeming intolerance and illiberality about faith in God which is being reflected in the higher echelons of our public services”, he said.

“Asking someone to leave their belief in God at the door of their workplace is akin to asking them to remove their skin colour before coming into the office. Faith in God is not an add-on or optional extra,” said the Archbishop.

There are perhaps three different issues playing themselves out.

1. Discrimination: It cuts both ways. There are plenty of cases of discrimination against Atheists. In Arkansas, an Atheist (according to an untested law) may not hold public office. There are reported cases of discrimination in the workplace and in the U.S. military, including the academies. Such discrimination is wrong. In 2005, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals decided that "Atheism [was a prison inmate's] religion, and the group that he wanted to start was religious in nature even though it expressly rejects a belief in a supreme being." Conservative Christians question this still. So do many Atheists because it calls Atheism a religion, which it is not. But it does afford protection under the law. Legalities and definitions aside, discrimination in all aspects of social governmental and employment (except by religious institutions) is immoral and unjust.
   
2. Freedom of Offense: “Merry Christmas - - - God bless America - - - in God we trust - - - you are going to hell” has been joined by bus ads and billboards that some people find offensive. Merchants will decide what works for sales at Christmas time. They have that freedom. Any politician, including the president, may say want he wants to the public. The only thing that seems to be really objectionable is the use of God on government issued currency. But don’t expect any significant movement in the foreseeable future. Congress is not inclined to open up this issue and the courts, these days, favor freedom of religion rather than freedom from religion. It is a little bit Alice in Wonderland but that is the reality of it. As for going to hell, this is so utterly ridiculous that it should simply be ignored. A few Atheists have their own lines of insulting remarks as well; Atheist have higher IQ, for instance. 
   
3. Evolution equates to Atheism. The is the most vocal issue thanks to people like Richard Dawkins and PZ Myers. This is going nowhere. I doubt that many people take this seriously except fundamentalist Christians and fundamentalist Atheists (Creationism vs Scientism).

Militancy has proven effective in civil rights campaigns. It is unlikely to be effective in changing peoples religious beliefs.

 

Comments

[Chris P]

Which religious beliefs would those be?

The ones about killing and hating homosexuals?

The ones about stoning adulterers?

The ones about killing rape victims?

Somebody isn't thinking again. Does this mean creationism is OK.

And somebody please tell the idiot archbishop that he is completely off base. Evangelizing is not allowed at work. Never.

If people start talking about religion then are we going to tolerate arguments between all the different flavors?

The archbishop has obviously never had a real job.