Interesting Links for 08-12-2015

[andrewducker]

• 15 things about Islam and British values that a gay boy learned from living opposite a mosque.
  • LGBT Islam UK society
• Britain is no longer a Christian country and should stop acting as if it is
  • uk religion Christianity society
• Saudi Arabia is playing an increasingly destabilising role in the Middle East, German intelligence warns
  • saudiarabia

Comments

[gonzo21]

The 'no longer a Christian country' report seems rather ill-timed with regards the rise of Islam and the fears way too many British people have about this country becoming an Islamic country.

[andrewducker]

I think now is an excellent time to make it clear to people that this is not a Christian country, and that behaving as if it is means ignoring large swathes of the population.

Waiting longer almost certainly means causing _more_ tension.

[gonzo21]

You think? I really thought the majority of the Daily Fail reading reactionaries in this country will have seen this story and gone OMG SHARIA LAW IS INEVITABLE! WE HAVE TO STOP LETTING MUSLIMS IN!

[andrewducker]

Yes.

The reactionaries are saying that. And have been saying that for some time. But pandering to them makes things worse. If we wait until racists say "I am fine living next door to a foreigner" then we will be here forever, and not doing the things which will actually ease tensions.

[xenophanean]

"Britain is no longer a Christian country and should stop acting as if it is"

Some enjoyably shameless weaseling by the Telegraph in the introduction here:

"It says that the decline of churchgoing and the rise of Islam and other faiths mean a "new settlement" is needed for religion in the UK"

Picture: A white woman wearing a black veil, like a Muslim does!

i.e. "We're not saying that it's Christianity out to make way for us all becoming Islamic (but that's what it is really! Write to your MP!)"

This report has only a very little to do with Islam increasing, it's almost entirely about the rise of Agnosticism and Atheism, and decline of Christianity.

[bart_calendar]

That guy should also point out that a book can be both "genre fiction" and "literary fiction" at the same time.

The works of Tana French, James Ellroy and Margaret Atwood would all fit into both categories.

[andrewducker]

Absolutely. (Or David Mitchell, who they mention)

[a_pawson]

This is no longer a Christian country - a lot of people may disagree and point to the last Census (2011), at which 59.3% of people identified as Christian (63.9% if you omit those who didn't answer the question).

[simont]

Well, only if you think the best definition of 'a Christian country' is one in which a majority of people grudgingly say 'Christian' if you twist their arm enough that they actually bother expressing an opinion, regardless of whether they do anything identifiably Christian the rest of the time.

I mean, that doesn't seem like much of a basis on which to decide issues like, say, whether there should be an overtly Christian bias in our laws, an officially established Christian church, high-ranking Christians getting a free pass into a legislative assembly, ...

[a_pawson]

I don't think anyone's arm was twisted in completing the census. They had the option to either not answer, to put no religion, atheist, agnostic or any number of other options.

I agree that religion should have no place in making the laws of the country. But I just don't think that stating the UK is no longer a Christian country is a very good argument, when the largest survey in recent history suggests the majority of people identify as Christian.

[octopoid_horror]

In his book The English, Jeremy Paxman makes the point that CofE is almost more a default position rather than an actual faith. If I remember rightly, a CofE vicar has to actually ponder whether faith is necessary to be CofE.

[kalimac]

C.S. Lewis pointed out well over half a century ago that Britain is not a Christian country. Most of the people, while nominally Christian, do not make any effort to practice Christianity; only a minority actually do so.

[andrewducker]

Somewhere between 1.5% and 5%, apparently.