to think we no longer live in a Christian country

[orlantina]

More than 53% of people have no faith - according to a recent survey.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-41150792

That figure changes to 71% amongst 18-25 yr olds.

It surveyed 3000 adults - so it would be interesting to look behind the stats but it seems that more than half the country have no religion.

Christianity is still probably the most common religion out there.

Should this have implications for areas of national life?

"I'm delighted it's on the way out. Should have happened years ago - I find it embarrassing that some humans still believe in nonsense."

Ditto!

"Fact - you know that person has walked across each capital / has walked in each capital
Assumption - that the person has walked around the world"

Ok, this is hilarious, but I'll continue for the fun of it. Where you have used assumption, what you actually mean is theory.

What you mean to say here is
"FACT: people walk, I saw this person walking in many places" and
"THEORY: they walked around the world".
There is also
"THEORY: They used some other form of transport in between when you saw them",
"THEORY: They are actually different people",
"THEORY: You have some kind of visual/mental distortion occurring where you think its the same person but it actually isnt"......and many more. Science is the process of getting all those theories in and then investigating in as many ways as possible what other information we can get in an attempt to DISPROVE the theories.

Science isnt about trying to prove things, its about trying to disprove things and not being able to do so. Thats why everything is a theory for ever, because some new thing could come to light to disprove gravity, or magnetism, or anything. People seem to think that because something is a scientific "theory", that means that everyone is very uncertain on whether they think its actually true or not, thats fundamentally incorrect.

Taking one theory and saying "this is the one truth forever" is the preserve of religion.

And as to the idea that God must have made the mountains because they are so awesome, just try and imagine it from the point of view of something that isnt Human - I'm sure a very deep-sea creature that can only live under massive pressure would find the existence of earth-atmosphere mountains utterly repulsive and horrifying, as would something that lives on the surface of Venus, or Saturn. Humans find them pretty and nice because they are the environment that suits us.

I find the 'sky fairies' trope both rude and tedious. However, I'd say the same about the 'When a man stops believing in God he doesn’t then believe in nothing, he believes anything.' type of quote. Silly, untrue and disrespectful no matter who said it first.

Thank GOD, Christianity is on the way out

I find the 'sky fairies' trope both rude and tedious. However, I'd say the same about the 'When a man stops believing in God he doesn’t then believe in nothing, he believes anything.' type of quote. Silly, untrue and disrespectful no matter who said it first

^^Absolutely this.

I think there's often very interesting discussions to be had surrounding beliefs or lack thereof.

Very easy OP:
Get a card
Internet connection
Flight company website
Buy a ticket
Done! Good bye. Very easy! Unless you're a poor broken aitheist obviously.

People who will be delighted when it's gone.....be careful what you wish for. The alternative probably won't be to your liking. I mean for goodness sake, how badly is it affecting your life. What a load of moaners you are. When you think of how some people have to live in some countries. Be grateful for the freedom and tolerance. Many countries wouldn't give you anything like it.

What can be asserted without evidence can be dismissed without evidence

Thank GOD, Christianity is on the way out grin
Any other religions you'd like to see the back of, or is it that it's only safe to say it about Christianity.

I mean for goodness sake, how badly is it affecting your life.

Well it meant we couldn't apply to 2/3 of our nearest schools as they're selective on religious grounds. You know state schools - that are funded by the tax payer.

I categorically don't want the end of religion - what I do want is the end of religion having any relationship to the state, a secular country is the model we should strive for IMO.

@heartstornastray it's not Christian religion giving the freedom and tolerance though is it? It's secularism

I agree though that those who are glad of it not being a Christian country would not welcome it becoming any other religion

I think in this country (uk) and america. Gay people would certainly like a word about how their rights were infringed by the christians who made homosexuality and homosexual marriage illegal based on one line of the bible.

I bet irish women would like a word about their right to choose being illegal because of religion.

It has soaked in to the fabric of our lives and deserves to be told to fuck off.

I dont want any religion being able to have an impact on my life in any way.

In uk the biggest religion is christianity, if i lived in saudi arabia, islam would be the main focus, judaism in israel etc

Well it meant we couldn't apply to 2/3 of our nearest schools as they're selective on religious grounds. You know state schools - that are funded by the tax payer.

Well I'm sure parents with good archivment kids would not like to have your kids around them as you despise religion. Btw I bet those religious schools are much better than the other opinions you had so why have someone like you to ruin everything?

Well, two out of the four nearest primary schools to me were off the cards for my children because I'm not a Christian and one of the two nearest secondary schools was as well. Then I have to put up with unelected prelates of the Church of England passing laws in our second chamber.

Christianity isn't what makes this country tolerant. In fact, many versions of Christianity aren't at all tolerant and even the CofE has been slow to move with the times. Women were only ordained from 1994 and the first female bishop wasn't appointed until 2014.

And I don't want my children to go to a school with a religious ethos. If people want to believe in and practise a faith, they can do so every evening, weekend and morning before school. All schools should be accessible to all children.

I think it is a shame that lots of comments are about keeping faith private and condemning it in some quite rude terms. It seems unfair that this is permissible but someone of faith saying that same would be hounded out of mumsnet.

I have read some strong opinions, which I think is fair after centuries of oppression. I have not read anything rude. Some people go straight to playing the role of the victim or shall we say 'martyr'.

Ontopofthesunset

There's plenty of non religious schools around. You're just being jealous because the best schools do not accept your kids. If you are so concerned about the place of women in religion and females bishops bein appointed I presume you're a successful woman in your field who could afford a private education for your atheist family? You're sounding very entitled.

referring to any religion as invisible friends in the sky is belittling and rude
I respect and tolerate people not ideas. If I hear an idea I think is ridiculous, I belittle and deride it. Believing in a friendly to some wrathful to others being who can't be seen is invisible and exists out there somewhere in the sky, is a ridiculous idea and worthy of ridicule.

Christmas and Easter are not christian holidays and no one 'celebrates' them any more Ok there must be some people who go to church and 'celebrate' it but where are they all hiding? I dont know anyone who knows anyone who goes to church on a Sunday. Its like 1% of the population

When a man stops believing in God he doesn’t then believe in nothing, he believes anything.' What does this quote mean? You are born atheist, so its referring to people who start to believe in god then change their minds? He doesn't believe in nothing, which is a double negative, is this intended? Or he does then believe in nothing because he presumably decided to require evidence and proof rather than 'belief' anymore. And who does believing in anything refer to? Because believing in god is believing that anything can happen/exist as god just needs to click his fingers. The man who doesn't believe certainly doesn't believe in anything, he only accepts the things that can be proved. So is the whole quote nonsense?

We had to play the comedy of attending church just so our children were admitted in the right school. And so has a Muslim friend. I think the school should reflect the society, and the society is clearly not a Christian one.

cueless

Great example of how to be dodgy to your kids. Maybe it's in your genes anyway

I'd love to know why Christians are so upset at the thought of a secular society, surely your faith and your god is strong enough to withstand this, do you think you can't brainwash your children enough in your own time ?

I've thought (hoped) for some time that the youthification of churches, ripping down beautiful old buildings and replacing them with cafe culture style hubs , Christian pop bands, youth ministers striding about with their Britney mikes, special men's events etc.... all just smacks of desperation to cling onto a waining age when the gullible believed everything they were told.

I'm struggling to see why it would be so difficult to separate Church and State.

Most Western countries have either never had an established church or have disestablished. I don't think it's always taken revolutions or genocide to do that.

I really am struggling to see what the difficulties are.

You're just being jealous because the best schools do not accept your kids

The schools are good because they are selective not because they are religious. Schools with a particular religious ethos that do not select do no better than any other state school. Religious discrimination is not something the state should be engaged in.

If it was legal to select children who where explicitly not religious utopia you would have a level paying field and see everyone who currently has to 'pretend' to be religious, desert faith schools.