Why don't we teach migrants we are a CHRISTIAN country, asks the former archbishop of Canterbury LORD CAREY
It is hard to accept – but we must – that the Middle East, the region that gave birth to our faith, could soon see the virtual extinction of Christianity.
It is all the more difficult at this time of year, when we are preparing to commemorate the story of Christ’s coming and his simple origins in what is now the Arab town of Bethlehem.
Yet the facts are these: the Christian population of the Middle East has shrunk from about seven per cent two decades ago to just 1.5 per cent today. And those that remain live in fear.
Every church in Egypt is forced to have security guards, for example. Last week’s bombing at St Mark’s cathedral in Cairo left 25 dead and many wounded.
As we look to the desperate plight of people in Aleppo, it is worth remembering that for the persecuted Christian minority in Western Aleppo, the defeat of the rebels might actually be good news – because the Islamists who have targeted them so persistently have finally lost their grip on the city.
Here in Britain, this is a time to sing O Little Town Of Bethlehem with hope and nostalgia. For those who actually live in the cradle of Christianity, however, the approach of Christmas brings fear and anxiety, as this is a time when jihadis are most likely to target them.
Yet, while Middle Eastern Christians suffer outright persecution, I am sorry to say that they also face indifference from Western countries. We are apparently careless of their plight, despite the most terrible circumstances – and wholly indifferent to the fate of Christians and Christianity within our own shore.
This hostility from British officialdom is completely at odds with the Christian core of our national life.
It was refreshing to hear Theresa May, the daughter of a vicar, praising a traditional, collective Christian identity, along with pride in this country’s Christian heritage. ‘We have a very strong tradition in this country of religious tolerance and freedom of speech,’ she said during Prime Minister’s Questions in the Commons. And it is true. A country sure of its own religious identity is able to welcome others.
Yet after decades of social change, greater mobility and mass migration, we are now a society of many ‘Balkanised’ communities, fragmented and divided. The glue which tied us together used to be the institutions of our civil society, including the Church of England, and its hospitable establishment which allowed all voices of minorities a place at the table.
Contrastingly, in countries which insist on secularism, it is often impossible for religious believers to get a hearing. We are succumbing to a creeping culture of religious illiteracy. Dame Louise Casey’s review which was tasked to look at the way communities are integrating – or not – is a case in point. Quite rightly, she pointed out that the public authorities have been ignoring harmful social practices in some of our Muslim communities, such as the exclusion of women, domestic violence, forced marriage and female genital mutilation.
She was correct, also, to point out that people were afraid of openly condemning such practices for fear of being branded ‘Islamophobic’.
Yet there is also a worrying side to Casey’s review, one which I fear could lead to the restriction of religious freedom for all. For her report on community cohesion equated conservative religious views with intolerance, even extremism. By condemning all those with conservative religious views – and not just an Islamist minority – she is imposing a new form of intolerance.
In civil life as a whole, we are choosing to forget the Christian heritage which has contributed so greatly to our laws, rituals, language, our traditions and even our landscape.
It has built our civil society and sustained charity and social movements and has been the fabric of our daily existence for a millennium and more.
Yet the most educated and responsible among us are allowing this precious understanding to be replaced by a watery liberalism which has no guiding principle beyond a wish not to cause offence.
In fact, a strong religious identity breeds confidence and sensitivity towards others. I have never found a British Muslim, Sikh, Hindu or Jew who is the least bit offended by Christian rituals, let alone the public celebration of Christmas. They positively welcome being made to feel part of Christian festivals, just as many Christians enjoy sharing in celebrations of Eid, Diwali and Passover. Mail.
(Not so sure about the very last sentence, though!)
