21 April 2014 Last updated at 16:19
David Cameron risks 'alienation', public figures claim
The prime minister has said Britain needs to be "more confident" about its Christian faith
The prime minister has said Britain needs to be "more confident" about its Christian faithRelated Stories
David Cameron risks causing "alienation" in society by saying Britain is a "Christian country", a group of public figures has warned.
Author Sir Terry Pratchett was among 50 signatories of a letter to the Daily Telegraph saying Britain was a largely "non-religious society".
The PM said the UK should be "more confident" about its Christianity, a view No 10 says he has stated before.
Faith leaders have said they are "very comfortable" with Mr Cameron's views.
David Cameron risks causing "alienation" in society by saying Britain is a "Christian country", a group of public figures has warned.
Author Sir Terry Pratchett was among 50 signatories of a letter to the Daily Telegraph saying Britain was a largely "non-religious society".
The PM said the UK should be "more confident" about its Christianity, a view No 10 says he has stated before.
Faith leaders have said they are "very comfortable" with Mr Cameron's views.
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The open letter's signatories included author Philip Pullman, performer Tim Minchin, journalist Polly Toynbee, philosopher AC Grayling and presenter Dan Snow.
Its lead signatory was Professor Jim Al-Khalili, president of the British Humanist Association.
The group said it respected the prime minister's right to his own religious beliefs, but said: "We object to his characterisation of Britain as a 'Christian country' and the negative consequences for politics and society that this engenders."
Sir Terry Pratchett is one of the signatories of the letter
"Apart from in the narrow constitutional sense that we continue to have an established Church, Britain is not a 'Christian country'.
"Constantly to claim otherwise fosters alienation and division in our society," the letter said.
'Multi-faith society'
Human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell told BBC Radio 4's Today programme the assertion Britain is a Christian country was "not factually accurate".
He said a YouGov poll found 65% of people questioned described themselves as "not religious", while 29% said they were. He said those people would have come from a range of faiths - not just Christianity.
Mr Tatchell said the evidence shows the is not a Christian country, saying: "We are a multi-faith society, we are also a no-faith society."
His claims come after figures released by the ONS following the 2011 census found that, despite a drop of four million in the number of people who said they were Christians in England and Wales from 2001, 59% of residents still described themselves as Christian.
Christina Rees, a member of the General Synod, the highest governing body of the Church of England, said she was glad Mr Cameron had the "confidence" to talk about his faith and was "absolutely right" to call the UK a "Christian nation".
She said the UK was "historically and culturally" Christian.
Farooq Murad, secretary general of the Muslim Council of Britain, said nobody could deny that the UK remains a largely Christian country with "deep historical and structural links" to Christianity.
He said "a sense of the sacred is to be cherished" but added that the UK would be stronger by "recognising and celebrating" people of multiple faiths and of no faith "living in harmony".
Anil Bhanot, managing director of the Hindu Council UK, said he was "very comfortable" with the UK being described as a Christian country.
'Incredibly proud'
In an article for the Church Times earlier this month Mr Cameron said Christians should be "confident" in standing up to defend their values.
The prime minister also spoke of his faith in his Easter message, saying he found "peace" in Christianity.
Downing Street spokeswoman referred to a speech made three years ago by the prime minister where he said the UK was a Christian country and should not be afraid to say so.
"He has said on many occasions that he is incredibly proud that Britain is home to many different faith communities, who do so much to make the UK a stronger country."
BBC political correspondent Chris Mason said Mr Cameron's comments could be politically "useful", coming as the UK Independence Party (UKIP) has been "emphasising traditional values".
The open letter's signatories included author Philip Pullman, performer Tim Minchin, journalist Polly Toynbee, philosopher AC Grayling and presenter Dan Snow.
Its lead signatory was Professor Jim Al-Khalili, president of the British Humanist Association.
The group said it respected the prime minister's right to his own religious beliefs, but said: "We object to his characterisation of Britain as a 'Christian country' and the negative consequences for politics and society that this engenders."
Sir Terry Pratchett is one of the signatories of the letter
"Apart from in the narrow constitutional sense that we continue to have an established Church, Britain is not a 'Christian country'.
"Constantly to claim otherwise fosters alienation and division in our society," the letter said.
'Multi-faith society'
Human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell told BBC Radio 4's Today programme the assertion Britain is a Christian country was "not factually accurate".
He said a YouGov poll found 65% of people questioned described themselves as "not religious", while 29% said they were. He said those people would have come from a range of faiths - not just Christianity.
Mr Tatchell said the evidence shows the is not a Christian country, saying: "We are a multi-faith society, we are also a no-faith society."
His claims come after figures released by the ONS following the 2011 census found that, despite a drop of four million in the number of people who said they were Christians in England and Wales from 2001, 59% of residents still described themselves as Christian.
Christina Rees, a member of the General Synod, the highest governing body of the Church of England, said she was glad Mr Cameron had the "confidence" to talk about his faith and was "absolutely right" to call the UK a "Christian nation".
She said the UK was "historically and culturally" Christian.
Farooq Murad, secretary general of the Muslim Council of Britain, said nobody could deny that the UK remains a largely Christian country with "deep historical and structural links" to Christianity.
He said "a sense of the sacred is to be cherished" but added that the UK would be stronger by "recognising and celebrating" people of multiple faiths and of no faith "living in harmony".
Anil Bhanot, managing director of the Hindu Council UK, said he was "very comfortable" with the UK being described as a Christian country.
'Incredibly proud'
In an article for the Church Times earlier this month Mr Cameron said Christians should be "confident" in standing up to defend their values.
The prime minister also spoke of his faith in his Easter message, saying he found "peace" in Christianity.
Downing Street spokeswoman referred to a speech made three years ago by the prime minister where he said the UK was a Christian country and should not be afraid to say so.
"He has said on many occasions that he is incredibly proud that Britain is home to many different faith communities, who do so much to make the UK a stronger country."
BBC political correspondent Chris Mason said Mr Cameron's comments could be politically "useful", coming as the UK Independence Party (UKIP) has been "emphasising traditional values".
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Britain in post-Christian era, says former archbishop of Canterbury
Lord Williams says time of habitual worship is over and further decline of widespread faith likely in UK
Former archbishop of Canterbury Lord Williams: 'A Christian nation can sound like a nation of committed believers, and we are not that.' Photograph: Murdo Macleod
Britain is no longer a country of believers but rather has entered a post-Christian era, a former archbishop of Canterbury has said.
Lord Williams of Oystermouth, who stood down as leader of the Church of England in December 2012, said the time of habitual worship was over and that a further decline of widespread faith was likely.
His comments, in an interview with the Sunday Telegraph, came after the prime minister was criticised for saying the UK should be "more confident about our status as a Christian country" and more evangelical about faith.
David Cameron's comments prompted fury from secular and atheist groups and led to the Liberal Democrat leader, Nick Clegg, an atheist, calling for the separation of church and state in England.
A poll for the newspaper also found that while more than half the public regard Britain as a Christian country, the majority of practising Christians are afraid to express their beliefs.
Williams, who is now master of Magdalene College, Cambridge, said that while Britain's "cultural memory is still quite strongly Christian", it was post-Christian in that habitual practice across most of the population was not taken for granted.
"A Christian nation can sound like a nation of committed believers, and we are not that. Equally, we are not a nation of dedicated secularists. I think we're a lot less secular than the most optimistic members of the British Humanist Association would think," he said.
Underlining Britain's changing relationship with religion, Williams added: "A Christian country as a nation of believers? No. A Christian country in the sense of still being very much saturated by this vision of the world and shaped by it? Yes."
Asked whether Britain would lose its faith altogether, he said: "Given that we have a younger generation now who know less about this legacy than people under 45, there may be a further shrinkage of awareness and commitment."
Williams added: "The other side is that people then rediscoverChristianity with a certain freshness, because it's not 'the boring old stuff that we learnt at school and have come to despise'. I see signs of that, talking to youngsters here at Magdalene and in school visits. There is a curiosity about Christianity."
The Sunday Telegraph's poll, which surveyed 2,000 people online, found that 56% of people regard Britain as Christian, rising to 60% among men and 73% among over-65s.
Sixty-two per cent said the rise of religious fundamentalism had made Christians afraid to express their faith while 41% said they were not religious.
Lord Williams says time of habitual worship is over and further decline of widespread faith likely in UK
Former archbishop of Canterbury Lord Williams: 'A Christian nation can sound like a nation of committed believers, and we are not that.' Photograph: Murdo Macleod
Britain is no longer a country of believers but rather has entered a post-Christian era, a former archbishop of Canterbury has said.
Lord Williams of Oystermouth, who stood down as leader of the Church of England in December 2012, said the time of habitual worship was over and that a further decline of widespread faith was likely.
His comments, in an interview with the Sunday Telegraph, came after the prime minister was criticised for saying the UK should be "more confident about our status as a Christian country" and more evangelical about faith.
David Cameron's comments prompted fury from secular and atheist groups and led to the Liberal Democrat leader, Nick Clegg, an atheist, calling for the separation of church and state in England.
A poll for the newspaper also found that while more than half the public regard Britain as a Christian country, the majority of practising Christians are afraid to express their beliefs.
Williams, who is now master of Magdalene College, Cambridge, said that while Britain's "cultural memory is still quite strongly Christian", it was post-Christian in that habitual practice across most of the population was not taken for granted.
"A Christian nation can sound like a nation of committed believers, and we are not that. Equally, we are not a nation of dedicated secularists. I think we're a lot less secular than the most optimistic members of the British Humanist Association would think," he said.
Underlining Britain's changing relationship with religion, Williams added: "A Christian country as a nation of believers? No. A Christian country in the sense of still being very much saturated by this vision of the world and shaped by it? Yes."
Asked whether Britain would lose its faith altogether, he said: "Given that we have a younger generation now who know less about this legacy than people under 45, there may be a further shrinkage of awareness and commitment."
Williams added: "The other side is that people then rediscoverChristianity with a certain freshness, because it's not 'the boring old stuff that we learnt at school and have come to despise'. I see signs of that, talking to youngsters here at Magdalene and in school visits. There is a curiosity about Christianity."
The Sunday Telegraph's poll, which surveyed 2,000 people online, found that 56% of people regard Britain as Christian, rising to 60% among men and 73% among over-65s.
Sixty-two per cent said the rise of religious fundamentalism had made Christians afraid to express their faith while 41% said they were not religious.
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