England is officially classified as a Christian country, in which most Christians predominantly identify as followers of the Church of England.  Christianity has dominated religion in England for many years, however recently, according to the latest studies, religion on the whole is decreasing in popularity and secularity (identifying as non-religious) is on the rise – contributing factors could include outstanding breakthroughs in the fields of science and technology as well as many other individual influencing factors.

In regards to this, should we be encouraging the Christian faith to be upheld as part of common English tradition, or embrace diversity of other wide-held beliefs including atheism?  With London being the most culturally diverse capital in the world, some would say it is limiting or perhaps hindering our potential to still include Christian holidays and celebrations in our daily work/school lives.  Having our school terms and bank holidays based entirely around Christmas, Easter or saint’s days without official public holidays being recognised for Diwali, Hanukkah or Eid or days dedicated to acknowledging the non-religious achievements of people such as Marie Curie, could potentially result in a lack of understanding or respect for different faiths and individuals, as well as welcoming them openly into our society.

I asked others on their thoughts and opinions: one replied that we should aim to have a “society accepting of all religions and their traditions” in order to achieve a more forward-thinking and individuality-embracing society.  Contrastingly, I asked another person who responded that we should give precedence to upholding the rich Christian history of this country and thus “respect traditions because we still live in a predominantly Christian country – the current school/work system does allow authorised holidays for different religious holidays for example Eid.”

Recent publications do indicate the increasingly held opinion that England is in fact not a Christian country and we are failing to recognise this as a modern nation.  But what indeed is the right direction to go in – to honour and show pride in rich English history and Christian traditional values, or turn a new page and enter into the age of diversity, science and secularity?

Aalia Qureshi, Nonsuch High School for Girls