Category Archives: From the NSS

Prayers in the Michaela Community School

To Pray or not to Pray

Recent press reports refer to a legal case against the headteacher and governors of the Michaela Community School in Brent, north-west London.

It seems that some of the pupils, about 50% of whom are Muslims, have been praying at break times, and encouraging others to join them.

The headteacher, Katherine Birbalsingh, and the goverors are being taken to court for stopping the playground prayers, which they fear could lead to bullying and social divisiveness.

You can read more from Sally Weale, Education correspondent of The Guardian.
Megan Manson also covers the issues for the National Secular Society.

Polly Toynbee, in The Guardian, draws attention to the need to reform the legal requirement to hold a daily act of Collective Worship in every state funded school.

It could be argued that requiring a pupil to pray, is forcing them to admit that God exists.

School Worship

Religious Freedom and its Limits

Religious Freedom and its Limits

Cornwall Humanists enjoyed a very interesting talk on Zoom at 7pm on Tuesday 21st September, given by the National Secular Society.  Stephen Evans, Chief Executive Officer of the National Secular Society, talked about religious freedom and its limits.

School Worship

Photo by Don McPhee

Stephen told us that the National Secular Society defends everyone’s freedom of religion and belief.
Everyone should have freedom to believe whatever they wish. This is confirmed by the United Nations Charter of 1948, in Article 18, “Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion.”

However there are areas of human life where balances need to be struck between the undoubted rights of people to practise their religion, and possible harms that might result from certain religious beliefs.

Stephen gave the Jehovah Witnesses’ opposition to blood transfusions as an example, where the parents’ religious belief could result in the death of a child in their care.
It has been decided by the courts that the child’s right to life, takes precedence over the parental rights of religious belief.

In the world of work British Airways failed to prevent a Christian employee, Nadia Eweida, from wearing a visible cross at work, because their policy was found to be inconsistent regarding other religious symbols. By contrast the NHS were successful in preventing nurse Shirley Chaplin, from wearing a crucifix at work.

There are differing views on how animals should be slaughtered, before their meat is eaten.
The majority of meat certified as Halal is stunned before slaughter, but no prior stunning is permitted in the rules of Kosher slaughter.  It would be possible to label meat, to show if the animal had been stunned prior to slaughter, allowing the buyer to make a choice.

Another example Stephen gave was the religious practice of surgery on the genitals of children.  It seems widely accepted in the UK that operations on girls, known as FGM (female genital mutilation) is unacceptable, and it is illegal in the UK.  But circumcision of boys is not illegal in the UK, although there is no medical benefit, for boys or girls, while there is sometimes serious harm resulting from surgery.

In the case of Batley Grammar School, a teacher used a caricature image of the Prophet Mohammed as part of a lesson.  This caused offence to some people of the Muslim faith, who protested at the school.  The Trust which runs the school has said that it wishes to ensure that offence is not caused, but Stephen feels that an Islamic blasphemy code has been quietly imposed at this school.

The right of freedom of religion and belief is accepted, but Stephen suggested that there also needs to be freedom from religious belief.

Peter Wood 23rd September 2021

Comment
Daily, compulsory, Christian worship in our schools does not seem to strike a fair balance between the freedom of religion, and the freedom from religion.

Religious Education

Gaining Balance in RE

Should RE teach Christianity, or about Christianity?

Understanding Christianity and the study of religion and worldviews, is an academic study by former RE teacher Chris Selway which is recently published.

Key recommendations

The paper argues that several changes are necessary if RE is to gain credibility with the public:

  • It should be taught through an objective, critically-engaged and pluralistic approach.
  • Education about religion should explore both the positive and negative consequences of religion in a balanced way.
  • RE should take “more of a socio-historical or anthropological approach”, rather than one which is focused on theology.
  • There should be a “major shift” in the funding and management of RE.

To see more visit the website of the National Secular Society.

 

Religious Privilege

Bishops

Bishops in the House of Lords

The presence of the Church of England in the House of Lords entrenches a privileged position for one particular branch of one particular religion.

Only 16% of the population profess affiliation to the Church of England according to the 2013 British Social Attitudes survey, (and only 1.4% being in Church on any given Sunday according to the church’s own attendance figures.)

Did you know that if two members of the House of Lords wish to speak, the Bishop is given the right to speak first?

Cornwall Humanists work towards a fairer society at local and national level.

 

No Indoctrination – Head of OFSTED

Amanda Spielman
Amanda Spielman – Head of OFSTED

School leaders should promote “muscular liberalism”

The National Secular Society has welcomed a call from the head of education watchdog Ofsted for head teachers to confront religious extremists who “indoctrinate impressionable minds”.

In a speech at the Church of England Foundation for Education Leadership, Amanda Spielman told heads they had a responsibility to “tackle those who actively undermine fundamental British values or equalities law”.

Ms Spielman said school leaders should promote “a muscular liberalism” which “holds no truck for ideologies that want to close minds or narrow opportunity”. She contrasted this with “a passive liberalism that says ‘anything goes’ for fear of causing offence”.

Read More

Academies and Religious Influence

On 25th April The National Secular Society published a press release warning that academisation risks increasing religious influence.

Three extracts from the NSS press release :

In 2015 the Archbishops’ Evangelism Task Group said that the Church had an “urgent need” to focus evangelism on children, young people and their parents in light of a catastrophic collapse in adult church attendance.

The earlier CofE ‘Church School of the Future‘ report set out a strategy of expanding the number of Church schools to “intensify the religious input into lesson”, calling for a new “concordat” between the Church and the Government to “reinforce and enhance” the Church’s influence throughout the education system.

The NSS has also raised questions about land ownership, expressing concern that “public land will be transferred from local authorities and placed under control of the local diocese for 125 years, and, given the permission of the secretary of state, the church could use it however it likes”.

Read the whole press release