Lecture 4 religion in the united kingdom

Plan

1. Religion in Today’s Britain.

2. Major Britain’s Religious Holidays

1. RELIGION IN TODAY’S BRITAIN. Everyone in Britain has the right to religious freedom. Britain is predominantly Christian – one British citizen in 10 is a member of the Roman Catholic Church and there are 1.7 million members of the Anglican church (the Church of England) – the “Established Church”, that is the church legally recognized as the official church of the State. It dates from 1534, when Henry YIII broke away from the Church of Rome and declared himself Head of the Church of England. British monarchs still bear this title today. The Queen (or the King) on the advice of the Prime Minister appoints two Archbishops (of Canterbury, who is the Church’s leader, and of York) and 42 bishops who sit in the House of Lords. Although the Church receives no money from the state, it is a great property owner and also has a large number of stocks and shares. Priests in the Church of England have the right to be married, and in 1987 women were allowed to become priests. Very often vicars who are responsible for separate parishes take a great interest in their parishioners and combine the tasks of priest, social worker and psychologist.

However, there are many other churches to which people belong; e.g. Roman Catholic (six million), Methodists (1,150,000), Congregationalists (372,000), Baptists (338,000) and other smaller groups.

In Scotland there are 1.1 million members of the Presbyterian Church – the established church in Scotland. It is completely separated from the Anglican Church, has its own organization and appoints its own ministers. Presbyterianism is a severe form of Protestantism, founded in the 16^th century by the followers of the great French reformer Calvin. In Northern Ireland, about half the people regard themselves as Protestants and nearly 40% as Roman Catholics.

In Wales the Anglican Church was disestablished in 1920. It means that there is no one officially established church, but Methodist and Baptist are the two most widespread Christian Churches.

The leader of the Catholic Church in Britain is the Cardinal Archbishop of Westminster. Normally only unmarried men are allowed to be Catholic priests but in 1987 for the first time two married men were allowed to train as priests.

The Jewish community in Britain is the second largest group of Jews in Europe. More than half of them live in London. Jews still tend to marry Jews, for both racial and religious reasons, though it is happening less and less among the young generation.

Britain has one of the largest Muslim communities in Western Europe, with about 1-1.5 million people and 600 mosques and prayer centres. One of the most important and beautiful Muslim institutions in the Western world is the Central Mosque in London, which is part of the Islamic Cultural Centre.

The Sikh community in Britain comprises about 4-5 thousand people, with the largest groups of Sikhs concentrated in Greater London, Manchester and Birmingham. The oldest Sikh temple was established in London in 1908.

The Hindu community in Britain accounts for about 320,000 people. Its first temple was opened in London in 1962 and now there are over 150 throughout Britain.

Fewer and fewer British people go regularly to the traditional Protestant and Catholic churches. But there is a great deal of interest in religion. There are many newer and smaller Christian organizations, which are growing fast. Every year new cults spring up, which are not based on Christianity or other major religion. Many of these cults offer ways of discovering one’s real self. Others are adaptations of ancient religious practices or superstitions, such as moon worship or witchcraft.

Non-denominational religious teaching (that is Christian, but not from any one Church) is compulsory in all state schools in Britain. The day usually starts with a short service held in the school hall. If a student has strong religious objections he or she does not have to attend the service or religious lessons. In Scotland neither the morning prayers nor the religious lessons are compulsory.

Nowadays the old narrow intolerance of the churches is breaking down. Many established churches are moving closer together, bringing nearer the idea of ecumenism, the movement toward universal Christian Unity.

2. MAJOR BRITAIN’S RELIGIOUS HOLIDAYS. There are a lot of religious holidays in Britain. The major of them are the following:

Ascension Day is a festival for Christians celebrating the ascent of Christ to Heaven. It is held on the 40^th day after resurrection, on the sixth Thursday after Easter.

Good Friday is the Friday before Easter, commemorating Crucifixion and observed as a holiday.

Whit Sunday is a major festival in the Christian church, which is celebrated on the seventh Sunday after Easter commemorating the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the disciples on the day of Pentecost. The day is named after the white robes worn by converted to the church which were admitted at that time.

Trinity Sunday is the Sunday after Whit Sunday and is one of the major festivals of the Christian year. Trinity symbolizes the threefold union of three persons in one godhead, namely Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

Easter Day is a Christian festival commemorating the Resurrection of Christ. It is observed on the first Sunday after a full moon falling on or after 21 March.

Ash Wednesday is the first day of Lent in the Christian religion. Its name comes from the tradition of sprinkling ashes on the heads of penitents.

Shrove Tuesday is the day before Ash Wednesday. On Shrove Tuesday many people traditionally eat pancakes, as this day was once thought of as the last day of enjoyment before the Lent in the Christian year. Thus, it is sometimes called Pancake Day.

Palm Sunday is the third Sunday before Easter. On Palm Sunday in some churches small crosses, which are made of palm leaves, are given to the members of the congregation. It is associated with the Bible story, which says that palm branches were thrown on the ground in front of Christ as He entered Jerusalem.

Maundy Thursday is the Thursday before Easter. In a selected cathedral the Sovereign traditionally presents small purses of money to people who are specially chosen and whose number is the same as the Sovereign’s age in years.