A bit less religion please, we’re religious
by Stephen Kneale, Building Jerusalem:
In yesterday’s Times (paywall), Sarah Tor made the following comments regarding hymns in church schools:
As a Muslim who attended a Christian school, I say it is a mistake to tell Church of England institutions to avoid hymns that contain preachy lyrics in order to ensure inclusivity for all.
I love belting out a good hymn. Tell me to “light up the fire and let the flame burn” and I’ll open the door and let Jesus return. Ask me to “go tell it on the mountain” and I’ll go over the hills and everywhere to say that Jesus Christ is born. I’d make way for the king of kings and, heck, I’d even ask Jesus to shine and fill this land with the Father’s glory. Not once in all my primary school life did I feel excluded while singing these songs because I knew that I was at a Christian school and Jesus was probably going to be a hot topic. It didn’t matter to me and it didn’t matter to my parents that we were singing those songs. If it had mattered, I wouldn’t have been at that school.
And that’s the point. There’s no need to avoid preachy hymns because if a parent — be they atheist or of a different religion — sends their child to a CofE school, they should be aware that they’ll be exposed to Christianity. Besides, singing hymns doesn’t automatically make someone a Christian; it doesn’t even have to mean that that person believes in God. To me, they are just words to music and they can carry some lovely memories. Thank the Lord I learnt them.
The key point is that, if a parent sends their child to a CofE school, they expect (or should expect) that their child will be exposed to Anglican Christianity and probably made to engage with it to some degree. The argument works in reverse too. Those who send their children to state schools expect that their children will be exposed to state orthodoxy. There may be less scope for choice for those without money nor an organisation the size of the CofE to setup their own schools in accordance with their own beliefs (it is little wonder there aren’t many FIEC or Grace Baptist schools). But, in theory, they could set up their own schools if they wish. But the point remains, if you send your children to a state school, you expect them to be taught according to state orthodoxy just like those who opt for CofE schools expect to hear Anglicanism.
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