Christians should be fearless to wear faith symbols at Christmas, say prominent bishops
Two prominent Anglican bishops have urged Christians to demonstrate that they ‘are not going to disappear quietly from the market place’. They say Christians should turn back the tide of political correctness by wearing crosses or fish badges during the Christmas period.
The Rt Rev Jonathan Gledhill, the Bishop of Lichfield criticised 'politically-correct' companies and local councils who sought to make the period a secular celebration. He told worshippers to fearlessly wear Christian faith symbols demonstrating that Christmas is a holiday directly linked to Christianity. He said:
‘Companies’ sacking those who want to wear a cross or fish lapel badge and councils rebranding Christmas out of fear of offending ethnic minorities are decisions made out of sheer ignorance.
‘I think it wouldn’t be a bad thing if in December all Christians wore a fish badge or cross necklace and sent out a loud message that Christians aren’t going to disappear quietly from the Christmas market place.’
Rt Rev John Hind, the Bishop of Chichester, also called for Anglicans to speak up more loudly for their Christian faith and traditions. He said:
‘Our faith cannot avoid being a public matter as it affects every aspect of our lives including our social and political attitudes.
‘In other words, we can’t keep it to ourselves. There is growing hostility in the public towards witnessing our faith in society and this has been shown in a number of recent attempts to marginalise the meaning of Christmas or to suppress the rights of believers. I hope all Christians respond enthusiastically both by wearing external symbols of our faith,’ he added.
The encouragements have been welcomed by other bishops and come only one week after the European Court of Human Rights ruled that crucifixes should not be displayed in Italy’s schools.
(See the CCFON report)
The decision, which had provoked outrage among politicians and the public, was handed down by a panel of seven judges at the court in Strasbourg. They said that the display of crucifixes, which is common but not mandatory in Italian schools, violated the principle of secular education and might be intimidating for children from other faiths.
Last week, city leaders in Dundee, Scotland, planned to organise a spectacular festive season celebration removing any reference to Christianity. All references to the religious elements of Christmas haD been deliberately dropped from the switching-on ceremony for the city’s festive lights.
(See the CCFON report)
It was also reported last week that The Employers Forum on Belief, a leading employers’ group, claimed there is no reason for companies to avoid celebrating Christmas for fear of offending minority faiths. They said that shutting the office over Christmas could be seen as discriminatory.
Catholic bishops who attended the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales on Tuesday, 17 November this year, said that Christmas celebrations and other public expressions of the Christian faith could be banned under Harriet Harman’s controversial Equality Bill, which is currently going through the parliamentary stages in Westminster.
(See the CCFON report)
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