Government sponsored review finds religion a force of good in the UK

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“Faith is at the centre of people’s lives and churches and other faith groups are at the very centre of communities, providing both inspiration and practical support. The Church of England alone is involved in more than 35,000 separate initiatives in communities and works to tackle deprivation and promote social cohesion through church schools, chaplaincies in places such as prisons and higher education and in thousands of practical programmes in its parishes.

We welcome the recognition in the report of the need for religious literacy and a greater public understanding of the major world faiths. It is a fact that the majority of people in England Wales identify with a religion, so faith is not a minority pursuit.

Everyone has a belief-system which guides their lives so it is important to enhance understanding of religions without treating religious people as ‘other’. There is, of course, a huge diversity of faith in this country and faiths are not all the same.

We look forward to hearing how any training and education in the field of religious literacy can be done in partnership with religious communities and from a perspective that sees faiths in the round.”

To read the review in full, go here: Does government ‘do God?’ An independent review into how government engages with faith (publishing.service.gov.uk)