A Secular Europe

Historically England is seen as a fairly religious state. There is no separation between church and government, which allows prayers to publicly be read and religion to be included in education. In public schools where, in America, one can not hang the Ten Commandments, in England they are actually teaching about God. However it seems that in America we place more value on our religion. We bring God and our faith into every part of our lives. Take elections for example; In America religions views are an important part of a candidate’s campaign, but in Britain the candidates avoid speaking of their faith. What I found most surprising was the statement that most of the English are secular. Sundays are for shopping. The UK even has atheist signs on the sides of buses stating things like “There’s probably no God, now stop worrying about it and live your life”. It is shocking to me that this is the case in a country ruled by the church! This change, which has occurred throughout the 20th century, is the most surprising difference I have observed in Europe.