In the recent years, the UK has witnessed a surge in atheist parents questioning traditional religious practices in schools and dragging them into courts to file suit against the mandatory praying policies and the biblical recreations.
According to a popular belief, atheism has become a new religion. With expanding secularism, atheists are growing more conscious of their basic rights.
The case against God
In one-of-its-kind case, the atheist parents of a child admitted to Burford Primary School have decided to go against the grain and demand a judicial review against the Oxford Diocesan Schools Trust (ODST) for conducting actionable religious practices in school.
By allegedly accusing the school of promoting Christian gospel through enactments of biblical stories and emphasizing on Christian prayers, the parents, Lee and Lizanne Harris, have dragged the trust officials to court over unwarrantedly imposing Christian values in students.
Humanists UK has come forward to aid the battle against those schools who promote religious practices, such as the daily act of reverence for God, without establishing an appropriate alternative for non-religious students.
The chief executive of Humanists UK, Andrew Copson, points out the irony. He says that the state boasts of over eighty percent (80%) of non-Christian young population, yet the schools deem appropriate to hold daily Christian worship prayers.
ODST officials retaliate
The ODST officials, on the contrary, confirm that although the school acts as a constituent of the Diocese of Oxford family, it does not foist religious sentiments. According to the authorities, the religious performances are a part of the law and the schools are not acting against law by featuring Christian prayers.
The parents, meanwhile, point out another such debatable act of the school authorities of letting their children play with an iPad during the school assembly. This not only signifies a complete disregard towards their religious standpoint but also deprives them of the fundamental right to equal education.
When an atheist parent chooses to opt-out of the conventional Church functions held by the school, their children are divested of other community and social matters important to their upbringing. These practices, according to Harris’, are opposable and discriminatory.
Chief executive at the ODST, Anne Davey, refused to release an official statement regarding the matter. However, she did state with confidence that the Burford Primary School has not indulged in any unlawful act. If anything, the school has acted within its rights to incorporate and nurture the growth of different religions and cultures into the system.
