The Christianophobia Debate

Amidst the latest findings that four fifths of schools are not staging Nativity plays this year, the now common practice of rebranding Christmas as Winterval / Winter Lights / Celebrity Lights, and perennial reports that another council has ordered the removal of a wooden cross from a crematorium chapel over fears of giving offence, Conservative MP Mark Pritchard has called a Westminster debate tomorrow on Christianophobia, suggesting that attempts to move Christian traditions to the "margins" of British life have "gone far enough" and that the "politically correct brigade" run the risk of Christianity being hijacked by extremist parties.

Some have questioned whether this is a proper use of Parliamentary time, but perhaps the debate should be broadened to consider the extent of the Christianophobic problem in countries of our allies, such as Saudi Arabia (with whom, you'll recall, we supposedly enjoy so many shared values), where the government continues to bar Jews and Christians from bringing items such as Bibles, crucifixes and Stars of David into the country, threatening to confiscate them on sight; or Turkey, whom we are told should be allowed to join the European Union, despite continued attacks against Christians within its borders.