Disbelief at BBC proposal for religious output increase

December 20, 2017

Reacting to the BBC’s review of Religion and Ethics Gordon MacRae, Chief Executive of Humanist Society Scotland, expressed concern, saying,

“It is extremely disappointing that the authors of their BBC’s review of its Religious and Ethics have chosen to wilfully ignore the beliefs and values of the growing majority of people who identify with no religion. This wilful ignorance is compounded by the causal bigotry demonstrated by the exclusion of Humanists and Humanism from their plans.

“Scotland is now a nation where more people chose to have a Humanist wedding than of any of the faith bodies in Scotland. It is a Scotland where non-religious people are making great contributions to the moral debates on same sex relationships, international relations, freedom of thought, medical ethics and many more.

“But instead of grasping the thistle and taking the lead to explore these exciting shifts in who we are and what we believe, the BBC appear to have concluded that they need more faith leaders, from more faiths speaking to less and less people. It is especially disappointing that the qualitative research used in this review was limited to England and Wales and as such has completely failed to appreciate or explore the unique role that Humanism plays in Scotland.

“Today’s review appears to be a knee jerk reaction to the loud voices in the religious lobby stuck in the past rather than a serious attempt to engage in the shifting landscape of values and ethics for the coming decades.”