Totnes Town Council: Church Service

Totnes Town Council have a Church Service. This is our letter to the Press & Council:

Dear Sir/Madam,

As Humanists, we note that the Town Council is continuing the outdated Church Service as part of the Mayor Choosing Ceremony where, apparently, "God's blessing is requested for the new Mayor for the forthcoming year".

While we would not want to prevent anyone from following their faith, we would question whether the Council should use revenues provided by local people to appoint a Chaplain and to organise church services representing one religious tradition amongst many. After all, with regular church attendance well below 10% of the population, is it relevant to continue with such rituals which exclude so many local people of other faiths and none?

Tradition is certainly to be cherished, though not at the expense of retaining practices that discriminate against many local people. We have a proud history in our town of recognising and respecting all beliefs. Indeed, many of us remember the 1991 Humanist funeral held in the Guildhall with the full cooperation of the then council and mayor – the only dissent was from the Mayors chaplain who declined an invitation.

Of course, the Council could recognise that Christianity is not the only faith in Totnes and adopt a policy whereby each year a different religious leader is appointed to lead services! However, where would you stop? The best solution is to allow people to make their own decisions without being expected to act as hypocrites by attending religious services that have no meaning for them. It was for these reasons that local Humanists welcomed the Council's decision to abandon prayers before Council meetings and to substitute a moment of quiet reflection. Let us now follow this sensible precedent and move on.

For a secular future for the Town Council,
Hazel Fuller
Totnes Humanists