I'd also like to mention - after reading the comments - that both believers and atheists should stop and think for a mo'. Religious folk: evolution happens & abortion is OK. Get over it. Atheistic 'intelligentsia': I counter the bus advertisement by saying "Someone had to push the first domino."

Chris J, Atlanta, United States

Weird that the very Christian principles that this country was founded on, gave a 1000 years of stability, the core values of the average british person, have been systematically undermined by the very people now strugling to come up with any real direction. It truely is the blind leading the blind.

Paul , Cowes, IOW, UK

A hundred tribes...and a hundred gods! Only respect for facts and reason can unite us.

Jeff, London,

"Why do so many feel that they have to give their own power away to Patriarchal organisations,so others can make decisions for them?" Catherine Mills London

Patriarch(al) means chief-father what do you have against grand fathers? Wisdom somes with age and families have Grandpas to guide?

Paul J, Cowes, IOW, UK

Ms. Sylvester- In the U.K. you have an officially established state Church of England and you also have a number of seats in the House of Lords reserved specifically for clergy- Should any of what you state in your article here be a surprise?

Scott Benowitz, Rye, New York, U.S.A.

Would Gordon do it? ... are we talking about the same Gordon Brown who used to spend his summers on the East Coast of the U.S with bankers?

Frank Arbuthnott, West Kettering, United Kingdom

We need principled politicians, who will stand consistently for their point of view. It will be an enormous advantage, if they would also defend the citizen from the overbearing State. Religion has no place in politics.

Terry of Denver, Denver, USA

Don't you think that the people of this country, have enough to worry about, without those responsible for getting the economy back on track mess about scoring points of each other. They should put personal vendettas behinde them, at least for the present.

J Smith, Burton-on-Trent,

I'm not a tory, but all this smacks of manipulation and a case of 'pot calling the kettle black...'
Again Peter Mandelson is some where in the midst. CAN ALL THE PARTIES STOP WHINGING AND GET ON WITH SORTING OUT THE MESS WE'RE IN

S. PETERS, brighton, sussex

Would Gordon do it? No. He's far more likely to get someone else to do it for him and let them take the blame.

Chris R, Cleethorpes,

And there's a "Freedom of Religion" shaped hole in your reasoning. If British institutions are traditionally "tied" to the Church of England, then maybe THAT is the problem. At the end of the day, what is more important: tradition or civil liberties?

Peter, London,

I can't wait for the roll-out of London buses emblazoned with advertisements (bankrolled by Richard Dawkins) declaring "There's probably no God .... Now stop worrying and enjoy your life" It says it all really.

Michael Costello, Sydney, AUSTRALIA

Europe; politically, culturally, and spriritually; was built by by people of deep religious conviction-firmly rooted in the Bible. They were not ashamed of Christ or the Church, it always gave them hope in turbulent times. The cynicism and hatred that dominates Europe nowadays is suffocating!

Tim, Angers, France

One does not need to subscribe to or be controlled by religion to have compassion, moral & ethics - Its free and unconditional. Religious beliefs are idealogies headed by make believe supreme beings that religious leaders manipulate to hold on to power and control the masses.

SAS, Sutton, Surrey

"Religion for the common person is true, for the wise, false; and for the rulers, useful" (Seneca). Just maybe, the human species is getting wiser: we are learning to rid ourselves of supertitious beliefs in the 'supernatural' and of the need for religious 'comfort blankets' . We can be moral too!

Serge, Deal, UK

Whatever the benefits of religion, either there's a God or there isn't and either we think there is one or we don't. Believers are suspected of being irrational, non-believers of being immoral. Politicians are well-advised to be coy about their beliefs or non-beliefs.

John, London, UK

I can't believe that we are still talking about this

Patrick donlan , Hong kong , Hong Kong

I have never understood why the atheist left so despise christianity, yet fawn over other " world" religions. I imagine it is just the old fashioned loathing the left have for Britain.This is our government.....

Andrew, canterbury,

Why do people who have no belief always try to ridicule the believer. It gets tiresome listening to them.

john S, Liverpool, UK

There is no God the wicked saith
And truly its a blessingfor what he might have done with us
Its better only guessing

But almost everyone when age disease or sorrow strikes him
Inclines to think there is a God,or something very like Him

Arthur Hugh Clough

GMG, Rugby, England

The last thing we need is politicians making decisions based on bronze age myths and their relationship with a made up friend...

Justin Roberts, Jerez de la Frontera, Spain

I can't help but think Gayle Williams would have preferred a few less 'God-shaped holes'.

Jeffy, Brooklyn, United States

Have you talked to Christians about their faith? Do they not present reasons for their faith? You may not fully understand their reasoning, and some of their evidence may be subjective but that doesn't make it not valuable. Our court trials are mostly based on subjective evidence.

Gareth, Bridgwater, UK

Kevin, they were not killing people in the name of Atheism, so that point is irrelevent

Chris, Brighton,

Lee, Wednesbury - atheism denies meaning and even denies free-will. Man is reduced to ' a bag of chemicals running around', to quote one famous humanist neuroscientist - his world thrust into Sartre's absurdity - Where precisely are you getting your hope from?

Simon, Birmingham, Britain

There's probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life.

Peter, Newbury, UK

Which religion exactly? C of E is the obvious one, but is one set of fairytales really so different to another? Why not Norse paganism, or Sikhism? Also, simply believing something does not make it so.

Ben, Atheist,

I think the time is now here where Christians who believe in the active participation of God in guiding their thoughts and decisions will be allowed to effectively contribute to British politics only either as independent MPs or within an openly Christian political party that accepts God does guide.

Andrew Davies, Cardiff, Wales

"Morality without God is what you make it. Hideous."
Andrew Brown.

Try telling that to the poor student who just recieved 20 years in prison (and almost the death penalty) for speaking out against Islam in Afghanistan.

Allen Potter, Leeds, United Kingdom

I should like to believe and go to heaven, but can someone with.. Faith....explain exactly where it is located

Paul , northwich,

"There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death" (Prov 14:12). We are experiencing ongoing "death" in our society as a direct result of mans arrogant denial of the need of God and rejection of His ways. What is wrong with love, truth, justice, righteousness and peace?

Clive , Lancaster, England

Funny how the all the worst bits of modern Britain seemed to appear just as religion was being shown the back door.

A.Newman, Greenwich, UK

Phil Canale,you crucially miss the point.True noone is forced to believe in god (as long as they escape the indoctrination their childhood may unfortunately visit upon them),but people ARE forced to abide by laws restrained by religious doctrine.What about Paraplegics waiting for stem cell research

James Fletcher, London,

Re: the last sentence -there is a world of difference between belief and religion. People with belief are people who have a guiding vision, a goal, an objective to their actions and a code by which they live. How they arrive at this belief is the issue - is it by blind faith (religion) or by reason?

T Coates, Windermere, Cumbria

Mark, Chester
tradition is a nice short-cut to a cohesive society

erm you do realise that british tradition of freedom has taken like 1000 years to develop. sounds like the shortcut of going to india via columbus sailing west

will, grimsby, uk

these things are religious questions. assisted suicide should be a crime, it will if allowed lead to depressed and vulnerable people being killed.
human animal hybrids are a question of science, why is it wrong to experiment on something of only a few cells, its like experimenting on a bacterium.

will, grimsby, uk

We may have thrown the baby out with the bathwater when it comes to religion. There are many positives - morality, ethics, values as character development frameworks. The main problem has been the dogmatic and sometimes coercive and narrow minded approach to teaching it which results in intolerance.

justin, london,

The history of competing religions continues to be an unhappy one. Therefore it is not surprising that those seeking to govern countries find ways to do it without encompassing one faith or another. It is better to be aware of how much strife they cause and avoid them altogether.

joe harker, London, UK

In reply to Sam B of Bristol, not everyone in Opus Dei wears felices. I would suggest that instead of readers quoting the tired and indubitably wrong "religion is the opium of the masses" they should realise that "Ignorance is the opium of the dumb".

Roger, Cardiff, United Kingdom

Simply displays the typical arrogance of the religious who think that it is only religion that offers hope, such arrogance

Lee, Wednesbury, United Kingdom

The Christian Church has been under constant attact since its conception 2000 years ago. The secularist lobby in this country is driven by individuals who have failed to understand the concept of faith. No one is forced to believe in their God those who do should not feel threatened or ashamed.

Phil Canale, Milton Keynes, England

I do not wish to see British Legisalature based on the ridiculous lies of religion.

Tim, Bristol,

"For once, he has never been more right". Trying to get my head around the multiple negatives and over the tautology. I think you mean simply either "For once he is right" or "He has never been more right". Unfortunately, combining the two only serves to confuse, not emphasise.

John Biddle, Brisbane, Australia

Giving up the power to appoint bishops strengthens the link between church and state, as the church makes political appointments with no democratic check.
Over here it is worse, as the church now makes a political appointment to another country's government with absolutely no mandate from locals.

Stuart Hartill, Ramsey, Isle of Man,

Organised religion doesn't have a monopoly on love and hope. We need dynamic and progressive philosophers as rulers, not the dogma of hierarchy and control of the past. Having said that, tradition is a nice short-cut to a cohesive society.

Mark I, Chester, UK

"There is a yearning for answers that go beyond interest rates, targets and the public sector borrowing requirement."

Now we know what Rachel Sylvester whistling in the dark sounds like.

IanH, Glasgow, UK

Good, that means logic & reason still exists & hypocrisy is dying.

V, london, uk

Not all Christians attend the CofE. The new churches and black majority churches are bucking the trend and are growing. When you add in all those who claim christian values then you will see that Britain may still be a "Christian" country. We are very tolerant- but we don't tolerate intolerance

Dave Clemo, Kettering, UK

Fear was something I grew up with as a catholic child/teenager, as an atheist parent I am enjoying watching my children flourish in a environment where they are free to question all religions. They can choose for themselves...

helen, esher, uk

for goodness sake stay away from anything controversial,use commonsense and stay away from anything that might lead to a headline.Stay away from fires or you will get burnt.Understand?

j burnett, Falkirk, Scotland

Debbie is almost right, I want a politician to listern to the people they represent and then vote accordingly, I dont care what they believe it should make no difference.

Problem is they all think they know better and that we are all incapable. Religion has no place in politics.

Russ, Glasgow,

I think it is such a shame that MPs are so cynical, there's nothing wrong with the Christian credo of loving your neighbour as yourself. Most people in this country abide by that and most call themselves Christians. These MPs have taken us to war to demand that we kill people. I don't respect them

Alba, Southampton,

we may not have been "founded" as a secular state as America was, but sticking doggedly to our past even when its wrong is not helpful to modern day life. If America shows us anything its that we should work as hard as possible to keep personal religion from politics.

gemma, warwick,

It is bad to believe. Legislation for how society lives should be founded on reason, not superstition.

Liam, Stoke, UK

Why would an atheist go looking for morals at all?

Simon, Dorking,

Both Atheism and Theism are matters of faith. It is impossible to "prove" either position.

As Martin Rees and others have pointed out: "The pre-eminent mystery is why anything exists at all."

Atheists may find any kind of religion absurd. Equally, others (like me) find atheism absurd.

bob wilkinson, milnthorpe, uK

"It's only when mankind has all shrugged off the shackles of organised religions that it can really be free."

Ah. Yes. As so beautifully demonstrated in the history of the 20th century, particularly the bits involving Russia, China, etc...

Bruce, Austin,

General William Booth's work "In Darkest England and the Way Out" written in in 1890 and his solution, a spiritual revolution, still holds good today.

Paul Gutteridge, Valencia, Spain

Why do so many feel that they have to give their own power away to Patriarchal organisations,so others can make decisions for them?

Are they too lazy to think for themselves and keep it private.?

Catherine Mills, London, UK

I'll take an athiest over christian in word but not deed types like brown and blair any day thank you very much.

Having said that I believe strongly that in character and culture this remains a christian country, it is the home of vibrant and decent faiths and christiano-athiest tradition.

edward green, Upminster,

What an excellent reason for faith! If politicians dont believe in God,it must be true!

edwina, Harrogate,

The fact that there has been a believer in No 10 for the last 11 years is all you need to know to understand why more and more of us are convinced that god botherers are indeed deluded.

John Carr, Limoges, France

Religion is creating problems all over the world yet It is still being encouraged in our schools. It is at best a theory which was largely built on primitive belief and which has developed into a business.It is encouraging that some UK politicians now feel able to reject it.

M Wilkinson, London, UK

Religion has been the backbone and character of most civilised societies in the world, and with Britain benefiting from Christianity it's ironic that arrogant aethists such as Dawkins and the media village want to replace a religion promoting love & humility, with evermore empty and vane politicians

A,Gray, Orpington, UK

You quote "only 7 per cent of people regularly attend an Anglican church". How many I wounder go to a Baptist church, or even a Free church like New Frontiers family of churches? People often say the church is dieing and to an extent I would agree, but christianity isn't dieing, it is growing.

James Bernard, London, UK

That hole in Westminster politics is a sign of hope for the future. It's only when mankind has all shrugged off the shackles of organised religions that it can really be free. I want my leaders to be practical intelligent people free from religion and the hatred and narrowmindedness that go with it.

Jacques, Westcott, UK

The Church of Wales has had disestablishment since 1920. Get with the times...

Andrew Lewis, Aberystwyth, Wales

Ethics, morality and true Christianty go together because it believes in a God who is moral and ethical. Athiests may claim to be moral but whose morality are they following and when will the standard change? Whereas for the Christian, a lie will always be a lie regardles of the situation.

James, Coventry, UK

I am sorry for the way things have moved! It is the Bible that says "Righteousness exalts a nation" With the move away for a belief in God it will lead to a society that lacks values and will allow anything. To mess with nature is really to play with God

Paul Wilkes, BARRIE, CANADA

Ruth Kelly's preference for people who "believe in things" to go into politics is laudable but what things? Perhaps unicorns, UFO's, elves or Omnipotent beings residing in the sky with beards who listen to our prayers. Would we welcome a worshiper of Woden or Zeus?

Ryan David, Cardiff, UK

To rubik, london, uk

My God is the God of love and compassion not of spite. People may misinterpret and have their own agenda, but God is not spiteful - hopefully you will come to realise that ...

William Lack, London,

Humanity's worst wars and atrocities were NOT caused by religion. It played no part in the world wars, the holocaust, the stalinist and maoist massacres or the killing fields. Hitler, Stalin, Mussolini, Mao, Pol Pot, Sadam and Milosevic were all atheists

Kevin Beach, Crawley, England

For most, religion is simply a framework for morals - something that is quite obviously lacking. Whatever the faith, I would argue religion is good for the upbringing of children if nothing else. If you don't like it, just ignore it.

Simon, York, England

The "Magic FM" quip was one of Boris', I'm sure of it.

Philip Walker, York, United Kingdom

Having faith or religion does not necessarilly mean you will have either ethics or morals as an individual and I speak from personal experience that the inverse actually tends to be true.
I'd much rather have a moral atheist than an blind faith believer as PM.

chis, London, UK

As a physician, and dare I say it, an Atheist, I would like to remind Rachel Sylvester that false hope, which is all that religion can give, is much worse than real hope.

And does she expect god/s to help out with the credit crunch? Too laughable for words!

Dr M. Horton, Norwich, Norfolk

'Secularism is the only viable, pragmatic and fair way to govern any society.'

Really?! I am intrigued by the blind faith so many readers place in secularism.

Bridget, London, UK

"her membership of Opus Dei was seen as something weird and even rather dangerous"

Opus Deiites wear spiked garters so they can spend every waking moment in pain, and they consider this behaviour to be holy. Nothing weird or dangerous about people who worship pain, nothing at all.

Sam B, Bristol,

The UK government's problem is not that it has given up faith (if only it had!), but that it now gives equal credance to any crackpot set of fantasies, and does its best to get us all to live by all of them, lest we offend anyone.
All religions should have the same status in law - none whatsoever.

Camilla, Burnley,

80 years ago Ataturk gave Turkey a secular democracy. This is supported by the West, which now frets over the risk of religion regaining a position in Turkish government. Yet in the UK church and state are still entwined. Of course, the dominant religion in Turkey is Islam, not Christianity.

Mark Jones, Reading, UK

Faith and religion have dammed us all to wars, persecution, slaughter, genocide, murder for thousands of years. When will 'man' wake up and realise that the world will be a far better place without these vengeful, spiteful 'gods' that the ignorant masses have been brain-washed into worshipping?

rubik, london, uk

1) There are millions of people in the UK for whom religious faith is very much a priority. Should not politics reflect that in a DEMOCRATIC society? 2) Secularism and atheism are no panacea. Just ask the 100 million vitims of Mao and Stalin. Morality without God is what you make it. Hideous.

Andrew Brown, derby, UK

"...you want people who believe in things to go into politics." Ruth Kelly

This taxpayer doesn’t. I want the people on top to have at least a tenuous grasp on reality.

Tikhon Savrasov, London,

"It is ironic that politicians in this country have abandoned belief - at the very moment that the people need hope."

It seems that this article confuses a lack of belief in the Anglican church with a lack of belief all together, common sense indicates you can have the latter without the former.

jim, London,

"There is a yearning for answers that go beyond interest rates." - so the only answers to cosmic questions lie in reading glorified fairytales and listening to self-important old men? Can we not look to philosophy? Religious leadership failed in Ireland and it's ruining the Middle East.

Eamonn Keane, Dublin,

In Blair and Bush we had two leader of great Faith. Two American elections were dominated by the Faith votes. The result we are engaged in two bloody wars that have lasted longer than the great world wars. At home we are terrorised in the name of Faith. We need Faith like a hole in the head.

raj, harrow, uk

I am incredibly proud of our political system in regards to The God Issue. Unlike in the US, we do not have hysterical religious fanatics making laws based on pseudo-science or encouraging millions to embrace blind ignorance. Our system is flawed, but this is one part we've managed to get right.

Matthew Brown, Glasgow,

Ruth Kelly says "you want people who believe in things to go into politics". Yes - people who believe in progress, justice and improving their constituents' lives. Not people who believe in unsubstantiated ancient texts and consequently vote against scientific advances that could alleviate suffering

Debbie, London, UK

Well I say its impossible to completely seperate religion from the State, despite the steep decline in morals, the majority of our laws (at least the major ones) have all been derived from religion (christianity).

tom, london,

We can do ethics, and by extension politics, very well without religion. We just need to move away from a rules-based approach, which only works if you believe in a rule-giver, to a virtues-based approach. Elizabeth Anscombe explained this 50 years ago.

Richard Baron, London,

Errrrr Britain is a Christian country as the majority of the population describe themselves as such (70%+). Regularly attending church is not a prerequiste to being a Christian. I don't but I am very much a Christian.
Besides of course politicians don't believe in God, they would be the last to.

Big Rob, London,

Rachel obviously has not read The God Delusion. She will then find that morality and hope are evolved human values, not religious ones. May we all be spared by the type of morality when religion and politics mix - Taliban, Iran, inquisitions? Thank God for our atheist politicians!

js, london,

people need to believe not in a supreme being but a supreme way of being. Bring out the best in others and you bring out the best in yourself.

Bruce L. Northwood, Washington, D.C., USA

James Fletcher has it spot on. Why go looking for our morals in superstition? Why not have a bit of faith in ourselves?

Barry, London,

Yes, but a man who disbelieves in theism also hopes. Religion isn't a pre-requisite to human emotion and moral framework, regardless of who "calls for" it. Secularism is the only viable, pragmatic and fair way to govern any society. Religion belongs in a church, a mosque, a temple... Nowhere else.

James Fletcher, London, UK

Given how "faith" has distorted the US election process so much that "the economy" and "the war" barely get a look in, do you really have to wonder why people are "fearful of faith" ?

alan, edinburgh, uk