A BAPTIST minister recently called for Guernsey schools to hold more explicitly Christian assemblies because most island children come from ‘a Christian background’. That raises the whole issue of what role religion should play in the island’s public and civil life in the 21st century.

Beyond doubt, Guernsey’s cultural heritage has been heavily influenced by Christianity for many centuries. Evangelists from the French mainland brought the Christian message to the islands well before the arrival of St Sampson circa 530. From then on, despite lingering pockets of paganism, this new arrival from the Middle East slowly became the dominant belief.

The Christian impact on local public life has been mixed. Incidents like the burning alive of three local women for heresy in 1554 are hardly testament to the civilising effect of religion. Particularly when one was heavily pregnant and gave birth in the flames and the Catholic Bailiff of the day ordered the baby to be thrown back into the fire.

Perhaps partly in reaction to that atrocity, Guernsey then went into a long period of severe Calvinism. This new religion was determined to spread its tentacles into every aspect of civil society. It influenced both the laws and the government of the day, leading to a very austere way of life for islanders over many years. It may also have been one reason why Guernsey sided against the Crown during the Civil War.

More recently, both Methodism and mainstream Anglicanism had a huge impact on Guernsey life.

Until the post-war reforms, the island’s 10 rectors had an automatic seat in the States. Local laws as diverse as Sunday trading, liquor licensing, homosexual acts, abortion and euthanasia were all rooted in Christian dogma.

Over the last few decades, all of these ‘religious laws’ – except the last – have been slowly unpicked as society has become more secular. Whether that’s a good or bad thing is subjective.

Within States debates, the impact of explicit religious arguments has also been in rapid retreat recently. Of course, many deputies are still Christians and their views are influenced by their beliefs. But it’s rare these days to hear States members arguing for a position on the basis of biblical teaching alone. Yet as recently as the 1970s, there was one deputy whose clinching debating point was always: ‘The Good Book says…’

In the 80s and 90s, religion was still frequently referred to in debates, but rarely in such a blunt way, and by the new millennium nearly all ‘moral’ debates were being thrashed out from first principles. That’s not to say that politicians weren’t influenced by their beliefs, but they tried to make their case on the basis of secular, structured argument.

These days, many deeply Christian deputies go out of their way to stress that their views aren’t the result of their religion. I’m not sure why they feel the need to do that, particularly when it’s clear that it’s only partly true. Every politician carries influences from other areas of life – be it family, school, work or religion.

So, is the Baptist minister right in calling for Guernsey to copy the UK’s more overtly Christian law in relation to worship in schools? Should we even take it further and re-embrace religion in all aspects of island life? Is it even true that most Guernsey residents are Christians these days?

The last question is hard to answer. Only a tiny fraction of us go to church but many more may have a more general Christian belief.

At the same time, it’s foolish to deny that the island’s population is hugely more secular than it used to be. In the UK, everybody has just been asked about their beliefs in the decadal census. But because Guernsey no longer holds censuses, the question of whether we are still a ‘Christian island’ will remain an open one.

One clue to the answer is that there’s no sign the States will ever return to being so overtly influenced by religion. The reason? Simply because it’s no longer electorally popular.

As for schools – of course we shouldn’t adopt the UK law. Instead, the States should scrap the legislation requiring religious assemblies plus teaching.

If we want to crib a neighbour’s legislation, then why not try France? There, the schools are strictly secular by law and yet France remains a far more religious country than England. In 2011, religious indoctrination at school is totally unacceptable, offensive to some and increasingly ineffectual in our multi-media world.