±«Óãtv

Michael Nazir-Ali, who has already announced , later in the year, as the Bishop of Rochester, laments the demise of Christian Britain and the widespread abandonment of Judaeo-Christian social values, in t. Amongst a umber of issues of concern, he raises this:

"A widespread nihilism in culture has led to a lack of consensus about the sacredness of the human person and, in turn, this provides a context for the horrendous and mindless violence inflicted on people, even on young children. We cannot expect respect for the person if we do not give any reasons why persons should be respected. Mutatis mutandis, this is also true of racism. The Judaeo-Christian tradition, based on the Bible, teaches the common origin and equality of all human beings. It may be that Christians have not always upheld such equality in practice but without its basis, as we have seen in doctrines of "scientific racism" and eugenics, the weak will have no defence against oppression and exploitation by the powerful."

Some historians of religion will wonder if this an accurate historical summary of the Judaeo-Christian tradition's role in debates about the equality of all human beings. Was the tradition's attitude to slavery in the past merely an example of not upholding such equality "in practice", or an example of a dehumanising strand within the tradition itself? The tradition is plainly not fixed in stone; it is an organic form which evolves and mutates. And part of that evolution results from the conversation the tradition has with "culture". Perhaps culture sometimes offers a corrective to some abusive strands within the tradition.