Community Cohesion
Christianity and Islam
Key Words
Community
A common vision and shared sense of belonging for all groups in
Cohesion
society
Discrimination Treating people less favourably because of their
ethnicity/gender/colour/sexuality/age/class
Ethnic
A member of an ethnic group (race) which is smaller than the
Minority
majority group
Interfaith
Marriage where the husband and wife are from different
Marriages
religions
Multi ethic
Many different races and cultures living together in one society
society
Multi faith
Many different religions living together in one society
society
Prejudice
Believing that some people are inferior or superior without even
knowing them
Racial
Different races/colours living together happily
harmony
Racism
The belief that some races are superior to others
Religious
The right to practice your religion and change your religion
freedom
Religious
Accepting all religions as having an equal right to co exist
pluralism
Sexism
Discriminating against people because of their gender (being
male or female)
Changing attitudes to the roles of men and women in the
UK
How the attitudes have changed



Why the attitudes have changed
During the second half of the 19th century it became
the accepted view that married women should stay at
home and look after the children. However between
1882 and 1975 women have had the right to:
-
Keep their property separate from their husbands
-
Vote in elections, become MP’s and Counsellors
-
Receive the same pay as men for the same work
In 1975, the sex discrimination act aimed to reduce
sexism in society by making it illegal to discriminate in
employment on the grounds of gender or whether
someone is married
Attitudes to the roles of men and women have been
slower to change and women are still more likely to
do the housework, have fewer promotion prospects
and lower salaries than men

The work of the suffragette movements showed
that women were no longer prepared t be
treated as second class citizens

During the first and second world wars women
had t take on the jobs that had been previously
done by men and they did them well

The development of equal rights in other
countries made it difficult to claim they were not
needed in the UK

Social and industrial developments in the 1950’s
and 1960’s led to the need for more women
workers

The United Nations declaration of human tights
and the development of the feminist movement
meant equal rights had to be accepted

Governments are dedicated to equal rights for
women
Christian Attitudes to equal rights for women in religion
The Traditional Attitude
Traditional Christians teach that
men and women have separate
and different roles and so cannot
have equal rights in religion.
They believe that women should
not speak in Church and only
men can be Church leaders and
teachers

In the Bible St Paul aid that women should remain silent in
Church

St Paul said ‘wives submit to your husband’s as he is head of
the wife as Christ is head of the Church’

St Paul used the story of Adam and Eve to show that Adam had
more rights as he was created first

Jesus only chose men as his disciples

Traditionally its men that have been leaders in Church
The Modern Christian
Attitude

The creation story in Genesis says that God created men and women at
the same time in his own image and this makes them equal
Men and women have
equal rights and they
allow women to be
vicars and ministers

St Paul said ‘there is neither man nor woman as you are all one in Christ
Jesus’

Jesus treated women as equals and he first showed himself to a woman
when he was resurrected

There is some early evidence to suggest women were priests in the early
Church
Catholic Christian
Attitude

The creation story in Genesis says that God created men and women at the same
time in his own image and this makes them equal
All men and women
have equal rights in
society and religion
but women CANNOT
be priests

St Paul said ‘there is neither man nor woman as you are all one in Christ Jesus’

The Catholic Church says that men and women are equal

Only men were Jesus’ disciples

Only men can be priests because Jesus was a man and the priests represents
Jesus in the Mass

Islam and equal rights for women in religion
The Traditional Attitude
Some Muslims believe that men and women have different
roles in life and religion and therefore should have different
rights. They believe that women should perform their
religious duties in the home and men should worship God at
the Mosque with their sons and lead the family in religion as:
The Qur’an teaches that men should support women as they
have been given the physique to do so and the Qur’an is the
word of God
The Qur’an teaches that women were created to bare
children
The Qur’an teaches that men need more money than
women to be the providers
It is traditional for the men to only attend the mosque
The Modern Attitude
Some Muslims believe that men and women should
have completely equal rights in religion and education
and a few would accept women as religious leaders as:
The Qur’an teaches that men and women are equal in
religion and education
There is evidence that Muhammad encouraged both
men and women to worship in the Mosque
Muhammad’s wife was a successful business women
Women were religious leaders during early Islam
The UK as a multi ethnic society
Main Points
The UK has always been a multi ethnic society: Celts, Romans, Angles, Saxons, Danes, Vikings and Normans
are all ancestors of the British
The UK has always believed in human freedom and offered asylum to those suffering persecution. In the
2001 Census, only 7.9 percent of the UK’s population came from Ethnic Minorities, and over half of these
were born and educated in the UK.
The benefits of living in a multi ethnic society

People of different ethnic groups and nationalities will get to know each other and many may
intermarry

More progress will be made in a multi ethnic society because new people will bring in new ideas
and new ways of doing things

Life is more interesting with a much greater variety and new ways of doing things such as music,
fashion and food

A multi ethnic society helps people to live and work in a world of a multinational companies and
economic interdependence between all nations

It makes people more tolerant because people have a greater understanding
The problems of discrimination and racism
As well as there being many positives to a multi ethnic society there are also problems that can
occur:

Racially prejudiced employers will not give jobs to certain ethnic groups, religiously prejudiced
employers will not give jobs to certain religions

If teachers are prejudiced against ethnic minorities then they are likely to discriminate against
them in the classroom so the student might not achieve the result that they should

Landlords of pubs that are prejudiced may refuse to serve people

Hotel owners that are prejudiced may refuse to give a member of an ethnic minority
accommodation

Prejudiced police officers will discriminate against certain ethnic or religious groups, for example by
stopping and searching them when they have no reason for doing so
The effects of these problems

If certain groups feel like they are being treated unfairly by society then they will work against that
society

Some politicians believe that young black people often turn to crime because they feel that they
will not get good well paid jobs because of peoples prejudices

Some people believe that some young Muslims have turned to extremist Islamic groups because
they feel as though they have no chance of success in a prejudiced society

Racism and discrimination can lead to groups like the BNP stirring up hatred and violence
A multi ethnic society needs to function well and must treat its members fairly and give equal
opportunities to all its members
Government action to promote community cohesion
in the UK
Main Points
A multi ethnic society needs to promote community cohesion in order to remove the problems of
prejudice, discrimination and racism. The British government promotes community cohesion by:

Making community cohesion part of the national curriculum – You will learn about diversity in Life
and Society and RE lessons

Appointing cabinet ministers from members of ethnic minorities

Passing the Race Relations Act which makes it unlawful to discriminate against anyone because of
race, colour, nationality, ethnic or national origins; or stir up racial hatred

Passing the Racial and Religious Hatred Act which makes it an offense to use threatening words or
behaviour about religious beliefs or lack of beliefs

Establishing the Equality and Human Rights Commission which works to get rid of discrimination
and to build good relations
Why Community Cohesion is important for multi ethnic
and multi faith societies

Without community cohesion different groups have different ideas about what society is and what
it should be like and this can lead to violence. For example there were riots in Oldham, Burnley and
Bradford

The July 2007 London bombers were British Citizens who had lost their sense of allegiance to
Britain

In countries without community cohesion violence becomes a way of life

Lack of community cohesion makes it impossible for people to cohesion makes it impossible for
people to co – operate in the modern civilised living needs
Community Cohesion is therefore about:

How to avoid the bad effects of prejudice and discrimination

How to encourage different groups to work together

How to ensue respect for others while building up loyal citizens in the same society
Why Christians should help to promote racial harmony

In the parable of the Good Samaritan, Jesus showed that races who hated each other (like Jews
and Samaritans) should love each other as neighbours – Remember the Parable of the Good
Samaritan for your exam

Jesus treated people of different races equally, he healed a Roman, healed a Samaritan woman and
had a Black African man carry his cross

St Paul said ‘there is neither Jew nor Greek, man nor woman, slave nor free for you are all one in
Christ Jesus’

St Peter had a vision from God, telling him not to discriminate because God has no favourites

God created all people so they are all equal

The Christian Church has members form all races

The Christian Church has made statements about how wrong racism is
Evaluation Question:
You are likely to be asked to argue for and against religion/Christianity being the best way to bring about racial
harmony.
To argue for: Use the main points from the topic on the previous page
To argue against: Some Christian groups work against racial harmony, for example the Ku Klux Klan, politics is a
better way of bringing about racial harmony, for example the USA now has a black president, not everyone is
religious and so things like laws which give everyone equal rights are more likely to bring about racial harmony
than religion
Islam and racial harmony
There are many reasons why Muslims should try and promote racial harmony

The Qur’an teaches that God created the whole of humanity from one pair of humans , therefore
all races are related and none can be regarded as superior

In his final sermon, Muhammad said that every Muslim is a brother to every other Muslim and so
there should be no racism amongst Muslims (Ummah)

Islam teaches that all Muslims form one brotherhood, the Ummah. This means that all Muslims
whatever their race, should regard each other as brothers and sisters

Islam is against any form of racism and Muslim leaders and local mosques work with various groups
to promote racial harmony in the UK
The UK as a multi faith society
Many societies were mono faith (having only one religion) until the 20th Century, but Britain has
had believers in different faiths for many years and by the end of the 10th Century Muslims, Jews,
Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists and other religions were settled in the UK, so that it is a truly multi faith
society.
The benefits of living in a multi faith society

People can learn about other religions and this can help them to see what religions have in
common

People from different religions may practise their religion more seriously and this may make
people think about how they practice their own religion

People may come to understand why different religions believe what they do and this may make
people think more seriously about their own beliefs

People are likely to become a lot more understanding about respectful of each other’s religions

Religious freedom and understanding will exist in a multi faith society and this will help to stop
religious conflict

A multi faith society may even make some people think more about religion as they come across
religious ideas they have never thought about before
Evaluation Question
You are likely to be asked to argue for and against living in a multi faith society
To argue for: use the reasons listed above
To argue against: You can say that people who are firm believers of one religion might be against a multi faith
society because they encourage children to look at other religions which may lead to them deserting their
religion, children from different religions may want to marry each other and interfaith marriages can cause
problems for families, They can make it difficult to follow your religion because society cannot be organised for
every religion’s different rules, they can make it difficult for you to spread your faith because people might
object to you saying that your religion is the best one
Issues raised for religion by a multi faith society
For a multi faith society to work, people need to have the same rights regardless of the religion
they do or do not belong to (pluralism). A multi faith society cannot accept any one religion and
being the true one, and the people living in the society must be free to choose or reject any or all
of the religions practiced in the society. This can raise a number of issues for religion:
Issue one: Conversion
WHY?

Conversion
Many religions
see it as their
duty to convert
everyone

They believe that their
religion is the only true
religion
They believe that the only
way for people to go to
heaven is to follow their
religion

Jesus said ‘nobody comes
to the father accept
through me’

Their holy books teach
that they should try to
convert others
But trying to convert others can lead to
major problems because:

Treating people differently because
of their religion and trying to
convert them is actually
discriminating against people who
do not have the same faith

It is impossible to say all other
religions are wrong unless you have
studied all of them and no one who
is trying to convert others has done
this

Trying to convert others can lead to
arguments and even violence when
people are told their religion is
wrong
Issue Two: Bringing up Children
Bringing up children
A multi faith society requires
everyone including children to
have religious freedom and be
able to choose which religion
to follow, or to reject religion.
It also requires that children
should learn about the
different religions in society
Interfaith Marriages
In a multi faith society,
young people of
different faiths are
going to meet, fall in
love and want to marry.
This causes problems for many religion believers because:

Most religions encourage parents to ensure that their children
are brought up in their religion and become members of it

Most religions teach that only those who follow their religion
will have life after death and parents worry what will happen
to their children after death

Social and peer pressure compel parents to exert pressure on
their children to remain in their faith

Children educated in state schools are tempted away from
religious life styles of other non religious teenagers
This can raise problems because:

Often both couples must be members of the same religion
to have a religious wedding ceremony

There is a question of which religion the children of the
marriage will be brought up in

There is also the problem of what will happen to the couple
after death

The parents and relatives of the couple often feel like they
have been betrayed
Unless these issues are dealt with then religion itself will be working against community cohesion and
promoting conflict and hatred
Ways in which religions work together to promote
community cohesion in the UK
The different religions in the UK are beginning to work to promote community cohesion in the following
ways:
1. Different religions are beginning to work with other religions to try and discover what the same
in their religion is, this means instead of trying to convert people to your religion, you find
common things and work with each other to promote peace.
2. Some religious groups are developing ways of helping interfaith marriages

Many protestant churches and liberal or reform Jewish synagogues have special wedding services
for mixed faith couples

The Church of England now has ‘Guidelines for the celebration of interfaith marriages in Church’

The website www.interfaithmarriage.co.uk offers help and advice to couples from different
religions
3. The problem of bringing up children is being dealt with in different ways:

Some protestant Christian Churches and Liberal Reform Jewish Synagogues encourage mixed faith
parents to bring up their children in both faiths

Leaders from the Church of England, Hindu, Sikh, Catholic, Muslim, Jewish and Buddhist faiths have
agreed to follow the National Framework on Religious Education s that children in faith schools will
now be taught the main religions practised in the UK
4. The main way in which religions are trying to promote community cohesion is through working
together in special groups

National groups, such as the inter faith network for the UK which was founded in 1987 promote
good relations between people of different faiths of this country

Most towns and cities have large groups that bring together different faiths in an area, for example
the Glasgow Forum of Faiths

There are individual places of worship which work together
How an issue from religion and community cohesion has
been dealt with in media
You have to study how one issue from religion and community cohesion has been presented in one form of
the media
Programme 1: Bend it Like Beckham. The Issue: Cultural Differences
How was the issue presented
The issue was all about a Sikh girl called Jesminda and her love for football. The story showed how members of her family
reacted to her playing on a football team as it clashed with her families cultural ideas. Her parents thought that she should
be working hard at school and become a top class solicitor and not play football. The father was more supportive than her
mother as he had loved cricket when he was younger but did not play anymore because of peoples prejudices towards him.
Jesminda was very different from her sister who wanted the traditional Sikh lifestyle and be married with children. Jesminda
just wanted to play football.
Why was the issue important
The issue raised the viewers awareness to a difference in culture between the families of Jesminda and the family of Jules. It
showed how people can be prejudiced and racist towards ethnic minorities and showed the difficulty that Jessmina had
being brought up in a westernised society whilst living with her traditional Sikh family. It showed that she was caught
between two cultures. It also showed how people from different religions can fall in love as Jesminda fell in love with her
coach. This is important as it showed the struggle that they had.
How were religious beliefs treated in the presentation of this issue
The Sikh family were seen as very traditional and followed their religious duties seriously. Even Jesminda who was originally
lying to her family about football felt guilty. Jesminda prayed to Guru Nanak’s image on the wall and spoke about how her
religion was important. She covered her legs in front of men. Religious beliefs were not made fun of at all in this film.
4 pieces of evidence on whether the presentation fair to religious beliefs
Yes it was!

The presentation showed the difference in culture to religious beliefs of Sikh’s it showed true representations of
Sikh ways of life

It showed that just because you have a particular religious belief doesn’t mean that you can do something

It showed that by praying to Guru Nanak they had support from their beliefs

It showed that you can have religious belief as a way of life and still do other things
4 pieces of evidence on whether the presentation fair to religious people
Yes it was!

It showed a Sikh way of life and that you can have lots of support from the Sikh community

It showed a traditional Sikh wedding

It showed how religious people can often have conflicts of interest and have to work through things when their
beliefs clash

It showed the struggle that religious people can have to juggle their lives and their beliefs
Programme 2: The Simpsons. My Pods and Broomsticks
How was the issue presented
Muslims in America wanted the makers of The Simpsons to show Islamaphobia and so they presented the issue well
with Homer being like the people who are Islama phobic because of their lack of tolerance. Homer really liked Bart’s
Muslim friend Bashir until he found out he was Muslim and was convinced by his friends that ‘Muslims are all up to
something’. Homer was very rude to Bashir’s family and convinced they were terrorists. He invited them round for
dinner and tried to poison them. The rest of the Simpsons were very embarrassed. Homer realised how silly he had
been and they all became friends in the end. The slogan on the banner at the Simpsons House read ‘Pardon my
Intolerance’
Why was the issue important
The issue was very important as since 9/11 Muslims across the world have had to live with people thinking that they
are terrorists because of what people see in the news. The Simpsons brilliantly highlighted this problem and showed
the affects that Islamaphobia has on Muslim families
How were religious beliefs treated in the presentation of this issue
This was an episode that was meant to raise attention. On the surface it seems that Muslims are not being treated
fairly in this episode because of what Homer is doing to them and saying to them but the episode cleverly highlights
the problems that Muslims are having since 9/11. Homer was a representation of people who are Islamaphobic.
4 pieces of evidence on whether the presentation fair to religious beliefs and religious people

Muslims asked for this episode to be done to highlight the problem of Islamaphobia

It showed what Muslims have to go through since 9/11

The Muslim family were ‘normal’ people getting on with their everyday lives experiencing racial hatred

Some may see it as being racist to Muslims as Homer was very intolerant of the religion

It showed that society can successfully be integrated when people have tolerance