|
Christianity in Britain is the dominant faith. However, the country follows a policy of religious tolerance for its citizens. Christianity, as propagated and practiced by the Church of England, is the chief religion in Britain. The Scottish follow the Scottish Presbyterian Church. Roman Catholicism is also followed by a wide number of people in Britain. Almost three quarter of the population of Britain consists of Christians. Most Christians in Britain are followers of the Church of Scotland and the Church of England. Roman Catholic, Methodist and Church of Wales are other Christian denominations of the country. The Church of England is headed by the Queen of England. As Christianity is the major religion of the country, a wide variety of denominations, churches and sects can be witnessed there.
Christianity was introduced in Britain with the arrival of Romans. Nearly 40 churches of that period are still in existence. After the departure of the Romans, prominence of Christianity declined in the country. However, in 597 AD, with the arrival of missionaries under the supervision of Augustine, Christianity again rapidly flourished in the country. Augustine was declared the first Archbishop of Canterbury. A wide number of parishes and dioceses distributed all over the country form the structural base of the practice of Christianity in Britain. The Break with Rome in 1533 in the reign of Henry VIII saw the establishment of the Church of England in Britain with Canterbury as its main center. The monarch assumed the role of the Head of the Anglican Church. This incident, commonly referred to as the Reformation resulted in the pre-eminence of the Protestant faith in Britain. The Protestants still continue to be the most widely followed form of Christianity in Britain.
Over the years, a large number of Christian denominations started to make their appearances in Britain. A large number of people resorted to Catholicism following the new Evangelist movements that started to make their presence felt from the sixteenth century onwards. The major influx from Ireland also saw an increase in the number of Catholics. With religious groups disagreeing over points of theology and ecclesiastical organizations, a large number of other Christian groups appeared in Britain over the years. Commonly known as the Free Church groups, they amount to over 200 in present day Britain.
|
