For anyone who hasn't yet heard this story a simple summary will suffice: The Archbishop of Cantebury Rowan Williams recently gave a lecture in which he suggested the U.K. should now accept aspects of the incorporation of Sharia Law as "inevitable". As a result, all hell broke loose and, as I speak, the B.B.C. website is receiving thousands of irate posts directed at the Archbishop himself.
My own analysis is the man hit a very raw nerve. It may well have been his use of the term "inevitable" that has shaken a lot of people up.
To be honest, I would agree the Archbishop is something of an intellectual idealist who probably lives in a private world of books, essays and academia but I would agree with him that the U.K, demographics have now changed hugely so it seems unlikely this can remain a western-orientated, Christian country in the future.
It seems as if where politicians have been choosing their words a bit more carefully, Williams hasn't minced words over his perception of changing realities and this has sparked public fury.
Yes, the truth is Sharia Law will probably blend in with British Law in the near future and I guess we'll see greater immigration out of the U.K. to Europe or the U.S. as a consequence. Here are some comments from the BBC website:
"A nation that would allow it's populous to segregate itself by letting one group of citizens to follow a different set of laws, judiciary process, and punishment system than another group is inviting chaos and anarchy to rein free within its borders. The complexity and continued maintenance of trying to provide a fair, impartial and safe nation to live in would become so costly, that nation may never recover.
Jeremy Hill, Monterey, CA, USA
"As an agnostic Indian businessman, traveling all over the world, I have personally felt very uncomfortable in all the countries that practice Sharia Law, which seems quite harsh and quite intolerant of other religions and their practices & beliefs. Even a modern country like Malaysia, is caught in between secularism and Islam ism.
They say money is the root of all evil & misery, I would replace money with religion today.
Rowan Williams Vs Rowan Atkins. Atkins, I prefer everytime.
amk, Chennai"