Local Churches and Synagogues

Abstract

The village church surrounded by cottages and an inn, its steeple visible across the countryside, its graveyard open to all, its priest an integral part of the local community — this is still a widely held image of ‘the local church’ in England. But for several hundred years, this image has only partly reflected the reality of local religious activity. Diversity of religious commitment has existed at least since Henry VIII’s quarrel with the Church authorities in Rome in the sixteenth century. Today a variety of Christian groupings exist at the local level in England and other major religions, including Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism and Sikhism are also well represented.