A paybook I picked up recently prompted me to have a look through all my books to see the range of religions covered - Kings Regulations give a list of approved religions but with a note basically allowing anything requested by the soldier. I've got 27 covered (with another oddity at the end) - I'm not well up on religions so had to google some of these and there may be some overlap but using different names (Church of Scotland/Presbyterian/Protestant all seem similar things to me - I think I could describe myself as any of the 3). It does show the mix in the UK Forces Agnostic Anglo-Catholic Baptist Church of England Church of Ireland Church of Scotland Congregationalist Elan Vital (originally Church of England in this case) not sure what this is, I can see it as a modern religion Episcopalian Hindu Jewish Methodist Moravian Non-Conformist O.D - any suggestions? I have this in 2 separate books so it must mean something Plymouth Brethren Presbyterian Protestant Quaker Roman Catholic Salvation Army Strict Baptist U.B. - not sure what this is maybe something Baptist United Methodist Welsh Baptist Weslyan Church of Christ (Scientist) Below is the one that prompted me to start looking but its only as I went to post this I noticed it was against approved society rather than religion (religion is blank), so I guess this wasn't his religion (unless it was only open to Druids) - I did see other Druid societies but nor Normanton
I was surprised that there were no Lutherans until I looked on wiki and saw only 11 congregations in UK.
The Druids will definitely be the 'Friendly Society' that he was signed up to...I've read accounts that suggest some servicemen chose religions that they thought would either get them off church parades or alternatively get them onto them and out of some other duties...I'm amazed that they accepted élan vital as a religion..
Mark Clark was required to specify a religion when he graduated from West Point. He found that there were more Episcopalian generals than any other religion and so that is what he picked. Not a great reason, in my opinion.
Coming from a Church of Ireland background I can assure you that there are very definite differences with Presbyterian and the same would apply with Church of Scotland. Wars have been fought over less! However having spent a considerable chunk of my working life in places like Saudi such differences seem trivial. I'm reminded of the WW1 joke about the SM lining up everyone for church parade who finds a couple of lads declining and having a smoke. When challenged they answer "We're agnostics Sarnt Major" "Agnostics! Same as Church of England - get fell in" With regard to Druids. There have been a number of revivals of the druidic religion. As the original Druids forbade writing there is nothing to go on apart from some very partial accounts by Julius Caesar so the various revivals were largely based on speculative texts. The variety in favour during WW2 had a chief Druid called Rollo Morphling. There weren't very many but it was more than a friendly society. The movements were more successful in America where elements still exist - unfortunately they now have connections with White Suprematists
It doesn't seem totally clear but according to Wiki (not liked by lots of people but it is a good easy source) but Church of Scotland is down as being Presbyterian and is classified as Protestant, so I don't really see the difference in general terms - as I say from my example I belong to a Church of Scotland Kirk (but haven't been in years), am Protestant and if I had been a member of the forces in WW2 I'd have had PRES on my tags and in my AB64 - Kings Regs has Presbyterian as the denomination including Church of Scotland, Free Church of Scotland, Presbyterian Church of England, Presbyterian Church of Ireland, Presbyterian Church of Wales or Calvanist Methodist Church of Wales
In an attempt to avoid church parade, an Army recruit put down his religion as ‘sun worshipper.’ At 4am next morning, as his comrades slept, he was hauled out of bed by the sergeant, who told him: ‘Right, you horrible little man, it’s just coming up – get out there and worship it.’
Definitely heard/read accounts of those not wishing to attend Church Parades being found something 'more productive' to do while in Barracks. Many must have defaulted to whatever on offer was closest to their preference. Much of Home diaries for IG show services were arranged for RC or Prods; two options. (No idea what arrangements were made eg for Jews serving in the Micks.) Although personnel might have stipulated otherwise in Books and forms, I don't think the Army itself was concerned much in differentiating between Protestant forms of worship. Likewise, special religious occasions at my school were at the nearby C of I cathedral and obligatory - no time for any objectors - despite having a relatively wide representation of all faiths. (Few outside NI are aware of/interested in the equally bitter history here behind Protestant denominations but, in my school the various 'evangelical' schisms were to be found seated separately (as per teacher's instructions) in RE classes only, with C of I majority rule and Ecumenism be damned.) As an aside I recall my (Presbyterian) father stating he held more respect for his battalion's RC Padre who, he observed, was often seen at the sharp end administering Last Rites and tending to the wounded. A good shepherd may know his own flock but this man knew them all: dishing out cigarettes, offering comfort, regardless of their denomination and swapping banter with his 'Orangemen'.
I recollect on my RAF induction,if any English entrant was not sure of his religious denomination, the result was "put him down as C of E" as quoted from the supervising NCO.
U.B may be United Board - this is listed in Kings Regs as a denomination for Chaplains - from Wiki it is in the listed current denominations for RAChD as United Board, incorporating the Baptist Church, United Reformed Church and Congregational Church Still to work out O.D.
I’ve seen other Christian religions like Presbyterian, Episcopal and Protestant. I also now Lutheran and Methodists. Before, I took interest in the Jehovah’s Witness because i was visited by a missionary(?) in my home. And i found it weird because their teaching says that Jesus is nailed on a stake instead of a cross.