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The Rev Dr Gavin Ashenden stepped down from his role following after a section from the Koran that teaches Jesus is not the son of God was read during a service to mark Epiphany. Rev Ashenden said the reading at St Mary’s Episcopal Cathedral in Glasgow could be viewed as blasphemy and is indicative of the the rise of Islam in Britain. Speaking to Express.co.uk, Rev Ashenden said: “My first thoughts were astonishment that any Christian church, let alone a cathedral would consider introducing not only a reading from the Koran instead of the Bible, but one which denied the Bible’s record of who Christ really was.

GETTY/ FACEBOOK/ YOUTUBE Rev Dr Gavin Ashenden said Islam and secularism are serious threats to Christianity

“I think the clergy at the cathedral should apologise - but particularly to the Christians in the Middle East, who are being killed and whose houses and churches have been pulled down by Islamic activists. “Comfortable clergy in the West should not take actions that undermine others who are being seriously persecuted for their faith.” Rev Ashenden, who was one of 36 chaplains to the Queen, said the Glasgow Koran saga has implications for the Queen's role as head of the church. He added the incident raised questions over how the Queen and her representatives are expected to fulfil the role as Defender of the Faith.

My first thoughts were astonishment that any Christian Church, let alone a cathedral would consider introducing not only a reading from the Koran instead of the Bible, but one which denied the Bible’s record of who Christ really was Rev Gavin Ashenden

He said: “The increasing pressures that multiculturalism place on our national identity and our constitutional inheritance are a serious challenge to our social stability and self understanding. “It must be obvious that the role of a monarch who stands for the defence of the Christian faith is not going to be a unifying factor in a multicultural and multi-faith context where other faiths have an agenda to diminish Christianity and replace it.”

TWITTER Rev Dr Gavin Ashenden said the clergy at the cathedral should apologise

Syrian Orthodox bishop for Austria and Switzerland Dionysos Isa Gurbuz warned last year he expected Islam to take over Europe in 30 years. Rev Ashenden said Islam is growing rapidly in Britain too. He said: “If you read Michel Houlebecq's new novel ‘Submission’, which was published ironically on the day of the Charlie Hebdo massacre, you will see how he envisages Islam coming to dominate politics in France in the near future.

GETTY Rev Dr Gavin Ashenden resigned from his role as Queen's Chaplain

“Demographically at the very least, Islam is growing very rapidly here too, and I have Muslim friends who tell me that are very confident that in a generation’s time many of our major northern cities will have substantial Muslim majorities. Already many of them have a Muslim majority of those under 16. “Mohammed is the most popular name amongst boys in England to date.” With falling numbers of Christians, Islam- the second largest religious group and more than 14million people saying they have no religion, Rev Ashenden says both Islam and secularism are serious threats to Christianity. According to the latest ONS figures, in 2011 Christianity remained the largest religion with 59.3 per cent of the population identifying themselves as Christian.

ROBERT HARDING Rev Dr Gavin Ashenden said Islam is growing in Britain

GOOGLE MAPS A passage from the Koran was read at St Mary’s Episcopal Cathedral in Glasgow

Muslims made up the second largest religious group with 4.8 per cent of the population of England and Wales. In total, 14.1 million people, around a quarter of the population in England and Wales, reported they have no religion in 2011. Rev Ashenden said: “There is a serious effort by secularists to move Christianity out of the public sphere. They haven’t realised that all the scientific, democratic, educational and cultural privileges they enjoy have all been handed to them by the Christianisation of Europe. “Both secularism and Islam are serious threats, and both are causing serious damage to Christianity, whether by trying to close down those who speak up for Christian ethics in the public space on the one hand, or by driving someone like the Muslim convert to Christianity, Nissar Hussein out of his home and community in Bradford.”

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