This week has seen the publication of the census information from 2011 showing that Brighton & Hove remains high up the table for locations where relatively few people claim to be Christians or indeed adherents to any Faith. Many see this as a cause for celebration and something to be proud of. In yesterdays Argus Bill McIlroy is quoted as saying “Instead of being known as the most godless city in the country, I think we should call ourselves the most enlightened.” For what it is worth Bill I think that despite the tendency for headline writers, atheists and sadly even the occasional preacher to refer to Brighton & Hove with this epithet, as someone who does believe in God, Brighton is no more Godless than Knowsley which was the local authority area with the highest number of people professing to be Christians. I can say that with some confidence as I was born and brought up less than 10 miles from Knowsley and I visit the area several times a year.
The thought behind this blog however is not connected to the census but it does relate to Brighton and the role of religion in the history of our city. In the early 18th Century Brighton which was little more than a fishing village was frequently overcome by the waves and parts of the town were literally washed out to sea. As a result of an £8,000 donation by the churches of England two groynes were constructed and later additional church donations provided further sea defenses. The full story is featured on the My Brighton & Hove website which quotes directly from Tim Carders Encyclopedia of Brighton on this matter.
Although too late for the printed paper, today the Argus website is pointing towards the warnings from the City Council of storms to come tomorrow. The language on the website is reminiscent of the description in Tim Carders encyclopedia. Thankfully we need not worry about the city being washed away thanks to the pioneering work by the churches and more recent engineering that has replaced these 18th Century constructions. However I hope that Bill and others who see the city as a place of secular enlightenment will reflect as I do that without the churches across the country stumping up their £8,000 nearly 300 years ago (several Million in today’s money), we would not have a city in which to live.
ianchisnall 
Do you have to lump atheists in with headline writers and some preachers? Anyway, the money for the groynes was raised by church briefs – that is to say, appeals approved by the Crown to be read out in churches and money collected from parishioners. So – it wasn’t the church’s money in the first place – it was donations from individuals.
I think your comment about atheists is very reasonable as clearly like me, you would accept that there is no variation between locations although we are not on the same side of the measure. However like all charities, any money that churches possess has of course come from individuals. The point is that the churches were the conduit through which the money was collected. No one suggests that bob a job (yes I am old enough to remember shillings) was the work of the scout movement, but without them the cubs and scouts would never have got organised!