Senator Lines sparked an outcry on Thursday after telling The Australian that as an atheist, she did not want to say the prayer, which has been read by presiding officers since 1901.

"On the one hand, we've had almost every parliamentary leader applaud the diversity of the Parliament. So, if we are genuine about the diversity of the Parliament, we cannot continue to say a Christian prayer to open the day," Senator Lines said.

Labor's Senate leader Penny Wong and deputy Senate leader Don Farrell responded in a joint statement, saying: "Senators Wong and Farrell share the view that the prayer should continue to be read at the commencement of each sitting day.

"Decisions about standing orders are for the Senate as a whole. Any changes should aim to unite senators rather than divide, as was demonstrated yesterday when the Senate agreed unanimously to display the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags."

Katy Gallagher, manager of government business in the Senate, said there was a "clear view that the Lord's Prayer is to stay" and it should continue to be read.

"I don't mind the prayer," Senator Gallagher told The Australian. "I'm not a religious person but it is very much part of the Senate tradition".

While the Coalition also rejected the change, Greens Tasmanian senator Nick McKim said the party was considering whether to try to replace the prayer with a period of reflection or silence.

"The Greens have had a longstanding position that at the start of the parliamentary day, there should be a period of reflection, a period of silence that would allow politicians of any religious persuasion and politicians of no ­religious persuasion whatsoever, an opportunity to reflect on our collective responsibilities to the Australian people. That remains our position," McKim said.

Simon Birmingham, leader of the Opposition in the Senate, said the current proceedings in the Chamber are "respectful and reflective" and should not be changed.

"It has evolved with the appropriate addition of the acknowledgement of country and now provides for a respectful and reflective start of proceedings," Senator Birmingham said.

"Even those of us who are not of faith can benefit from the ­period of reflection these commencement traditions allow for and should respect rather than unwind them."

Sources

The Australian

Sky News

The ad, produced by JustPray.uk, shows the Lord's Prayer being recited by members of the public ranging from bodybuilders to children, and also features the Archbishop of Canterbury.

The minute-long ad received clearance from the British Board of Film Classification and the Cinema Advertising Authority.

But Digital Cinema Media (DCM) agency, which handles British film advertising for Odeon, Cineworld and Vue, which run almost 300 of the 750 cinemas in the UK, rejected the advert because they said it would "offend" audiences.

The Church of England planned to run the advert before the new Star Wars film Star Wars: The Force Awakens, which opens in cinemas across the UK on December 17.

Asked about the DCM decision, Professor Dawkins told the Guardian: "My immediate response was to tweet that it was a violation of freedom of speech".

"But I deleted it when respondents convinced me that it was a matter of commercial judgment on the part of the cinemas, not so much a free speech issue.

"I still strongly object to suppressing the ads on the grounds that they might ‘offend' people.

"If anybody is ‘offended' by something so trivial as a prayer, they deserve to be offended."

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Archbishop Justin Welby, branded the DCM decision "offensive".

Rev Arun Arora, the Church of England's director of communications, told the Telegraph: "If they want to be consistent on not carrying any ads that have any connection with religious belief, I'd like them to cancel all ads linked to Christmas as a Christian festival".

"If they'd like to apply it consistently, ban every ad that mentions Christmas."

The Church of England is reportedly considering legal action.

UK Prime Minister David Cameron said the DCM decision is "ridiculous".

DCM said it had adopted a policy not to run advertising connected to political or religious beliefs following a negative reaction to political advertising it had screened before the Scottish Independence Referendum.

Sources

• The Guardian
• The Tablet
• The Telegraph
• Daily Mail
• Image: The Guardian

Victorian Greens Senator Richard Di Natale moved on February 13 that the prayer be replaced with the following words: "Senators, let us in silence pray or reflect upon our responsibilities to the people of Australia, to the states and territories which we represent, and to all future generations."

But the 76-member Senate overwhelmingly rejected the move when senators from the governing Liberal-National coalition and the Opposition Labor Party failed to support the motion.

Senator Di Natale, who had described the prayer as "an anachronism", told Parliament that Australia had a clear separation between Church and state.

"We live in a country of many different faiths - in fact, a country where many people have no faith - and a modern Australian parliament should reflect that," he said.

"We do say that there should be some opportunity for reflection or, indeed, prayer, if people feel that way, and that is why we would like to see a minute at the start of each day in this place being offered for that reason."

The Government's upper house leader, Senator Eric Abetz of Tasmania, said the move was "the latest Green attack as part of their ongoing attempt to rewrite our history and deny our heritage", while Queensland Labor Senator Claire Moore said her party did not support the motion because the place of the Lord's Prayer was part of a review already being conducted by the Senate's Procedure Committee.

A petition from the Presbyterian Church of Australia in 1901, the year the six Australian colonies formed a federation, led to the inclusion of a prayer at the commencement of each sitting day.

The Senate President precedes the Lord's Prayer with the words "Almighty God, we humbly beseech Thee to vouchsafe Thy special blessing upon this Parliament, and that Thou wouldst be pleased to direct and prosper the work of Thy servants to the advancement of Thy glory, and to the true welfare of the people of Australia".

Sources

• The Tablet
• Christian Today Australia
• Image: Lifesitenews

The survey marked 40 years since Newsround was first broadcast.

The programme surveyed over 1,000 children aged 6-12 and 1,000 adults who'd have been that age 40 years ago, and compared the answers, reports the BBC.

Of the 1011 adults surveyed, 92 per cent said they knew the Lord's Prayer as a child, while only 55 per cent of children knew it today.

Responding to the findings of the survey, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams said he would like to see schools teaching students the Lord's Prayer.

"I'd like to see schools introducing children to the Lord's Prayer, so that they know that it's there, they know what it means and know why it matters."

"The Lord's Prayer isn't a very big or complicated thing," the archbishop said.

"It's not as if you have to learn pages on end of things in a strange language. There are modern language versions of it.

"I don't think it's too difficult to introduce children to this and introduce it in plain language and say not 'You've got to pray this,' but this is something that's really, really important to lots and lots of people and can change their lives."

Some senior Church of England officials are of the view that Christians are being discriminated against and greater tolerance is being shown for other faiths.

Despite a legal requirement for Christian worship, Christian assemblies are being dropped in favour of multi-faith worship.

Sources

• BBC
• The Telegraph
• Image: Best Picture and Wallpapers today