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Both Christians and religious Jews are finding it increasingly difficult to practice their faiths through college groups on so-called mainline campuses in the United States.

If we're going to have debates, let's have real debates.

I live in a post-Christian world in Oxford; it is quite rare to meet somebody who is religious in academic life now, and there is absolutely no tendency for rioting and mayhem, and it is extremely civilised.

But I do think its necessary to have debates.

Out of 3,500 students in my high school, I was the only openly professing Christian kid. Obviously there were challenges. 'Only old and stupid people believe.'

Religion and morality are critical to how students think about politics and form opinions on political issues.

As an undergraduate at Stanford, I started 'The Stanford Review,' which ended up being very engaged in the hot debates of the time: campus speech codes, questions about diversity on campus, all sorts of debates like that.

Our country's political discourse and debate are enriched by discussions of the political implications of our faith traditions, whether they are taking place in our communities, at our dinner tables, or in our places of worship.

I was brought up in a home environment where I was taught to think critically and was encouraged to seek answers to questions about my faith.