# A Diversity Monitoring Form ... with a trick question in it. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 22, 2015, 10:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-diversity-monitoring-form-with-a-trick-question-in-it/725867 "2015-07-22T10:51:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![SeniorCitizen007](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8baadc/32.png) [@SeniorCitizen007](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeniorCitizen007)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2015, 10:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-diversity-monitoring-form-with-a-trick-question-in-it/725867/1 "2015-07-22T10:51:01Z")
The purpose of the form was to ensure that everybody is treated equally. It replaced the form previously used … before my landlord, a London Housing Trust merged with an Irish Housing Trust. The previous form simply had a space to fill in beside the question as to what our religion was. The new form had several boxes for us to tick: Christian Other Christian … and boxes for the other main religions (and, of course, one for no religion) ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2015, 11:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-diversity-monitoring-form-with-a-trick-question-in-it/725867/2 "2015-07-22T11:35:48Z")
Where’s the trick? (Over here it’s not permitted to ask a person’s faith. Not for housing, or jobs, or university admissions, etc. Because it enables religious discrimination.) ---
**Author:** ![scareyfaerie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scareyfaerie/32/3135_2.png) [@scareyfaerie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scareyfaerie)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2015, 12:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-diversity-monitoring-form-with-a-trick-question-in-it/725867/3 "2015-07-22T12:01:53Z")
What’s the difference between “Christian” and “Other Christian”? Is one of them both the same? ---
**Author:** ![DrFidelius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drfidelius/32/3447_2.png) [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2015, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-diversity-monitoring-form-with-a-trick-question-in-it/725867/4 "2015-07-22T12:08:49Z")
If it were in America, I would guess it was for those who didn’t want to be identified as one of \*those \*Christians. But since it is UK, all bets are off. (Cue tired “They call this thing the same name as we call this other thing” pseudo-comedy routine.) ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2015, 12:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-diversity-monitoring-form-with-a-trick-question-in-it/725867/5 "2015-07-22T12:31:09Z")
Regular and Zesty Bold Ranch flavor. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Stainless\_Steel\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_stainless_steel_rat/32/5727_2.png) [@The\_Stainless\_Steel\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Stainless_Steel_Rat)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2015, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-diversity-monitoring-form-with-a-trick-question-in-it/725867/6 "2015-07-22T12:48:29Z")
Only thing I can guess is either Catholic (since there may still be some hard feelings left over from the Reformation) or Eastern Orthodox. But I agree, it is a puzzlement. ---
**Author:** ![lazybratsche](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ba8739/32.png) [@lazybratsche](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lazybratsche)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2015, 1:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-diversity-monitoring-form-with-a-trick-question-in-it/725867/7 "2015-07-22T13:42:52Z")
Maybe the form originally had a few categories of major Christian denominations, e.g. Protestant, Catholic, Other Christian. But somebody decided the Protestant/Catholic distinction was too divisive, so just combined those to “Christian” while leaving “Other Christian” as a choice… ---
**Author:** ![gnoitall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bb73d2/32.png) [@gnoitall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnoitall)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2015, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-diversity-monitoring-form-with-a-trick-question-in-it/725867/8 "2015-07-22T14:09:33Z")
> [@scareyfaerie](#): > > What’s the difference between “Christian” and “Other Christian”? Is one of them both the same? “Christian” is what I am. “Other Christian” is what those reprobate cultists over there are. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![lalaith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/96bed5/32.png) [@lalaith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lalaith)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2015, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-diversity-monitoring-form-with-a-trick-question-in-it/725867/9 "2015-07-22T14:11:03Z")
> [@SeniorCitizen007](#): > > The purpose of the form was to ensure that everybody is treated equally. It replaced the form previously used … before my landlord, a London Housing Trust merged with an Irish Housing Trust. The previous form simply had a space to fill in beside the question as to what our religion was. The new form had several boxes for us to tick: > > Christian > > Other Christian > > … and boxes for the other main religions (and, of course, one for no religion) I’m presuming “Christian” means Anglican Church of England since that’s the state religion of the UK with the Queen as the head of it. (When is your country getting around to changing that? I can’t honestly see keeping a straight face when time comes for Charles to take that oath. He’s even said he doesn’t want to take the oath in its current form.) And that “Other Christian” would mean every other non-official-non-state-religion denomination of Christianity. At least that’s how I would interpret it given that the OP seems to live in the UK. ---
**Author:** ![SeniorCitizen007](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8baadc/32.png) [@SeniorCitizen007](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeniorCitizen007)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2015, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-diversity-monitoring-form-with-a-trick-question-in-it/725867/10 "2015-07-22T14:41:04Z")
> [@lalaith](#): > > I’m presuming “Christian” means Anglican Church of England since that’s the state religion of the UK with the Queen as the head of it. (When is your country getting around to changing that? I can’t honestly see keeping a straight face when time comes for Charles to take that oath. He’s even said he doesn’t want to take the oath in its current form.) > > And that “Other Christian” would mean every other non-official-non-state-religion denomination of Christianity. > > At least that’s how I would interpret it given that the OP seems to live in the UK. Thst’s what I told the newly appointed Northern Irish Catholic manager - C of E is ‘Christian’ all others (including Catholics) are ‘Other Christian’. However … I later discovered that the form was the work of a Muslim who’d studied European history ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2015, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-diversity-monitoring-form-with-a-trick-question-in-it/725867/11 "2015-07-22T15:04:35Z")
> [@SeniorCitizen007](#): > > Thst’s what I told the newly appointed Northern Irish Catholic manager - C of E is ‘Christian’ all others (including Catholics) are ‘Other Christian’. > > However … I later discovered that the form was the work of a Muslim who’d studied European history So, it could have been… Christian Infidel Heretic Muslim Apostate ---
**Author:** ![usedtobe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ec9cab/32.png) [@usedtobe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/usedtobe)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2015, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-diversity-monitoring-form-with-a-trick-question-in-it/725867/12 "2015-07-23T03:03:12Z")
Until 1962, the Roman Catholic Church considered itself the only “Christian” religion. Protestants were “Heretics” and the Orthodox were Schismists (hard feelings over the appointment of a Pope the Italians didn’t like, or something). If C of E picked up the terminology, I would not be surprised.