Despite the gloomy narrative being pushed by the media, a latest survey has revealed that reports of God’s death in Britain, and across the Western world, could also be exaggerated.
Commissioned by writer Christopher Glasson within the leadup to the discharge of his latest book, The Devils’ Gospels: Finding God in Four Great Atheist Books, the Belief in Britain Report saw OnePoll survey 10,000 Britons to find their thoughts on religion—and delivered some surprising results.
“What is surprising is that young people seem more inclined to spirituality than old people,” Glasson told The Sunday Times. “This could possibly be due to societal change: the financial crisis, Covid, the epidemic of loneliness all might encourage young people to look beyond the fabric world for meaning.
“It may be because nobody ever asked this query before: young people might simply be more idealistic.”
Contrary to popular wisdom, the outcomes suggest that atheism can have peaked amongst Generation X, those aged between 45 and 60, with 1 / 4 identifying as atheists. This was higher than the 20 per cent reported each by the Baby Boomer generation (those over 65) and Millennials (aged between 25 and 44). But, what’s going to give those within the Church essentially the most hope is that only 13 per cent of respondents under 25 discover as atheists, with 62 per cent saying they’re “very” or “fairly” spiritual.
However, Glasson warned that church leaders shouldn’t be too quick to seize the outcomes as an indication that Christian belief within the West is just not facing serious challenges.
“I imagine many church leaders can be rubbing their hands pondering that is the reply to their prayers but unfortunately for them, it’s not,” Glasson told The Sunday Times.
Saying that it was time to “return to the vestry for a rethink”, he added, “Whatever the survey might say about young people being more spiritual and non secular than old people, it’s equally clear that they’re postpone by established religion.”
The survey found that the Church as an establishment has been damaged by the numerous public scandals it has faced over time, and that many young people find it hard to have interaction with traditional expressions of religion.
“The largest proportion of Christians (43%) have their very own idea of God while an additional 9% don’t accept every aspect of the faith,” Glasson wrote as a part of his report on the findings.
“This suggests that the Church’s interpretation of God is at odds with nearly all of Christians’ understanding of God.
“It seems to imply that Church leaders should listen more in the event that they need to win back their flocks.”
One way of bridging this gap could possibly be becoming more present and supportive in local communities, with almost a 3rd (32%) flagging this as a priority. Only barely less (31%) called on religious groups to answer claims or incidents of abuse within the Church with honesty and by implementing effective preventative measures in the event that they desired to rebuild trust.
The survey collected responses from a spread of ages, with 1,039 under 25, 1,696 aged 25-34, 1,637 aged 35-44, 1,667 aged 45-54, 1,605 aged 55-64. and a couple of,356 over 65. While 69 per cent aged over 65 identified as Christian, young people reported way more diverse beliefs. Among those aged under 25, 40 per cent identified as Christians, with Muslims making up 21 per cent and Hindus 3 per cent.
This backs the findings of reports showing Christian parents have been typically less successful in passing their faith all the way down to their children compared with Muslim parents. Muslims were also far more likely (41%) to “worship often and accept the authority of the leaders of my faith” than Christians (14%).
While the survey reveals numerous challenges facing traditional Christian churches, with many young people reporting that they were more likely to precise their spirituality through “having fun with nature” and “mindfulness” than “participating in religious practices”, it also shows that there’s a chance for the church to recapture the spiritual battlefield.
“What I believe is occurring now could be that we now have two generations of individuals (the Millennials and Generation X) growing up in Britain feeling emotionally bereft and fighting conventional material life goals,” Glasson wrote in his conclusion.
“I’m sure that that is a chance for every kind of spiritual entrepreneurs, but I do not think we should always write off conventional Christianity just yet.”
