Ann Widdecombe: Gen Z’s return to faith is not any surprise

Ann Widdecombe, former MP and long-standing Christian voice in public life, believes the apparent resurgence of interest in Christianity amongst Britain’s youth isn’t as unexpected because it seems.

A YouGov survey commissioned by the Bible Society last December and released in April revealed that a growing variety of young adults within the UK are turning to faith and to the Church.

The data shows that 12% of UK adults now attend church at the very least once a month, a noticeable rise from 8% in 2018.

But probably the most dramatic shift is amongst 18 to 24 yr olds, especially young men, over 20% of whom now report regular attendance – greater than a fivefold increase in only six years.

Young women are usually not far behind, with their attendance tripling from 4% to 12% in the identical period.

Roughly 20% of standard churchgoers now come from ethnic minority backgrounds — a proportion that climbs to almost one in three amongst those aged under 55.

This growing diversity is reshaping what church looks like across the UK, particularly in urban areas.

The recent data also shows that Gen Z’s interest goes beyond just turning up for services. Around 1 / 4 of young people say they need to learn more in regards to the Bible — the very best rate of curiosity amongst any age group.

A co-author of the report, Dr Rob Barward-Symmons, commented that with the rise in mental health struggles, “loneliness and a lack of meaning in life,” especially amongst young people, the church offers greater life satisfaction, stronger community ties, and lower rates of tension and depression, particularly in young women.

Writing for GB News, Ms Widdecombe believes that this spiritual trend is an anticipated response to the self-obsessed culture of recent life, which “promotes the alternative of forgiveness of sinners in a clamorous witch hunt and lynch mob mentality”.

“Perhaps it isn’t so surprising; the me, me, me society has not brought happiness with record rates of divorce, suicide, crime and mental breakdown,” she said. “Sooner or later, a generation was sure to query whether rampant consumerism might be the foundation of true happiness and to search for alternatives.”

For Ms Widdecombe, the implications are clear: “Whether this phenomenon grows or withers on the vine is basically right down to Christians, for, as I actually have often observed, if the early Christians had shown no more energy in spreading the Good News than we’ve got today, then we’d all still be worshipping Zeus.”

As statistics shift and pews begin to fill again, she said that the church must still “go to the people”, and never simply expect people to come back to it.