Census: Christians Now Minority in England

It’s a growing trend, and one which not confined to Britain, but is happening globally.

All over Western Europe today, many adults do not describe themselves as Christians, and even those who say they were baptised in the church will admit that they seldom attend church, and have since gradually drifted away from religion, and stopped believing in religious teachings and doctrines altogether. The reasons for this are many, with some flagging church scandals and conservative positions on social issues.

Still, this should be a point of serious consideration for both the UK’s religious and political leadership…

Breitbart News reports…

Less than half of people in England and Wales are Christian, the census has revealed, with both atheism and Islam making major gains.

The majority of people in both England and Wales are not Christian for the first time probably since the 7th century AD, data from the 2021 census published on Tuesday has revealed.

According to the information released by Britain’s Office of National Statistics, both England and Wales have lost their status as majority-Christian nations, with only 46.3 per cent of the population of England reporting themselves as being Christian, while only 43.6 per cent of the Welsh population now describe themselves as being adherents to a denomination of Christianity.

We’ve released new #Census2021 data on religion in England and Wales.

46.2% said they were “Christian” – less than half of the population for the first time.

This was a decrease from 59.3% in 2011, but still the most common response.

https://t.co/Nv6VDkSO9i pic.twitter.com/HtoYJl7jkn

— Office for National Statistics (ONS) (@ONS) November 29, 2022

While the faith still remains the plurality religion in both countries, it is the first time the total percentage of the population who are Christian has dropped below the 50 per cent mark in modern history, and most likely since the British isles were converted and moved away from Paganism 1,300 years ago. The change is even more pronounced when viewed over longer periods, with today’s 46 per cent of those in England professing to be Christian comparing to 71 per cent in 2001, just 20 years ago.

Meanwhile, the percentage of people saying that they have “no religion” in both nations has spiked significantly, growing from around a quarter of the population of both countries in 2011 to over 37 per cent by the time of recording the census last year.

Islam saw the next largest overall increase, growing in number from 2.7 million to 3.9 million in the decade, a rise of 44 per cent in ten years. In all, Muslims now account for 6.5 per cent of ordinary residents of England and Wales, and in 2001 they were 2.9 per cent.

(…) According to Church of England archbishop, Stephen Cottrell, the results represent a challenge to Britain’s Christian population, with the faith leader saying that church leaders can no longer simply rely on people claiming adherence to the faith even if they are non-practising.

“We have left behind the era when many people almost automatically identified as Christian, but other surveys consistently show how the same people still seek spiritual truth and wisdom and a set of values to live by,” he claimed, saying that the statistic “throws down a challenge to [Christians] not only to trust that God will build his kingdom on Earth but also to play our part in making Christ known”…

Continue this story at Breitbart News

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