There’s an interesting article in today’s Times (Can’t link to
it as you have to pay to see it- that’s a whole other set of thoughts!) The article
by Daniel Finkelstein notes the recent survey that indicated for the first time
that over 50% of the nation ‘has no religion’.
He points out (correctly in my view) that this may be a
reflection of someone automatically saying in the past that they were ‘C of E’
(ie they went to the local church for funerals, weddings and Christmas) and now
felt freer to say they had no firm belief.
Finkelstein goes on to point out the high level of faith
still attributed to political power- for example, of our last four Prime
Ministers, two were kids of clergymen and one a Christian socialist who read
his Bible every night. (Thus, Cameron was the exception, in case you were wondering...). And, again in the
article, they key role church and Christian charities take in our nation’s
welfare.
I’m not as pessimistic about the Christian faith in the UK
as the statistics suggest. I think it’s simply a weeding out (Biblical pun!) of
the C of E brigade. I see an increase in spiritual interest in the population.
I see many more willing to talk about faith and spiritual issues than was the
case, say, 20 years ago. I see real change happening through Alpha courses (many
at C of E churches). I see resurgence in Christianity among the denominations.
I see continued growth in the non-denominational churches. I see more in the UK
coming to a real faith in Christ than I have seen in my lifetime - this is
reflected in the numbers of responses to the work of Mission24, for example.
The decline in nominalism is a breakthrough for the real
thing.
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