Survey: In the U.K., belief in God has finally dipped below 50%

No one's saving the King now.

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Fewer than half the people in the United Kingdom (49%) still believe in God, a stunning drop from the 75% who believed in 1981, according to new data from the World Values Survey, an international study conducted by the Policy Institute at King’s College London.

Even fewer believe in an afterlife, Heaven, and Hell.

This tracks with what we’ve already seen from previous studies, but it’s still a shock to see how much disregard people in the UK have for organized religion and the beliefs associated with it. The same survey also found that 72% of people in the UK didn’t want religious authorities interpreting laws and 82% trusted people who didn’t share their faith—both numbers you hope to see in a pluralistic democracy.

It’s not like the future looks bright for organized religion either. Only 37% of UK’s Gen Z believes in God. (Compare that to 1981, when 82% of the “Pre-War generation” said they believed.)

As it stands, the UK now ranks among the least religious countries among the 24 included in this wave of research. Only 33% of citizens describe themselves as religious while 21% would say they’re atheists. (In the U.S., those numbers are 58% and 8%, respectively.)

Humanists UK Chief Executive Andrew Copson celebrated the findings in a statement and urged leaders to remove the vestiges of religion from politics and public settings:

‘The World Values Survey confirms that the number of people in the UK who identify as non-religious is increasing, and has been for decades. With the survey showing such a large percentage of the population supporting a secular approach to democracy, we need to address the outdated approach to issues such as faith-based discrimination in schools, bishops in the House of Lords, and lack of legal humanist marriage.

‘We live in a diverse and plural society. The results show that the UK population has among the highest acceptance of religious diversity, and we should all work to build a country that treats everyone equally regardless of religion or belief.’

There’s an obvious question to ask after seeing results like this: Why is it happening?

Take your pick. We’ve seen churches fail to address sexual abuse, downplay the harm their leaders cause, condemn LGBTQ people, inject their beliefs into politics, etc. And none of that touches the fact that religious beliefs are just patently untrue.

As one “conversion therapy” survivor told UK-based Pink News, religious hypocrisy likely steered many young people away from God:

She said: “To me it shows how we have failed to spread God’s message of unconditional love to all, most likely because religion is seen as hypocritical and judgemental of particular parts of our society – most notably the LGBTQ+ community.  

“The fact that the UK is so far down the international rankings, even below Russia, when it comes to belief in God should be a massive wake up call to our established church – indeed, one has to ask whether their influence in our country’s law making can really be justified when so few in the UK have faith today?”

There is one bright spot for organized religion, though. While confidence in religious institutions has been on a steady decline in the U.K., dipping to an all-time low of 31% in 2018, it’s now bounced back up to 42%. (In the United States, there’s been no similar uptick.)

How is that possible? Bobby Duffy, director of the Policy Institute, offered this theory:

A possible explanation is the provision by churches and other religious institutions of essential social services such as food banks, social hubs, warm spots and debt counselling as the cost of living crisis has escalated.

During times of turbulence and social upheaval, people appreciate the institutions that help others out. That shouldn’t shock us. And yet, at least in the U.S., any good that churches do is vastly overshadowed by the harm they cause. The most vocal and media-grabbing religious leaders are typically known for the bigotry they espouse, not the people who benefit from their kindness. Instead of helping the “least of these,” they attack the vulnerable and marginalized in the name of Jesus.

There’s an obvious path forward for religious institutions if they want to improve their branding and convince people to buy the gods they’re selling. But that also means not alienating new customers by continuing to use their faith as a weapon against those who don’t share their views and values. A lot of religious leaders just aren’t willing to make that trade. They’re going to hate-preach themselves into irrelevance… or remain silent while others do it.

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