Christianity in Britain - Declining Norms

Running head: CHRISTIANITY IN BRITAIN: A DECLINING SOCIAL NORM 1

Christianity in Britain: A Declining Social Norm

Tommy Morgan

Radford University

[email protected]

CHRISTIANITY IN BRITAIN: A DECLINING SOCIAL NORM 2

Abstract

This paper explores the results of primary and secondary research studying the decline of

Christianity being practiced regularly in the United Kingdom. According to Steve Bruce, at the

current rate of church membership and attendance decline most British denominations will cease

to exist by the year 2030 (2001). According to an article in The Times, affiliation with the

Church of England fell from 40 percent to 20 percent in less than three decades (Gibb, 2014).

This paper will analyze several hypotheses developed to explain why religion is declining as a

social norm in Britain and aim to find a definitive answer as to exactly why the decline is

occurring.


Christianity in Britain: A Declining Social Norm

Religion has been a major part of British culture since the dawn of the country’s

dominance began. Christianity, to be more specific, has been a part of the United Kingdom since

1534 when King Henry VIII separated from the Catholic Church and established the Church of

England. Even today the majority of British citizens identify as members of the Church of

England. With that being said, only 30-35 percent of the adult population in Britain regularly

attends church services (Bruce, 2001). Why then is Christianity and religion in general struggling

to stay afloat in the secular floodwaters that are pouring into Britain? Several hypotheses have

been developed to answer the question. Feminism, the British National Party, lack of demand by

the Church, increased secularization, and societal norms are all possible causes to the decline of

religion in the United Kingdom.

To begin, Dr. Callum Brown claims that, “Feminism has hastened the decline of

Christianity in Britain” (Feminism). The Times’ article explores the possibilities of women’s

liberation leading to a weakened Church. Dr. Brown’s argument dates back to the 1960s when

the Church of Scotland shunned and condemned women for being promiscuous. This loose

behavior was a product of the sexual emancipation that took place during the time period. Brown

claims that these actions led many women to turn their backs on the Church causing attendance

numbers to fall and weakening the Church (Feminism). The new identity of freedom and

expression that women began to strive after undermined the Christian lifestyle of conservative

and respectable. Brown claims that, "This discomforted the churches, and the Church of Scotland

in particular warned of the promiscuity of young girls, for which they were described as sexist”

(Feminism). To support Brown’s reseach, the Church of Scotland’s membership has halved since

1956 and only six percent of the population is active churchgoers (Feminism).


Continuing, the Church of England has had its own set of issues involving politics.

During the 2010 elections, the British National Party (BNP) was at the height of their popularity

because they stood for “authentic British sovereignty.” However, this authentic British pride was

accompanied with anti-immigration, islamaphobia, and white superiority (Davey, 2011). The

BNP has caused problems for the Church of England because they associated themselves as the

“Christian party” and made ties to the Church without first consulting the Church officials. Due

to the party’s harsh racist beliefs, many of the Church’s members resented the connection the

BNP made with the Church of England which caused some members to halt their attendance

(Davey, 2011). The Church of England also resented the British National Party and their claim of

being the “Christian party” due to their racist ideals, which go against Christian doctrine (Davey,

2011).

Due to the resentment the Church of England has for the BNP and the problems the party

has been causing the Church has taken steps over the past decade to respond to the far-right

members. The Church has supported several political candidates who oppose the BNP

throughout recent elections in hopes to unseat the party’s control in the nation (Davey, 2011).

The candidates being supported generally stand for diversity and the future of modern Britain.

The Church shows that they support the changes Britain is going through by aiding these

candidates in hopes to mend their reputation (Davey, 2011).

Another problem the Church of England has been facing is its inability to encourage its

members to adhere to the rules and beliefs of the Church. Baroness Hale of Richmond, a

Supreme Court justice in the UK stated in an article in The Times, “Britain is one of the least

religious countries in Western Europe because the Church of England is a very undemanding

church” (Gibb, 2014). The justice says that the lack of dietary laws, dress codes, etc. is necessary


in having a successful church congregation. The United Kingdom is often referred to as a

“paradoxical country” when it comes to religion. The justice points out that politicians do not

wear their religion proudly, minority communities practice religion more openly, and while

British people claim to be members of the “C of E,” affiliation to the Church of England fell by

20 percent from 1983 to 2010 (Gibb, 2014).

To continue, Baroness Hale also blames human rights laws for the decline in Christianity

(Gibb, 2014). As of now, there are only discrimination laws in Britain that do not take religious

beliefs into consideration when looking at cases employment, selling of goods and services, civil

disputes, etc. (Gibb, 2014). By protecting the religious beliefs of Christians more Brits would

feel comfortable expressing their Christian beliefs again.

In addition, other research has found that religious decline in Britain has been

generational in nature. “Generational” in the context that decade after decade each generation is

less religious than the one before it (Crockett & Voas, 2006). By using cohort, period, and age

effects to measure the causes of religious decline, Crockett and Voas (2006) found that religious

affiliation was almost universal at the beginning of the 20th century and is found in less than half

of those born in 1970s in Britain.

Furthermore, cohort effects measure population-level religious decline to see if one or

more birth cohorts grow into less religious adults than the previous. Crockett and Voas (2006)

found that the cohort of the 1990s were substantially less religious than that of any other birth

cohort before. Period effects measure population-level religious decline to see if it occurs across

all cohorts at a specific time like World War II. Crocket and Voas (2006) found that religious

decline took place across all cohorts in Britain during World War II and the “open-minded”


times of the 1960s (see Figure 1). Age effects would measure the offset to the decline created as

people become more religious with age. The research showed the aging society became more

religious in their old age towards the end of the 20th century offsetting the decline in religion for

a brief period during the 1990s (Crockett & Voas, 2006).

Another finding that has caused religious decline in Britain is secularization. Steve Bruce

(2001) looked at the numbers surrounding church membership, Sunday schools, full-time

religious professionals, religious offices, new religious movements, and beliefs over the last 150

years (See Tables 1 & 2). In each of the categories studied there was a unanimous decline across

the board. Bruce (2001) found that new religious movements were centered around non-

Trinitarian churches, such as Mormon and Jehovah’s Witnesses. While the main Christian

churches were losing members over the last 150 years the new movements were gaining them

(Bruce, 2001). Bruce’s research led him to an Anglican cleric who pointed out the decline in

church membership and Christianity is the product of so many choices when it comes to

Christianity (Bruce, 2001). The cleric pointed out that with secularization comes more open-

mindedness and resentment towards the conservatism of the Church. This has cause new

churches to be formed and a plethora of church choices for the average “Christian” to choose

from making the true Christ following Christian almost irrelevant in Britain (Bruce, 2001).

Another hypothesis comes from the Archbishop of Canterbury. He expressed that he

believes Britain is, “Certainly not a Christian country if measured by the number of people

actively attending church” (Bingham, 2014). This comes from a national debate in Britain where

the topic of Britain as a Christian country was being discussed. The Archbishop went on to state

that, “In the general sense of being founded in Christian faith, this is a Christian country”

(Bingham, 2014). But, he also acknowledges that Britain has become a melting pot of different


cultures, ethnicities, and religions that have positively shaped the country. The Archbishop

reminded listeners of a core principle of Christianity, which is acceptance. Christians are to love

and accept people of all kinds just as Jesus loves all of the earth’s people. With that being said,

he ended his argument by stating, “Christian faith has enabled us to be welcoming to other

faiths” (Bingham, 2014). He believes Britain is a Christian country based on its core values and

founding attributes not by how many people sit inside the chapels every Sunday.

An article by Peter Stanford takes defense of Christianity by looking at the positive things

Christians do in Britain. Stanford takes a look at the place of religion, especially Christianity, has

in the law, state, taxpayer funder, and service delivery in the United Kingdom (Stanford, 2014).

Focusing on Prime Minister David Cameron’s comments about Britain being “fundamentally

Christian” as a nation, Stanford believes Cameron’s words should have been interpreted much

more lightly. The number of Christian and Christian-based organizations in the UK is over 7,000

(Stanford, 2014). Stanford believes that these organizations are prime examples of what makes

Britain fundamentally Christian. These organizations do thousands upon thousands of unseen

good deeds for the British communities that keep the British up and running (Stanford, 2014). In

fact, 213 of the Christian-based organizations incorporate the promotion of equality and diversity

into their programs and 3,685 of them include advancement of education programs (Stanford,

2014). So, even though the number of people attending church services may be declining, there

are still Christian organizations doing the work keeping the Christian values alive in Britain,

according to Stanford (2014).

Lastly, progressive change and three new perspectives could be to blame for the decline

in the prominence of religion in Britain. First, in Britain there have been movements by the

Labour party and other government coalitions that have emphasized the importance of faith


communities making contributions to personal and communal well-being (Atherton, 2011).

Secondly, the civil society approach to governing has also gained in importance. The need for

resources and time for leisure are both at an all-time high unlike at any other time in Britain’s

history (Atherton, 2011). Thirdly, there is a surge of importance being put on the use of human

capital on economic and technological activities. This has caused the recognition of research on

the use of capital for religious and spiritual significance to human living to go down (Atherton,

2011). Each of these new perspectives could be fueling the decline in religious beliefs and

church attendance in Britain.

These three new perspectives are all aspects of the sweeping progressive change that is

overtaking Britain. Along with the majority of the world, Britain is experience massive

globalization. Globalization has forced governments around the globe to adapt their policies,

procedures, beliefs, etc. to make their nations more competitive in the global market (Atherton,

2011). In Britain, part of this adaption has caused the government to lose its ties from

Christianity or any religion in general (Atherton, 2011). Politicians do not show their religion nor

is it openly spoken about often. By shedding its religious overcoat, the British government and

society has evolved and adapted to become a player in the globalized world (Atherton, 2011).

In conclusion, Christianity has always been a vital piece of the intricate cultural puzzle

that makes up the United Kingdom. As the decades have gone by church attendance has gone

down and population has risen. Several factors have been mixed to create the giant pot of

religious decline we see in Britain that dates back to significant events like World War II and the

1960s when feminist ideals went against the Church’s conservative doctrine. As society has

continued to evolve and become more complex, new perspectives have been created and have

had an influence on this massive decline. With a higher importance being put on economic and


technological advancements the need for religious exploration has declined. Despite the efforts

of those who defend Christianity and the ties it has to the British culture its decline cannot be

denied. For now there is no definitive answer to the question of religious decline in the United

Kingdom. Perhaps in another 150 years we will be able to pinpoint the cause of this decline.

Then again, by that time Christianity and religion may be in the forefront of British culture once

again.


References

Atherton, J. R. (2011). Public Mission for Changing Times: Models for Progressive Change from

American and British Experience. International Journal Of Public Theology, 5(4), 410-

434. doi:10.1163/156973211X595916

Bingham, J. (2014). Archbishop: Britain not a 'Christian country' -- if judging by numbers in the

pews. The Telegraph Online.

Bruce, S. (2001). Christianity in Britain, R.I.P. Sociology Of Religion, 62(2), 191-203.

CROCKETT, A., & VOAS, D. (2006). Generations of Decline: Religious Change in 20th-

Century Britain. Journal For The Scientific Study Of Religion, 45(4), 567-584.

doi:10.1111/j.1468-5906.2006.00328.x

Davey, A. P. (2011). Confronting a beast: the Church of England and the British National

Party. International Journal Of Public Theology, 5(4), 435-457.

doi:10.1163/156973211X595925

Frances Gibb; Ruth, G. (2014). Church is in decline because Christianity is not demanding

enough, says top Judge. Times, The (United Kingdom), 8.

N.A. (n.d). Feminism 'fuels Church decline'. Times, The (United Kingdom).

Stanford, P. (2014). Churches should speak up loudly against their critics. Third Sector, (798),

17.


Appendix 1

Table 1

Church Membership, United Kingdom, 1900-2000

Year Member thousands Population thousands

Member as % of

population

1900 8,664 32,237 27

1920 9,803 44,027 22

1940 10,017 47,769 21

1960 9,918 52,709 19

1980 7,529 56,353 13

2000 5,862 59,122 10

Source: Bruce, S. (2001). Christianity in Britain, R.I.P. Sociology Of Religion, 62(2), 191-203.

Figure 1


Appendix 2

Table 2

Sunday School Scholars, United Kingdom, 1900-2000

Year % of population

1900 55

1920 49

1940 36

1960 24

1980 9

2000 4

Source: Bruce, S. (2001). Christianity in Britain, R.I.P. Sociology Of Religion, 62(2), 191-203.

Christianity in Britain - Declining Norms

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