In the days following YouGov pulling a report from Bible Society suggesting a “quiet revival” was underway in the United Kingdom, a humanist organization published an analysis claiming that the shift away from faith is an ongoing trend.
According to an analysis from Humanists UK, “61% of 16 to 34-year-olds identify with no religion.” Less than 3% identify as Church of England or Anglican, while 21% of those aged 70 and over do claim a church identity.
“The data shows that non-religious identity is not a phase young people pass through — it is a settled and stable worldview,” the organization wrote. It further noted that 40% of the UK population “identifies with no religion.”
“These figures reflect something I see and hear all around me. So many people — especially younger people — are living thoughtful, values-driven lives without any religious framework at all, and doing so with confidence and joy,” said Janet Ellis, President of Humanists UK. “For young people, labelling them just as ‘nones’ or ‘no religion’ can be misleading because it implies an absence. But what they actually have is a positive way of being in the world: looking for evidence to know what’s true, and looking to friendships, hobbies, and relationships to give life meaning.”
The analysis comes in response to a recent survey that was re-analyzed after its leaders found it to be unreliable.
Bible Society CEO Paul Williams still expressed an optimism for Britain’s spiritual landscape, noting, “While religious identity overall is shifting from ‘Christian’ to ‘no religion’, Christianity in Britain appears to be moving from a declining nominal faith to a committed and active one, as cultural shifts – especially among younger people – encourage a more proactive search for identity, meaning and purpose.”
In the United States, however, a report found that the number of Americans who consider themselves “nonreligious” has plateaued.
