Christian Viewpoint: 'Census only reveals one aspect of our spirituality'

Recently, some rather startling statistics were published, writes John Dempster.

In the 2021 England and Wales census the percentage of people identifying as “Christian” was 46 per cent – a drop from 59 per cent in 2011. The percentage ticking ‘no religion’ jumped to 37 per cent from 25 per cent.

The results of the 2022 Scottish census haven’t yet been released, but in a YouGov poll last year on behalf of the Scottish Humanist Society, 33 per cent of Scots claimed to be Christian, 56 per cent said they had ‘no religion’ and a massive 75 per cent reported “I am not religious”. It is clear that here too adherence to the Christian religion is plunging.

But it’s worth remembering other research by the Theos organisation which suggests that a significant proportion of people in the UK who identify as of “no religion” in fact hold various spiritual beliefs.

And I find it helpful to remember that the vast majority of people in history, and the vast majority of people in the world today (93 per cent, some estimate) have spiritual beliefs of one kind or another. So if in Europe and North America we are turning away from the spiritual, we are out of step with the global majority. This surely calls for humility and reflection.

Related: Christian Viewpoint: 'We come perplexed, struggling with doubts'

Christianity is fundamentally not an organisation, an authoritarian structure, a set of rules, an infallible book. At heart, it’s a spiritual faith, centred, as thinker Mark Vernon puts it, on “humanity discovering its wellspring and source,” on “a revelation of reality”.

Christian faith is an invitation to live in relationship with the divine. Christians believe humanity is part of a seamless creation of things visible and invisible: humans, and the natural world, and spiritual beings and angels and dark forces, and the ‘great crowd’ of those who have gone before us. We Christians have a lot in common with those who are spiritual, but not religious! I ticked “Christian” in the census, but I see myself not as the follower of a religion, but a follower of Jesus Christ, not as part of an organisation, but part of a living community.

Christians are called to be real about what we believe, and real about the experience of following Jesus – real about the times God seems far away, as well as the moments of joy when God draws very close. Real too, about the shortcomings of the organisation.

God’s survey asks us two simple questions: “Do you love me? Do you love your neighbours as yourself?” However we answer, I believe the longing in our hearts is not simply the product of brain chemistry, but the gentle summons of Christ’s love.

And I believe 100 per cent of us are loved, 100 per cent invited to find fulfilment in the relationship we were made for.

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