Tackling the predominance of atheism in western society

Read about the meeting on 9 April 2016.

On behalf of the Prophecy Today team, I would like to extend my hearty thanks to all who attended our 1^st Anniversary Celebration this past Saturday (9 April 2016) – and further thanks to all who prayed from afar!

We all enjoyed an extremely encouraging day at Regents Hall (Salvation Army), London, with more than 70 in attendance (including the team), many of whom had come long distances. We also really valued sharing the day with Issachar Ministries, Prophecy Today's parent charity, which hosted its 2016 Open Day alongside.

The whole day proved a great opportunity to celebrate the year past and to express hopes and desires for the year to come, to thank God for his faithfulness in re-establishing Prophecy Today (and getting it off to a flying start!) and to stand together with united hearts and purpose.

The day was opened with worship, led by Prophecy Today's Managing Editor, Frances Rabbitts. Following this, reports were shared by members of both the Issachar Ministries and the Prophecy Today teams, analysing the year previous. The atmosphere was very informal and delegates were able to chip in with questions and feedback as things progressed. There were also opportunities in small groups to lift up the nation in prayer, and to share with one other what we feel God has been saying. There was a sense of unity and urgency in this which was a privilege to experience.

Prior to lunch everyone was treated to the inspirational speaking of Paul Szkiler, who shared about his recent investment and discipleship ventures in Sierra Leone. Sadly, we were unable to be joined by David Noakes, who is recovering from an eye operation and would value your prayers.

In the afternoon the Prophecy Today Editorial Board took it in turns to speak to the group about one part of the magazine's work, including their hopes for its future development. Led by Clifford Hill, reviews were given of each of Prophecy Today's major sections, including its topical comments, study material, resource provision and focus on Israel.

Clifford Denton also formally introduced delegates to a new Bible study website currently being developed as a joint project between Issachar Ministries and Prophecy Today, promising Scripture study courses for members and a forum for communal discussion.

Towards the end of the day, Board members were prayed for individually, which was a source of real encouragement and refreshment. Things were drawn to a close with prayer and worship, but delegates stayed around afterwards to chat, pray for each other and peruse the resources stand stocked by Issachar Ministries.

In all, the day provided a fantastic booster for the Prophecy Today team as they head into their second year – and from the feedback, it was a great encouragement for delegates too. Now that we have all headed back to our own churches, workplaces and communities, we hope and pray that God will continue to affirm in our hearts the strong sense of togetherness - that feeling of being part of God's broader agenda for this nation and beyond - which was brought so deftly to the fore on Saturday.

Frances Rabbitts, Managing Editor
On behalf of the Prophecy Today UK Editorial Board

Additional Notes

If you would like us to send you a e-copy of Prophecy Today's 1^st annual review, please send us an email.

We would also ask our community of supporters to continue to pray about making a regular financial commitment to the ministry (however small). We keep our costs low but have some overheads that we would like to share, especially since we do not want to make a charge to readers of the site. An underlying theme of our ministry, shared on Saturday, was that we are building an interactive community that will continue to grow together. If the Lord is leading you to contribute financially (either personally or through the ministry of your church fellowship) please let us know and we will send details of how to donate.

A press release from WIN/Gallup International exploring the religious beliefs of 63,898 people from 65 countries around the world was published in April 2015 and picked up in the British press. Monica Hill looks at the key statistics and comments from a biblical perspective.

Which are the Most (and Least) Religious Nations?

63% of those polled worldwide claimed to be 'religious'. Regionally, Africa (86%) headed the field closely followed by MENA (Middle East and North Africa) (82%), Eastern Europe (71%), America (66%), Asia (62%), Oceania (44%) and Western Europe (43%) trailing behind. Armenia, Bangladesh, Georgia, Morocco, Fiji, South Africa are all in the 90+% bracket with Thailand leading at 94%, whereas China claimed to be just 7%.

Western Europe and Oceania are the only regions where about half of the population are either not religious or acknowledge themselves to be atheists. As noted above, the least religious country in the world was found to be China, where 61% of people claim to be convinced atheists (that's twice as many as any other country) and 29% say that they're not religious (cf. just 7% who are). In the Western world, the Swedes proved to be the least religious (78% either not religious or declared atheist). The largest proportion of atheists (14%) are to be found in Western Europe and Asia, with Oceania also at 12%.

Surprisingly, younger people (classed as those under 34) tend to be more religious than other age groups (about 66% as against about 60% in other brackets).

Trends in the Middle East

Israel has a high proportion of unreligious people and convinced atheists (65%, compared to 30% who say they are religious). In the West Bank and Gaza this proportion is much lower (18%, compared to 70% who say they are religious).

Religion in Britain

Just 30% of British citizens consider themselves religious. That's against 70% of Russians and 56% of Americans. 53% of the British said they were 'not religious'. 13% said they were a 'convinced atheist' and the rest were 'don't knows'. Only three countries in Europe were lower than Britain, with Sweden the lowest at 19%.

The Gallup US Question Breakdown can be found here.

Responses in the British Media

It is not surprising that in the British Press the UK statistics were highlighted. The BBC and ITV News headlines were essentially the same: Britain has been found to be one of the least religious countries in the world. The Daily Telegraph's website gave a balanced breakdown across the world in a helpful map.¹ The Independent charts the following points and asks for (and receives) comments:²

1. There are twice as many religious people as non-believers.
2. Religion is dominant on every continent.
3. Older people are, surprisingly, less religious.
4. People in the middle aged bracket (44-54) are the least likely to be religious, the most likely to be atheist.
5. On the other hand, people in their twenties are most likely to identify with a religion, and so are a high proportion of under 25s.
6. Housewives are the most often religious, the full-time employed the least.
7. Wealthier people are less religious and so are people with more education.

Secularist Groups

The comments from Secularist groups were interesting. The British Humanist Society empathised that other polls have all found similar results in recent years. Their Director of Public Affairs and Campaigns, Pavan Dhaliwal, commented:

While politicians continue to make exaggerated claims about the importance of Christianity to Britain's shared cultural life, yet another poll has shown that British people are largely non-religious. On top of that we know that a majority of people in Britain, whatever their religious or non-religious beliefs, do not want to see public policies influenced by religious ideas. Let our politicians take note: continued attempts to justify policy on the grounds of a religious identity most of us do not share not only breeds needless division, but builds upon serious shaky ground.³

While Stephen Evans, National Secular Society campaigns manager, commented:

It's striking that of the least religious countries, the UK is the only one with an established state religion. Instead of burying their heads in the sand and constantly repeating the mantra of the UK being a 'Christian country', perhaps the time has come for politicians of all stripes to recognise the need to reflect the reality of changing times by separating religion from the state.⁴

Comment: Reasons to Hope

Statistics are only indicators and global statistics (good or bad) in particular should not overwhelm us. We must learn how to use them as advice for developing strategies to reach people and places to which God is calling us. This survey is one of self-perception with no factual proof required, and understanding in many dimensions will differ. But whether you agree with the above comments or not about the situation in the UK, Christians need to take note. Perhaps they are! Have you noticed the following signs of growth?

Growth in small groups:

• Although many church congregations nationwide are getting smaller, we have been noting for some time a great growth in small groups – and over the summer months we can also see that the larger gatherings of Christians across denominations are also growing almost exponentially.

Summer celebrations:

• Songs of Praise recently showed the Keswick Convention, which has been going since 1875 – this has grown to 3 weeks every summer plus 20+ ancillary meetings around the country, packed and moving into new premises in the Lake District. Although this attracts people mainly from the more traditional evangelical spectrum, there has also been tremendous growth in other sectors using large residential Easter and summer holiday time venues.
• Spring Harvest started these in 1979 in Butlins, reached 70,000 over 3 sites in the 1990s and is still going strong (see right). New Word Alive, now separate from Spring Harvest, attracts around 4,000 each year. New Wine from the Charismatic sector was founded in 1989, with Soul Survivor youth events four years later in 1993 and Momentum (for 20s and 30s) in 2004. Soul Survivor alone now has over 25,000 young people attending their camps each summer. And the list could go on!
• So growth in small groups AND in conference events are both to be reckoned with.

Three Tiers of Interaction

I am reminded of an understanding of church dynamics which we need to be able to rejoice in: Christians need at least three tiers of interaction – small group, congregation and celebration.

Although the regular congregational meeting is important and has been the visual mainstay of the church, small groups where Christians can interact and get to know each other and the Lord better were the bulwark of Wesleyan Methodism. It was in small meetings in the home where people accepted the Lord as their Saviour and these personal relationships are becoming more and more important. But we also need large celebration events where we can be encouraged and fortified in a way that may not be possible in smaller groups.

Jesus knew something about group dynamics. He chose a small group of 12 to be his disciples, of whom four were really close to him. He then drew together the 72 who were much more task-orientated, as he sent them out to be active witnesses. But he also had gatherings of the 4,000 and 5,000 who were blessed in very different ways.

Each level had its purpose and all are still necessary for Christians today. Communities and relationships of faith may now be facing different pressures and strains because of the internet, individualistic Western culture and increasingly global perspectives, but we still have the same needs in our Christian life. We must not limit what the Lord can do at each level.

References

1 Akkoc, R. Mapped: These are the world's most religious countries. The Telegraph, 13 April 2015.

2 Boren, Z D. 7 charts that reveal the most – and the least – religious people across the world...and how it is the young who are the biggest believers. The Independent, 13 April 2015.

3 British Humanist Association. UK among least religious countries in the world, finds international poll. 13 April, 2015.

4 National Secular Society. Survey: UK is one of the least religious countries in the world. 13 April 2015.