A recent YouGov poll shows a significant increase in belief in God among young people in the United Kingdom, while atheism has declined.
Among 16- to 24-year-olds, the proportion who say they “believe there is a God or gods” rose from 16% in August 2021 to 37% today. In the same group, those identifying as atheists fell from 49% to 32%.
The trend is less pronounced among adults aged 25 to 49, with belief in God increasing from 21% to 25% and atheism falling from 45% to 42%. The poll did not specify which faiths respondents follow, nor did it provide data by race or ethnicity.
The Rt Rev Jill Duff, Bishop of Lancaster, attributed the rise to a growing spiritual curiosity among young people. “It is very much what we are seeing on the ground in our churches. Younger people are more spiritually open and curious about God, Christianity and the supernatural,” she told The Telegraph. Duff described the shift as a “spiritual awakening,” accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic and its aftermath.
The poll aligns with findings from the Bible Society’s “Quiet Revival” study, which showed that monthly church attendance among 18- to 24-year-olds rose from 4% in 2018 to 16% in 2023.
Demographic changes may also play a role. Rakib Ehsan, a researcher at the University of Oxford’s Migration Observatory, noted that growth among self-identified young Muslims is contributing to the overall rise in religiosity among young Britons.
The findings come amid a long-term decline in the UK’s Christian population. The 2021 census reported that less than half of the population now identifies as Christian, down from 59.3% in 2011 and over 70% in 2001. In the same period, the Muslim population increased from 2.7 million to 3.9 million, with nearly half under 24.
A Pew Research Center report highlighted a similar global trend: while Christianity remains the world’s largest religion, its share of the global population has fallen over the last decade, largely due to people leaving the faith.
Adapted from The Christian Post.
