Three In Five 'Believe In God'
Three in five Britons (60%) say they believe in God, according to a new survey from the MORI Social Research Institute. The research, conducted for the BBC's 'Heaven and Earth Show', shows a small drop over the past five years (down from 64% in February 1998) in the percentage of Britons who say they believe in God.
One in five British people (18%) say they are a practising member of an organised religion, with a quarter (25%) a non-practising member. A further quarter (24%) are spiritually inclined but 'do not really belong to an organised religion', whilst 14% are agnostic and 12% are atheist.
Most people in Britain say their own life experience has the most influence on their views and outlook on life. Of those asked, three in five (62%) say their views are most influenced by their own life experience, while more than half (56%) say their parents and almost a third (30%) say their education most influence their views. As far as religious teaching are concerned, 17% say these have the most influence on their views or outlook on life.
Technical details
Results are based on 1001 interviews conducted by telephone with a representative sample of British adults, aged 16+. Interviews were conducted between 8-17 August 2003. Data have been weighted to match the known population profile. Trend data is taken from a 'Paranormal' survey conducted by MORI on behalf of The Sun newspaper between 4-5 February 1998 with a representative sample of 721 adults aged 18+ across Great Britain (Q2B, Q2C) and a BBC Heaven and Earth Survey conducted by MORI between 15-17 December 2000 with a representative sample of 999 adults aged 15+ across Great Britain (Q1B).
What We Believe In Now?
Q2a Which, if any, of the following would you say best describes you?
| % | |
|---|---|
| I am a practising member of an organised religion | 18 |
| I am a non-practising member of an organised religion | 25 |
| I am spiritually inclined but don't really "belong" to an organised religion | 24 |
| I am agnostic (not sure if there's a God) | 14 |
| I am atheist (convinced there's no God) | 12 |
| None of these | 7 |
| Don't know | 1 |
Q2b Which, if any, of the things I am going to read out do you believe in?
| February 1998 | August 2003 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yes | No | Don't Know | Yes | No | Don't Know | |
| % | % | % | % | % | % | |
| God | 64 | 26 | 10 | 60 | 29 | 11 |
| Life after death | 45 | 42 | 13 | 47 | 43 | 10 |
| A soul | 67 | 24 | 9 | 68 | 27 | 6 |
| Heaven | 54 | 37 | 9 | 52 | 40 | 8 |
| Astrology | 38 | 53 | 9 | 31 | 66 | 4 |
| Ghosts | 40 | 52 | 8 | 38 | 56 | 6 |
| Telepathy | 54 | 37 | 9 | 42 | 51 | 7 |
| Guardian Angels | 31 | 61 | 8 | 40 | 56 | 4 |
| Premonitions/ESP | 64 | 29 | 7 | 54 | 41 | 6 |
| Fortune telling/ Tarot | 18 | 75 | 7 | 13 | 83 | 4 |
| Deja-vu | 66 | 30 | 4 | 57 | 38 | 5 |
| Out of body experience | 31 | 58 | 11 | 32 | 61 | 7 |
| Reincarnation | 24 | 64 | 12 | 23 | 68 | 9 |
| Hell | n/a | n/a | n/a | 32 | 62 | 6 |
| Near-death experience | 51 | 37 | 12 | 60 | 34 | 7 |
| Psychics/ Mediums | 28 | 63 | 9 | 28 | 66 | 6 |
| Faith healers | 32 | 56 | 12 | 24 | 68 | 8 |
| That dreams can predict the future | 30 | 60 | 10 | 25 | 69 | 6 |
Q2c And have you had any personal experience of …, or not.
| February 1998 | August 2003 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yes | No | Don't Know | Yes | No | Don't Know | ||
| % | % | % | % | % | % | % of total population saying yes | |
| Astrology | 17 | 82 | 1 | 30 | 69 | * | 9 |
| Base 2003: All those who believe in Astrology at Q2B (306) | |||||||
| Ghosts | 37 | 59 | 4 | 49 | 48 | 2 | 19 |
| Base 2003: All those who believe in Ghosts at Q2B (390) | |||||||
| Telepathy | 35 | 64 | 1 | 41 | 59 | 1 | 17 |
| Base 2003: All those who believe in Telepathy at Q2B (427) | |||||||
| Guardian Angels | 31 | 66 | 3 | 43 | 52 | 4 | 17 |
| Base 2003: All those who believe in Guardian Angels at Q2B (393) | |||||||
| Premonitions/ESP | 41 | 57 | 2 | 48 | 50 | 2 | 26 |
| Base 2003: All those who believe in Premonitions/ESP at Q2B (545) | |||||||
| Fortune telling/ Tarot | 60 | 40 | 0 | 64 | 34 | 1 | 9 |
| Base 2003: All those who believe in Fortune telling/Tarot at Q2B (137) | |||||||
| Deja-vu | 79 | 20 | * | 83 | 16 | 1 | 47 |
| Base 2003: All those who believe in Deja-vu at Q2B (582) | |||||||
| Out of body experience | 21 | 79 | * | 26 | 72 | 2 | 8 |
| Base 2003: All those who believe in Out of body experience at Q2B (330) | |||||||
| Reincarnation | 8 | 90 | 2 | 10 | 88 | 2 | 2 |
| Base 2003: All those who believe in Reincarnation at Q2B (229) | |||||||
| Near-death experience | 17 | 82 | 1 | 20 | 80 | 0 | 12 |
| Base 2003: All those who believe in Near-death experience at Q2B (599) | |||||||
| Psychics/ Mediums | 37 | 63 | 1 | 46 | 53 | 1 | 13 |
| Base 2003: All those who believe in Psychics/Mediums at Q2B (289) | |||||||
| Faith healers | 24 | 56 | 0 | 33 | 66 | * | 8 |
| Base 2003: All those who believe in Faith healers at Q2B (244) | |||||||
| That dreams can predict the future | 42 | 60 | 3 | 58 | 41 | * | 14 |
| Base 2003: All those who believe in That dreams can predict the future at Q2B (248) | |||||||
Who Or What Inspires You?
Q3a I am going to read out a list. From the list, please can you tell me which two or three, if any, of these you find most inspirational?
| % | |
|---|---|
| Close friends | 46 |
| A walk in the country | 41 |
| Music or poetry | 27 |
| Jesus | 24 |
| Nelson Mandela | 20 |
| Princess Diana | 13 |
| A sacred text | 6 |
| Ellen McArthur | 4 |
| The Dalai Lama | 3 |
| Other | 4 |
| None/Nothing | 3 |
| Don't know | 1 |
Q3b Please can you tell me whether you can name any of the following, or not?
| Yes | No | |
|---|---|---|
| % | % | |
| Any of the 4 New Testament Gospels? | 55 | 45 |
| The sacred book used by Muslims? | 60 | 40 |
| The name of the Archbishop of Canterbury | 18 | 82 |
| The name of the Pope | 62 | 38 |
| The name of the last Conservative Prime Minister | 65 | 35 |
| The winner of the most recent Big Brother series | 28 | 72 |
