The Moral and Religious Profile of Britain Today

Professor Linda WoodheadLancaster University

AHRC/ESRC Westminster Faith Debateswww.faithdebates.org

1.Moral profile-moral majority-moral minority

2.Religious profile-majority -minorities

Based on data from:

1.£12m AHRC/ESRC Religion & Society Research Programme2.Three surveys on religion and values designed by me and administered by YouGov, 2013. Each one nationally representative (9,000 people in total)3.Own research

Moral profile of Britain

Values consensus

• On personal morality (from abortion to same-sex marriage to euthanasia) the overwhelming majority of British people are liberal

• On socio-political issues matters more are ‘centre-right’ than ‘centre-left’

7% GB 9% GB

38% GB 45% GB

Social (leftwing)

Paternalist

Liberal

Individualist(rightwing)

A values profile of GB

Vertical axis = personal morality

Horizontal = socio-political views

Religious values

• The values of most Christians are close to the general consensus

7% GB5% CofE

9% GB10% CofE

38% GB30% CofE

45% GB56% CofE

Social

Paternalist

Liberal

Individualist

Values profile of Anglicans compared with population

NB the leadership is in a different place

Church leaders are out of step with the moral convictions of the British people

Positioned in top left and right quartiles

E.g. less than 30% of Christians under 45 think that same sex marriage is wrong. A clear majority under 45 think it is positively right.

The moral minority

A liberal, democratic/egalitarian ‘moral majority’ of >90% of the GB population

A strict moral minority of 8.5%(on abortion, SSM, euthanasia)

The post-paternalistic moral revolution

• The boundaries of liberalism extended• Egalitarianism extended to include women,

children, the disabled, LBGT people

• “post-paternalism”• Read by churches as religio-moral dissolution

• The moral minority remain on the paternalist side of the divide

• Splits churches between approved moral minorities and disaffected moral majorities

Religious Profile of Britain

1.Ethnic/cultural majority

2.Ethnic/cultural and religious minorities

Census 2011 (England &Wales)

Source: ONS

Religious by ageSource: Woodhead, YouGov for Westminster faith Debates 2013

The failure of religious institutions in GB to connect with religious people under 40

The coming apart of Christian institutions and the spiritual and moral life of the nation

Spiritual creativity, institutional failure

Results in displaced persons – no neat institutional home

Complex identities

“Catholics”

• 76% believe in God• 54% don’t go to church• 52% don’t identify as either religious or spiritual• 33% no spiritual practice in private• 19% “not influenced by any religion at all”• 4% take ANY guidance from religious leaders

(11% from my religion, 8% God)

“Nones” on the run

• 25% practise a spiritual activity in private• 17% believe in God (22% agnostic, 41%

atheist)• 11% describe themselves as “spiritual”• 1% belong to a religious group• 0% take ANY guidance from religious leaders

(30% from science)

Source: Woodhead, YouGov for Westminster faith Debates 2013

Religious or spiritual or…

Which, if any, of the following best describes you?

A spiritual person 11A religious person 10

Both spiritual and religious 10I would not describe myself, or

my values and beliefs, as spiritual or religious

51

None of these 13Don't know 5

Source: Woodhead, YouGov for Westminster faith Debates 2013

Which do you rely on most?(CHURCHGOERS)

CofE RC

Own reason and judgement 31 20Own intuition or feelings 14 14Family 11 17Trusted friends 3 3God or 'higher power' 15 13The tradition and teachings of my religion

10 17

Science 1 1A scripture or holy book, e.g. Bible, Qur'an

7 5

The religious or spiritual group to which I belong

3 5

Religious leaders, local or national

1 0

Authority – self not religious leaders or sources

2.Ethnic/cultural minorities

Census 2011 (England &Wales)

Source: ONS

Minorities are likely to have much clearer ‘mono-identities’ – Sikh, Muslim, born-again Christian, atheist etc.

Conditions favouring mono-identities

1.Cultural defence (and attack) in relation to majority2.Mobilisation against injustice3.Strategic opportunities4.Counter-cultural advantages

View minority identities in GB in relation to a spectrum of security

Jewish identity: secure

From trying to achieve security in insecure conditions to greater security – room for more complex and fractured identities to expand.

Muslim identity: insecure

• Race, class, colonial factors make Muslims the most insecure large group in Britain

• Injustices exacerbate

• Heighted religious identity – from culture to religion – is a reaction

• vicious cycle of insecurity and mono-identity

Christian minority identity

• Over-60s Christiansplus• A defensive Christian moral minority

• Daily Mail, Daily Telegraph moaning and mourning

The defensive Christian minority

•Aim to purify and defend ‘fundamentals’ of faith•Conservative family defence•Anti women’s equality, anti gay

Ironically, reinforces drift from the churches

Atheist minority

Do you believe in a god or some 'higher power'?

Yes, there is definitely a God or some 'higher power' 26

Yes, there is probably a God or some 'higher power' 23

No, there is probably NOT a God or some 'higher power' 16

No, there is definitely NOT a God some 'higher power' 19

Don't know 17

Definitely no God

18-14 21%25-39 22%40-59 23%60+ 14%

Threatened identities

• The two most threatened groups in GB at the moment are paternalist Xns and Muslims. The first because privilege draining away, the second because the most genuinely disprivileged group

• Their loud voices colour views of religion as paternalist, mono-identity, intolerant

• Reinforce “new” atheism

Insecurities

•Higher profile of religion•Decline of scientific prestige•Masculinity? 5:3 male:female

Govt policies reinforce mono-identities

•“community” multiculturalism•RE•favouring traditional religious representatives•juridification of religious identity, first under HR law, since 2006 under equality law

The God-fearing moral minority

A liberal, democratic/egalitarian ‘moral majority’ of 80-90% of the GB population

A strict moral minority of 8.5%(on abortion, SSM, euthanasia)

A God-fearing moral minority of 3.6%

Conclusion

• Settled majority with clear moral consensus• Non-Christian minorities, secure and insecure• Atheist minority

Religious institutions catering better for defensive minorities than secure majorities

Spiritual creativity, institutional religious failure An increasingly unchurched country