Belief in God in the UK continues to lag a long way behind the United States, a new study suggests. In the US, 61 per cent of those surveyed said that they had “no doubt” that God existed; in the UK, the percentage was just 17. In the US, just four per cent said that they were not religious at all: they don’t believe in God, attend religious services, or even identify with a reliÂgion; in the UK the percentage was 31.
The figures come in a paper by David Voas and Rodney Ling, to be published in British Social Attitudes: The 26th report, to be released on 27 January. The US figures are based on the American General Social Survey 2008; the UK ones come from the 2008 British Social Attitudes survey, which interviewed 4486 people.
The authors suggest a significant decline in religious practice in the UK. “Over the last quarter of a century, the number of people desÂcribing themÂselves as Christian has dropped from 66 per cent to 50 per cent.”
“Belief in God in the UK continues to lag a long way behind the United States, a new study suggests”
… or, maybe the UK (and the rest of the Europe) is ahead of the trend towards cynicism in the face of traditional religious institutions?
Wake up Christian before it is too late, it is time to take up the fight ye soldiers of the cross and defend the Christian faith in the UK.
For the last decade Christians have been subject to Christianphobia…
QUESTION: WHAT IS CHRISTIANPHOBIA?
In many parts of the UK there is a new aggressive atheism that for the last decade has been sweeping all areas of UK society. It is being led by a number of aggressive academic atheists; who are encouraging the persecution, ridicule and mocking of Christianity and Christians. Their ultimate aim is to eradicate Christianity from all parts of society, including Education, Government departments mainstream media; TV, Radio etc. These atheists have created an environment where it is a fun sport to bully Christians and intimidate them if they dare to declare their Christian faith publicly especially in the work place or in public life. This attitude towards persecuting Christians is now known as Christianphobia.
I wrote about the Christianphobia recently on a British national academic newspaper blog who’s atheistic writers see the ridicule of Christians and Christianity as the new popular ‘sport’ of their daily current affairs blog.
The threads that these writers create ( with the full support of the newspaper) always prove very popular for atheists, humanists and trendy left wing liberals who queue up to show their unbridled hatred for Christianity and the ‘fools’ that have a Christian faith. They show no respect for Christians or their faith often attacking them in a personal way in order to undermine any counter views/ beliefs but their own; what could be classed as extreme arrogance.
The ‘new atheist’ try and perpetuate the myth that you cannot be a scientist or an academic and at the same time be a Christian. They conclude that all people who are Christians must have inferior intelligence and some kind of weakness or flaw in their makeup, they truly believe the new atheists have superior intelligence; some claim they are the ‘enlightened ones’. They have created a new fundamentalist atheism, which is just as intolerant as any type of the worst examples of religious or political fanaticism. Their aim is to undermine or destroy Christianity where ever they find it in public life and turn others against the Christian faith; this behaviour/ attitude has become known as Christianphobia.
‘Christianphobia is alive and kicking in the UK today not Islamophobia, not Hinduphobia, not Jewishphobia, not Buddaphobia, not newagephobia, not harrykrishna, not scientologyphobia, not mormonphobia, not jehovaswitnessphobia, not newfalsegreenreligion/climatechangephobia or any other religious phobia; in the UK today: NO! JUST CHRISTIANPHOBIA.
Funny isn’t it why only Christianity and Christians are the targets of the aggressive ‘new atheists’, humanists and secular academic trendies.
Is it because Christians are easy targets and don’t fight back?
Maybe it is because Jesus is the way the truth and the life; and deep down the persecutors know it and they despise the light of Jesus so they do their best to ridicule and persecute the Christians and try and put out the light that shines on their live’s; the darker this nation becomes the brighter the light of Jesus shines.
‘Some people say there is no God yet spend a life time hating and blaming Him for everything that is wrong; don’t you find that really odd?’
I wonder why angry atheists spend so much time trying to show everyone just how superior they are to those foolish stupid people that have faith: I wonder if they would have said the same to great men like William Wilberforce, C.S. Lewis and many other Christians throughout history who have made such a positive difference to millions of peoples’ lives. One of the greatest human qualities I value in people, that I have met from all walks of life in my 54 interesting years on this earth is; humility. Sadly it is always missing from the, ‘know- it -all’, academic atheists who can never be wrong and seem to be so full of their own self importance.
I can only pray that one day that all unbelievers will have their own Saul experience… on their own Road to Damascus..
NIV Acts Chapter 9 V 1-19
Begins with… “Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord’s disciples. He went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem. As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, ” Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”
” Who are you, Lord? ” Saul asked.
” I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,”
These personal opinions/views are based on my own experience of debating on many political forums known as blogs and what has been written in UK’s national newspapers, and observations of the New Labour Government’s policies over the last decade or more. I have also closely followed key political debates in the UK Parliament; especially on moral issues.
Written by Simon Icke UK. 17. December 2009.
Christian political writer, campaigner and poet.
P.S.
You might be interested in a new book aimed at the academic atheists by Professor Edgar Andrews who is also an academic and a scientist and has just published his book WHO MADE GOD? Published by E.P. books October 2009.
Simon Icke: it is comments like yours above that put sane people in the UK off Christianity!
Instead of screaming “persecution” while at the same time persecuting gay people, Christians need to calm down a bit and cultivate the virtues which attract rather than repel.