Godless in Caerffili...
Lots of twittering going on - in the old-fashioned sense - about the latest census findings. There was the usual panic and immigration debate but a big issue was the increase in the number of those who say they have no religious belief.
The census found that there were four million fewer Christians in England and Wales in 2011 than 10 years earlier and the area with the biggest decrease (does that make sense?!) in faith in general is Caerffili! Non-belief has leapt from 16 to 17% to 40%! Despite this being discussed on at least two news items on Radio 4 I can't find a piece specifically on the place but found this Guardian article about the changes in religious belief in Blaenau Gwent:
Census and religion: churches lose their appeal in struggling Welsh valleys
This is the general picture on Christianty n the UK as described on the BBC News site:
The census found that there were four million fewer Christians in England and Wales in 2011 than 10 years earlier and the area with the biggest decrease (does that make sense?!) in faith in general is Caerffili! Non-belief has leapt from 16 to 17% to 40%! Despite this being discussed on at least two news items on Radio 4 I can't find a piece specifically on the place but found this Guardian article about the changes in religious belief in Blaenau Gwent:
Census and religion: churches lose their appeal in struggling Welsh valleys
This is the general picture on Christianty n the UK as described on the BBC News site:
Churches had pointed to the 72% of people who described themselves as Christian in the 2001 Census to help justify their claim that Britain is a "Christian country".www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-20683744
The sharp decline in the number of people in England and Wales identifying themselves as Christian to 59% is a sign of the religion's weakening influence in society.
The secular trend is confirmed by the significant increase in the percentage of people describing themselves as having no religion from 15% to 25%.
Labels: Blaenau Gwent, Caeffili, Caerphilly, census, change, Christianity, culture, history, Radio 4, religion, Valleys, Wales
posted by Sheilagh Gunston | 3:13 PM
1 Comments:
What has happened to the strength of The Welsh Chapel community? Does it count? Have the local demographics changed so dramatically that there is such a great dilution? It makes you question what the real underlying trends were, when community pressure to conform existed.
That's the problem with censuses; they can quote figures,they are great for stats and quantity, but, they are without any real qualitative analysis. If QA was divinated at some point soon, (it won't be) we just might get enlightenment on what people really believe, what they think, and gain some perspective on the demographics that are 'elusive' in the current outcomes.
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