Britons who don't know where Jesus was born

aged hippy · #1 (**permalink**) 8th December 2007, 11:40 AM

Quote:

Britons who don't know where Jesus was born

By Jonathan Petre, Religion Correspondent
Last Updated: 3:01am GMT 08/12/2007

The extent of Britons' ignorance about the Christmas story is illustrated today in a new report which shows more than a quarter of adults do not know where Jesus was born.

A survey found 27 per cent of Britons aged 18 and over were unable to identify Bethlehem as Jesus's birth place, while the figure rose to 36 per cent of people aged between 18 and 24.

One in ten of those questioned thought the answer was Nazareth and a similar number said Jerusalem.

The poll also found that more than one in four people - 27 per cent - were unaware that an angel told Mary that she would give birth to a son, with some saying she was informed by the shepherds.

Most people surveyed believed that Joseph, Mary and Jesus fled to Nazareth rather than Egypt when they escaped from King Herod, and a few even said the holy family's destination was Rome.

The survey also revealed that just over half did not know that John the Baptist was Jesus's cousin.

Only 12 per cent of adults could answer all four questions about the Christmas story correctly.

The results of the survey, conducted among 1,015 adults last month, are likely to refuel the debate about the secularisation of Christmas.

The poll found that people's knowledge dips significantly with age, with only seven per cent of 18 to 24-year-olds able to answer all four questions correctly. Middle aged people, aged 55 to 64, knew the most, with 18 per cent getting all the questions right.

The findings followed research by the Sunday Telegraph last weekend showing that only one school in every five was planning to stage a traditional Nativity play this year.

Paul Woolley, the director of Theos, the theological think-tank which commissioned the survey, insisted the survey showed the Christmas story, in its classic formulation, was still "very much" in the "cultural bloodstream" of the nation.

But he said when people were asked in detail about the story, their knowledge and understanding was "rather more shaky."

"The fact that younger people are the least knowledgeable about the Christmas story may reflect a decline in the telling of Bible stories in schools and the popularity of Nativity plays," he said.

"No one seriously thinks that being a Christian or a member of the established Church is the same thing as being British today.

"But, at the same time, if we are serious about social cohesion we can't afford to ignore the stories that have bound us together as a culture for a thousand years.

"Any attempts to down-play the Christmas story in order to help social cohesion are likely to be counterproductive."

The region with the highest proportion of people who answered all four questions correctly was the South East, at 19 per cent, followed by the South West, which scored 17 per cent.

Yorkshire and Humberside and London had the highest percentage of people who got all four questions wrong, at 15 per cent.

Unsurprisingly, Christian churchgoers knew the story best, with 36 per cent answering all questions correctly, compared with only five per cent of those describing themselves as atheists.

The questions

1. According to the story in the Christian Bible, where was Jesus born?

73 per cent correctly said Bethlehem. Of the 27 per cent who were wrong, 10 per cent said Nazareth and 9 per cent said Jerusalem.

2. Who told Mary that she would give birth to a son?

73 per cent correctly said an angel. Of the 27 per cent who were wrong, six per cent said the wise men, five per cent said the shepherds and four per cent said Joseph.

3. Who was Jesus' cousin?

48 per cent correctly said John the Baptist. Of the 52 per cent who were wrong, 12 per cent said Peter, six per cent said Luke and six per cent said James. 26 per cent said they did not know.

4. Where did Joseph, Mary and Jesus go to escape from King Herod when Jesus was a young child?

22 per cent correctly said Egypt. Of the 78 per cent who were wrong, 52 per cent said Nazareth, five per cent said Babylon and one per cent said Rome.
Britons who don't know where Jesus was born

Peace, Love, & Light

vivamis123 · #2 (**permalink**) 8th December 2007, 11:37 PM

Aged Hippy, I would be interested in knowing how many britons are christians, percentage wise?

aged hippy · #3 (**permalink**) 9th December 2007, 12:06 AM

Trying to be unbiased....

It's either:

Quote:

Christian Century, March 8, 2003

Nearly three-quarters of the people of the United Kingdom--England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland--describe themselves as Christian, according to a recently published census.
Advertisement

The finding emerged from the 2001 national census, the first to ask the 52 million respondents about religion. The results showed 37.3 million people declared their adherence to Christianity, even though less than 10 percent go to church weekly.

"It is a wake-up call to the churches when so many people identify as Christian but don't feel strongly enough to be part of a church," said David Goodbourn, general secretary of Churches Together in Britain and Ireland.

Some 72 percent described themselves as Christians, 15.5 percent said they had no religion, and 7.3 percent declined to answer the question. Most non-Christians, 2.7 percent, said they were Muslim, Hindu, Jewish, Sikh or Buddhist.

Encouraged by a campaign on the Internet, 390,000 people--0.7 percent of the population--put their religion down as Jedi. Statistically they were included in the "no religion" category.

COPYRIGHT 2003 The Christian Century Foundation
COPYRIGHT 2003 Gale Group

According to Christian Century

or it's:

Quote:

An overwhelming majority see religion as a cause of division and tension. According to an ICM survey conducted on 12-13 December for The Guardian newspaper far more people in Britain think that religion causes harm and division than good.

| FREETHINKTANK | 27 December 2006 - Spero News - The results of the poll indicate that an overwhelming majority see religion as a cause of division and tension - greatly outnumbering the smaller majority who also believe that it can be a force for good.

The survey is the latest confirmation that the Christendom alliance of establishment faith, governance and civil society is coming to an end, say UK Christian think tank Ekklesia in response. The poll reveals that non-believers outnumber believers in Britain by almost two to one.

According to The Guardian, the ICM results paint a picture of "a sceptical nation with massive doubts about the effect religion has on society: 82 percent of those questioned say they see religion as a cause of division and tension between people. Only 16 percent disagree. The findings are at odds with attempts by some religious leaders to define the country as one made up of many faith communities."

Only 33 percent of those questioned describing themselves as "a religious person". A clear majority, 63 percent, say that they are not religious - including more than half of those who describe themselves as Christian.

Today's results come hard on the heels of an Ipsos MORI poll published four weeks ago, reported on Ekklesia but mostly ignored elsewhere. This painted a picture of Britons as non-religious in their ethics and view of the world.

Simon Barrow, co-director of the UK Christian think tank Ekklesia, which has been arguing for some time that the majority "Christendom" settlement is coming to an end, said that the survey results – which confirm the earlier one carried out under the auspices of the British Humanist Association – should act as "a reality check" for Britain's churches.

He commented: "At the moment Christianity seems obsessed with sex and self-preservation. Institutionally, it has lost touch with the radical nature of the Gospel and has become, for many, an irrelevant cultural artefact. The result is massive decline. The idea of 'a Christian nation' is collapsing – but this notion, which some church leaders still try to cling on to, has nothing to do with the person of Jesus, whose message remains a huge challenge to both religious and political establishments."

Barrow added that "while narrow versions of faith based on dogmatic certainty appeal to some who fear change, and are growing, a great number of people see through them. Sadly, many would affirm Gandhi's observation that 'we like your Christ, but not your Christians'. The onus on churches now is to wake up and dream a new future after Christendom."

Ekklesia argues for an end to collusion between religion and state, suggesting that Christianity, in particular, should adopt a more creative and subversive role within civil society – sponsoring activities which promote reconciliation, social justice, hospitality and equality.

The new poll suggests that religious observance in modern Britain has become a habit reserved for special occasions. Just 13 percent of those questioned claimed to visit a place of worship at least once a week, while 43 percent say they never attend a religious service.

Those of other faiths are the most regular attenders. 29 percent say they attend a religious service at least weekly. And while 54 percent of Christians questioned saying they intended to go to a religious service over the holiday period, research indicates that only 6 percent of the population do so – according to a report in The Times newspaper yesterday.

The economically privileged are most likely to visit church this Christmas. 64 percent of the wealthiest expect to attend, compared with 43 percent of those in the lowest income group.

Only 17 percent think that Britain is a 'Christian nation'. The clear majority, 62 percent, agree Britain is better described as "a religious country of many faiths".

Reaction to the new poll has been predictable. The Church of England says that its one million attenders are still the largest gathering in the country. It denies that mainstream religion is a source of tension and says that the "impression of secularism in this country is overrated".

However, Andrew Copson of the British Humanist Association declared: 'This is the evidence for what most people are increasingly accepting as common sense. Britain is not a Christian country and the churches, in spite of their continuing privileges and increasingly shrill insistences to the contrary, have lost the right to speak for Britain. Still less is it possible to claim that Britain can be defined instead as "multi-faith", when such clear majorities disown religion."

He added: "The fact that the Government does not accept this fact, but continue to define the communities of Britain in faith terms, continue to promote faith schools, and to pay unjustified attention to unrepresentative religious 'leaders' must be a source of increasing frustration for many."

Other suggest that the onus of change is now on churches and religious bodies themselves, to define a fresh role for themselves and revisit the roots of their traditions for resources to root out bad religion.

Writing this week on the Guardian's Comment-is-Free, the think tank's co-director Simon Barrow observed: "At Christmas [the churches] proudly announce that it's all about the Christ-child, while pretty comprehensively ignoring most of what he said or did as an adult."

He continued: "Jesus showed no great interest in organised religion. He blessed peacemakers and advocated love of enemies. He broke popular taboos against people regarded as disgraceful or "unclean". ..He ate and drank with the worst of them… he saved his sharpest condemnations for those who thought they had some monopoly on God. It should hardly need saying that very little of this stacks up with what most people find when they go to their local church - at Christmas, or at any other time."

Original article from Spero News

UK opinion poll shows collapse of Christendom

Peace, Love, & Light

Eolas Pellor · #4 (**permalink**) 9th December 2007, 12:13 AM

...how many Americans figure that Jesus was born in Bethlehem, PA? I bet there are quite a few who do.

So nearly 25% or Britons, when asked out of the blue, couldn't recall a bit of a myth. The modern Britrish are not noted for church-going and, as I recall from a poll a few years ago, most do not even own a Bible.

Hardly surprsing, all things considered, that they blew the question.

"Be seeing you..."

vivamis123 · #5 (**permalink**) 9th December 2007, 12:57 AM

My partner insists that Jesus was from Puerto Rico and his real name was Heysus, but then he also believes that puerto-ricans discovered America on the La Flor De Mayo. He's so wrong, but so funny : )

vivamis123 · #6 (**permalink**) 9th December 2007, 01:03 AM

Thanks Aged Hippy. Even though it seems high in percentage, again we have to question those numbers. Many see themselves as christians simply for the fact that they believe that a person once lived by the name of Jesus and that this person preformed miracles. That would include me, but I am not christian. I think the percentage is much lower when asked if they follow the the "rules" set by this religion.

aged hippy · #7 (**permalink**) 9th December 2007, 01:37 AM

You are Welcome, Vivamis.
I don't think that the majority of people (at least - not those of my acquaintance) really think about religion, it's probably easier to answer "Christian" than anything else, simply because the majority of people were - when children - christened and baptised.
Which is - in my carefully considered opinion - a crime.

The one thing i used to hold against my parents was that i was christened and baptised -- but then, Grandmother's word was Law.

Peace, Love, & Light

Tonyamendola · #8 (**permalink**) 11th December 2007, 12:58 AM

I was baptized RC so assume that should make me Christian yet

What am I ?

I am a son of God

aged hippy · #9 (**permalink**) 11th December 2007, 01:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tonyamendola

I was baptized RC so assume that should make me Christian yet

What am I ?

I am a son of God

I can't argue with that....

Peace, Love, & Light

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