Humanist says calling U.K. a Christian nation is now 'palpably false'

Last month, it was reported that there are now more people in England and Wales who do not identify with any religion than those who identify with Christianity. This was clear for some time, said Andrew Copson, the chief executive of the British Humanist Association; but now, because of the extent of change, it has caught people's attention.

"This is significant, because identity has for some time been the only thing that proponents of Britain as a 'Christian country' had left to argue for their case," Copson wrote on Newsweek. Moreover, he said, "Cultural identity was about the only personal attachment that most Britons had to Christianity. Now, they don't."

The analysis of the British Social Attitudes Survey published in May showed that for the first time, the number of people with no religion in England and Wales had overtaken the number of Christians. In 2011, 25 percent said they had not religion; but in 2014, this went up to 48.5 percent, higher than the 43.8 percent who belong to a Christian denomination.

"The main driver is people who were brought up with some religion now saying they have no religion," said Stephen Bullivant, senior lecturer in theology and ethics at St Mary's Catholic University, as quoted by The Guardian. "What we're seeing is an acceleration in the numbers of people not only not practising their faith on a regular basis, but not even ticking the box. The reason for that is the big question in the sociology of religion."

While the number of non-religious people is expected to continue to grow, Copson said that the British society, its politics, and its politicians "have not caught up with this change at all and show a disappointing disinclination to do so."

He cited education as an example wherein one-third of state schools are controlled by religious groups. He mentioned that some parents have admitted to attending church only to get their kids into these schools. Moreover, the Church is making an effort in reinforcing Christianity in academic institutions. In state prisons, hospitals, universities, and the armed forces, provision for pastoral support, he said, is almost all Christian.

In Copson's opinion, the shift in demographic would have to mean having to also make shifts in the constitution; thus, "an end to the establishment of churches where they still exist." 

"It would also lead to the end of official pronouncements that we are a 'Christian country,'" he wrote. Identifying the United Kingdom as a Christian nation, he said, "is now not only dangerously divisive but palpably false."

The British Humanist Association is a non-profit organization that promotes humanism that works on behalf of people "who seek to live ethical and fulfilling lives on the basis of reason and humanity."