Religious or Not?

Are we Religious or Not?

The guardian today announced that the proportion of population who identify as having no religion rose from 25% in 2011 to 48.5% in 2014.

The number of people who say they have no religion is rapidly escalating and significantly outweighs the Christian population in England and Wales, according to new analysis.

The proportion of the population who identify as having no religion – referred to as “nones” – reached 48.5% in 2014, almost double the figure of 25% in the 2011 census. Those who define themselves as Christian – Anglicans, Catholics and other denominations – made up 43.8% of the population.

Current religious affiliation, %

Anglican

Catholic

Other Christian

Non-Christian religion

No religion

19.8

8.3

15.7

7.7

48.5

50%

Guardian graphic | Source: St Mary’s University, Twickenham, London; BSA 2012-14

A spokesperson for the Church of England said: “The increase in those identifying as ‘no faith’ reflects a growing plurality in society rather than any increase in secularism or humanism. We do not have an increasingly secular society as much as a more agnostic one.

HOWEVER Christianity remains the world’s largest religion with over 2 billion adherents. And.. In the UK the latest census found the overwhelming majority of people to have a faith.

So... Are we Religious or Not?

Is Marriage Outdated?

‘It is not lack of love but lack of friendship that makes unhappy marriages’

Friedrich Nietzsche

A slew of celebrity divorces and quarrels played out in grim detail under the glare of the media has led to a bout of public soul-searching about the institution of marriage itself.  It is a common essay question at GCSE!

Thoughts: 

1. Do you agree that we expect too much from marriage these days?
2. Imagine that you could get a starter marriage lasting for a fixed term of three years before a final commitment. Good idea?

‘Giggs £20m divorce: Footballer faces record payout,’ splashes the Daily Mail. 

Another week, another high-profile split. 

The news of the former Manchester United player’s break up came only a week after another ex-footballer, twice-married Gary Lineker, complained that divorce was too difficult. Instead of a messy legal process, he said, there should be a ‘mathematical equation’ that makes it quick and painless.

The two men are far from alone. This week divorce rumours are also circling Beyoncé and Jay-Z, Kanye West and Kim Kardashian, Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt. And where celebrities go, the rest of us follow. For instance, in the UK around four out of ten people who legally vow to stay with their partner forever will one day realise that they cannot keep their promise.

Why? Around 15% of divorces end with adultery, and most others are put down to ‘unreasonable behaviour’ or a long period of separation. But the philosopher Alain de Botton has another theory: we are simply not very good at choosing the right person to marry.

Check out the clip below on the Science of love: