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CV NEWS FEED // The number of Christians — especially Catholics — in the UK is rising, largely driven by Gen Z and young millennials, a new study found. If the trend persists, Catholics could soon outnumber Anglicans in the country for the first time since King Henry VIII established the Anglican Church in the 16th century.
The study, which was commissioned by the Bible Society and performed by YouGov, discovered that 16% of 18- to 24-year-olds (Gen Z) said in 2024 that they attended church at least monthly, compared with just 4% who said the same thing in 2018. The overall population that attends church at least monthly totaled 5.8 million in 2024 — 12% of the overall population — and was a 56% increase from 2018.
The report regarding the study described the phenomenon as a “quiet revival” that contradicts media narratives that Christianity is dying in today’s culture.
“For decades, Church attendance and nominal adherence to Christianity has been declining, and it has been assumed that this decline would continue and was in some sense an inevitable product of modernity,” Paul Williams, CEO of the Bible Society, stated. “While the decline has certainly been real, we now know that the trend has been reversed.”
The total population of Christians in the UK was found to be around 46% in 2021, according to the Catholic Herald. The study measured UK citizens who identify as Christian and also attend church at least once a month, instead of including those who have a Christian identity but do not practice.
The study claimed that media headlines focus on Christian identity, which continues to drop, even by the Bible Society’s reckoning. However, Christian practice is on the rise.
“Our report does not challenge the well-established fact that fewer people in England and Wales are choosing to identify as Christian,” Rhiannon McAleer, director of research at the Bible Society, said, according to the Catholic Herald. “However, it is the first large-scale study to concentrate not on self-declared Christian identity but on actual Christian practice. By this measurement, the Church is in an exciting period of growth and change.”
The report showed that in 2018 Anglicans made up 41% of total UK churchgoers — defined as those who attend church at least once a month — but now constitute just 34%. Catholics follow closely at 31%, up from 23% in 2018. Pentecostals make up the next largest religious demographic, at 10%. The changes are largely driven by younger generations, especially young men and those from minority backgrounds.
The report also addressed the hypothesis that increased amounts of Christianity in the UK are being driven by immigration, noting that while Christian churches are increasingly becoming more diverse, the numbers of white young adults turning to Christianity are also increasing.
