ARE WE A "CHRISTIAN PEOPLE"?

New Zealand Listener, Volume 8, Issue 207, 11 June 1943, Page 6

ARE WE A "CHRISTIAN PEOPLE"?

Mass-Observation Conducts A Survey About Religion

How many people in the community could be called religious? How much does a movement like the present Campaign for Christian Order really affect them? What influence (if any) has the war had on their religious faith (if any)? And what part do they think the Churches can play in bringing about a better world? To these questions we in New Zealand can give no definite answers because we have no means of obtaining accurate information. But in Great Britain a survey on "Religion and the People" has been completed recently by Mass-Observa-tion, an independent organisation engaged in investigating the way ordinary people think and behave. Mass-Observation works through a team of full-time scientifically trained investigators and has a national panel of some 1,500 voluntary informants. Since what applies in Britain would probably, in a matter like this, largely apply here, we quote at some length from Mass-Observation’s report, which was printed as a supplement to a recent issue of "The Christian News-Letter’:

CCORDING to Mass-Observa-tion’s report, the considerable apathy about religion which exists now is a negative one, based mainly on past disappointments and past inactions. There is little positive hostility, but also few optimistic expectations, and much disinterest. On the other hand, there is a widespread desire for religion to take a bigger part in the life of the community. This article outlines the present state of religious faith and alignment, and describes briefly what people feel they want and will get from religion in the future. Beliefs ]F people are asked what their own religious beliefs are, about one in five say they have none. Younger people (under forty years) say they have no religion nearly twice as often as older people (forty years and over), and men more than twice as often as women. The

rest are almost equally divided into twofifths who say they belong to an organised church or sect and two-fifths who express faith in some sort of personal, unaffiliated religion. Most of the first group make no comment beyond saying the name of the church to which they belong. Among the second, non-sectarian group, however, there is often a desiré for some more practical, less hide-bound form of Christianity, typically expressed in the following comment: "I believe such as I’ve been taught. The trouble is to-day we’re too selfish. Religion in my opinion needs humanising instead of being so stereotyped, you know." (Woman, thirty, artisan class). ‘‘Christianity practically practised, not the Go-to-Church-Sunday variety." (Man, fifty-five, middle class). About four people out of five thus pay some sort of lip-service to religion, and only about half of these link themselves verbally with any branch of organised religion. It is difficult to obtain accurate data on the strength and importance of personal religious beliefs, because it is the socially done thing to gay one has religious faith, however dim and meaningless that faith may be. These figures indicate the extent of social goodwill towards religion rather than the real extent of meaningful faith. A better index to a faith with practical implications in a person’s life is prayer. Prayer DETAILED statements from MassObservation’s panel of 1,500 voluntary informants show that just a half pray either regularly or occasionally. Half never pray. The number who have formed some habit of prayer is considerably lower than the number (nearly seven out of ten) who have formed the habit of observing some superstitious ritual, such as throwing spilt salt over the shoulder. Even 50 per cent. is a high estimate for the proportion who pray with definite purpose and conviction. Accounts of private prayers show that many adults have taken over a form of words from childhood and are using it still with little thought for its meaning or relevance, and sometimes with little real belief that it has a Hearer. Detailed statements on the subject of private prayer show that many of the half who pray do so just in case there is Someone listening rather than from any firm conviction that there is. As a retired schoolmistress puts it: * Partly as a result of Pe oe t, oerdy as an emotional need, and use I think there may be some of teleoo influence, I ‘pray’ for those whom I P| Churchgoing EFORE the war a national survey made by the Gallup Poll showed that just over a quarter of the popula-

tion said they went to church regularly. Though this is a considerably lower figure than the proportion who say they belong to some organised religious body, it represents the proportion who feel fairly strongly that they ought to go to church rather than the proportion who actually do so. Actual counts undertakén by Mass-Observation at standard churches at given services suggest that the actual proportion attending church regularly is nearer one in ten. The main background facts of religious alignment can thus be summarised: a. Between four-fifths and _ threequarters pay some _ lip-service to religion. b. About a half have some definite interest in a religious faith, deep enough to cause them to pray, at least irregularly. c. About two-fifths pay some lipservice to organised religion. d. About a tenth are closely linked with the organised churches. These are rough working figurés, as near the truth as one can get on a subject which is delicate to approach and on which most people have definite ideas about what their answers ought to be. One outstanding fact which emerges, and which is least capable of diverse interpretations, is that 20 per cent. are sufficiently disinterested in religion, both personally and socially, to tell a stranger in the street that they have no religious beliefs at all. Among the younger generation more than three out of ten publicly proclaim themselves une religious, The Impact of War OME clue to the nature of the present religious "revival" is given by investigations into the effects of war on people’s attitude, to religion. In 1941, among the national panel of 16 per cent said that war had strengthened their religious faith, 9 per cent that it had been weakened, and a negligible proportion had lost their faith since the war. A year later the proportion who felt that their faith had been strengthened had risen to 26 per cent, while the same number felt that it had been weakened. The rest were unaffected; but it must be remembered that only half ever had any deep feeling for religion, so that a considerakle proportion of the religious do feel that war has affected their faith, The increase in 1942 in strengthened faith was almost entirely among women, and most often took the form of attaching more importance to non-material values in general. A middleaged woman living in a remote village which "has the misfortune of an ancient scholar of eighty as rector," and where (Continued on. next page)

The Effect Of War On Faith

(Continued from previous page) = Religion and the Future

"the church is usually empty and very often the services are not held," says"I never was a churchgoer, but the war has certainly strengthened my belief that the ‘things of the spirit’ are the realities, and that the war is a passing tumult in the history of man." Some non-religious people feel the need for some kind of non-material values in war-time, but there is little sign that they have found any. A young secretary describes her feelings: "I am an agnostic, but since the war began have often felt I wished I could believe in a God. The suffering that war causes is sO great that one wants to be able to believe in something above it’all, and particularly one wants help of a spiritual kind, But the Church’s attitude towards this war has been so un-Christian, I think, that if 1 had any inclination towards religion, I should certainly not go back to any church." Others feel that religion has failed to produce a reasonable world and have little faith in its future: "We've had religion for thousands of years, and look at the mess we're in. It would be better if we didn’t have any." (Milkman). "This war shows that religion is a hollow mockery. I had some hopes of it. I’ve none " now." (Salesman). Among those with no special religious beliefs themselves, the war-time trend is away from religion rather than towards it; but among all the samples studied never more than a tiny proportion of 1 to 4 per cent say they have lost their faith. In general the effect of war has been to confirm pre-existihg attitudes, to strengthen faith where it existed before, but also to confirm and_ strengthen attitudes of scepticism, agnosticism and indifference. To the fore of many people’s attitude to religion is their opinion of the activities of the Churches. The Churches’ Part HEN asked what they thought of the part Christianity was playing in the war, twice as many people thought it was playing a small or insignificant part as thought it was playing a large or important one (Nov. 1942). Very few indeed expressed any ideas about the war being fought for Christian ideals, and many felt that organised religion should have nothing to do with war. There was much criticism of the Churches and clergy, little of religion itself or of religious people. There is, among the non-religious, a widespread tolerance of religious individuals and often a feeling that a person is better for the possession of a religious faith. Those who are not themselves religious seldom criticise those who are, and private faith is looked on as a private affair. But among religious and irreligious alike there is a widespread criticism of the Churches. Criticism is accentuated in war-time by a genuine inability to understand how the teachings of Christianity can be reconciled with war-time necessity. This puzzlement not always hostile, takes many forms, but can be typified by the following remark from a man of thirty, working class: "Christianity? Well, I don’t know much about it. But one of the teachings of the Bible is to turn the other cheek and love your enemies; but each side is praying to the same God to smash the other side. Seems a bit inconsistent." | Bewilderment of this sort is common, especially among those with no outstanding personal interest in religion.

NLY about one person in 10 actually visualises religion taking a big part in Britain after the war, but nearly three times that number would welcome it if religion were to play a bigger part in the life of the community. The contrast between hope and expectation, common to nearly all post-war ideas now, is particularly evident on the subject of religion. Here are three statements, the first from a young hospital sister, the second from an aero-fitter of 37, the third from a woman civil servant of 30. They show this contrast in three typical forms. Part A in each case is a description of the place they feel religion should take in the post-war world. Part B is the place they think it actually will take: A. "God knows, I don’t. It should be everything." B. "I think that religion will continue to play a minor part in this country unless the Church suddenly begins to practice Christianity, but I am afraid that is a vain hope." | A. "It should come right out and give a lead, no matter whose toes it may tread on.’ B. "About the same as it does now. It’s the people’s dope." A. "It should be the map of our lives, the guide and comforter and inspirer; the central fount of wisdom and the supporter of wise men and women; the focal point for the specialists of every science, where they can weigh their own importance against the plan of man’s soul-and where they can help to make that plan and keep it real." B. ‘Actually, if Temple can carry out some of his ideas, it may keep alive at least. But I fear it will dwindle and fade and disappear." These statements typify the extent to which many people, religious and irreligious alike have despaired of organised religion. When the Archbishop of Canterbury said. in the Albert Hall in September that "the Church has not only a right, it has a duty, to declare the principles of true social life," only 14 per cent of a sample asked about it disagreed with the sentiment. Fiftyone per cent were in full agreement, and 10 per cent in partial agreement. A quarter had no opinion either way. Cripps’ statement that "We require more than ever to-day courageous Christians in our political life’ was equally well received. Typical comments from the Albert Hall meeting included: "It’s true enough. Trouble is, will they act on it? Words are cheap." "There’s too much speechifying-far too much. We want action and less talk.’ "We get tired of promises and all that sort of thing." There have been many promises and many hopes held out in many quarters during this war. The big question mark in people’s minds growing larger as post-war Britain becomes a_ possibility foreseeable in time, is the same whether the Atlantic Charter, the Beveridge Report, or the pronouncements of the Archbishop are considered. How much do these promises mean? In general, people are sceptical, and many are cynical. A rush of enthusiasm disintegrates quickly --at best into a chaos of question at worst into apathy. Action-or practical, simply-understood and unambiguous tokens of forthcoming action-might quickly. transform widespread passive goodwill into something dynamic, in the religious as in the political sphere, But the signs are that, in the present mood, little else will.