'Shocking' Survey Shows Rise In Number of British Teens Saying They're Practicing Christians
In a study that stunned the Church of England, an unexpectedly high number of young people in U.K. were found to be practicing Christians, and that the number is still rising.
The study, commissioned by Christian youth organization Hope Revolution Partnership and carried out by the research company ComRes, suggested that the levels of Christianity in the U.K. are much higher among young people than previously thought, The Daily Telegraph reported.
The new figures show that one in five, or 21 percent, of youth between the ages of 11 and 18 describe themselves as active followers of Jesus. Also, one in six, or 13 percent, say they are practicing Christians who attend church.
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In 2006, research by church statistician Dr. Peter Brierley showed that just 6 percent of 11-14 year olds attended church and 5 percent of 15-18 year olds did the same—less than half of the numbers gathered in the latest study.
The new numbers also suggest that thousands of youth are turning to Christ after visiting churches.
Around 13 percent of the teenagers surveyed said they decided to become a Christian after visiting a church or cathedral.
The study also found that for the youth, going to church is more significant than attending a youth group, or going to a wedding, or speaking to other Christians about their faith.
Jimmy Dale, the Church of England's national youth evangelism officer, told The Daily Telegraph that he and his team were "shocked" by the results of the latest survey.
The research was carried out in December but the findings were not released until now because analysts had to double-check the data since they initially thought that such a high figure could not be accurate.
But another study also recently released by Christian group Youth for Christ showed similar results, confirming that indeed a surprisingly high number of young people are describing themselves as Christian.
"There was disbelief among the team because it was so high," Dale said.
"What is really exciting for us is that there is this warmth and openness that we are seeing among young people. They are really open to faith."
Senior Church of England officials said the findings showed the need to keep churches and cathedrals easily accesible to the people.
Nine of Britain's 42 cathedrals now charge a fee for entry. More could be forced to do so because of financial pressures.
