Half of Scottish adults are not religious

The latest Scottish Household Survey (SHS) has revealed that nearly half of Scottish adults are not religious.

The latest Scottish Household Survey (SHS) has revealed that nearly half of Scottish adults are not religious.

When a question about religion was first introduced to the SHS in 2009, 40% of those asked selected ‘none’ in the religion category, meaning there has been a 10% points increase in the last 6 years.

The most recent SHS also shows that there is a corresponding decrease in the number of people selecting ‘Church of Scotland’, falling from 34% to 25%.

'Statistics on religious affiliation tell just a small part of the story'

Rev Dr Richard Frazer is the Church of Scotland minister at Greyfriars, Edinburgh, and Convener of the Church and Society Council. He says the decline in affiliation to religion is "not surprising".

"The changing nature of faith, belief and spirituality in Scotland is something that people in the Church of Scotland have recognised and are seeking to adapt to."

Dr Frazer explains how a new video, Take a Pew, has been released to show how the church is helping to combat the growing issues of social isolation and loneliness in Scotland. He says,

He adds: "It's just one example showing how the activity of congregations throughout Scotland is not confined to church attendance on a Sunday morning, and statistics on religious affiliation tell just a small part of the story."

It is recognised that people express an openness to faith and spirituality without feeling it necessary to tie that into to affiliation to a church or other recognised faith based organisation."

Humanism over Church of Scotland

Figures published by National Records of Scotland showed there were more humanist weddings in Scotland last year than Church of Scotland weddings. Almost 80% of the humanist wedding ceremonies that took place last year were carried out by Humanist Society of Scotland.

Humanist weddings were first authorised in 2005. Since then, there has been a radical change in the number of weddings conducted by the Church of Scotland. In 2005 there were 82 humanist ceremonies and 8,686 Church of Scotland ceremonies, which had grown in2015 to 4,290 humanist ceremonies and only 4,052 Church of Scotland ceremonies.

'The Church of Scotland is adapting'

Dr Frazer says, "Many of the initiatives of the Church of Scotland over recent years have sought to meet people where they are, rather than expecting everyone to come to the church.

"We recognise that whilst many people still value traditional church membership and going to church on a Sunday, others continue to have spiritual needs that are not necessarily expressed by declaring that they are 'religious'. In many respects, the Church of Scotland is adapting successfully to this new landscape."

In an interview on BBC Breakfast earlier this year, Andrew Marsh, Christian Concern’s Campaigns Director, said,

"The role of the church is not first to look around at the cultural and society around her, but to look to God and listen to Him. The church belongs to God, belongs to Jesus Christ, and the way that the church is relevant in culture is to offer leadership."