Examine Religious Diversity in the UK
Examine Religious Diversity in the UK.
In the UK, which is traditionally Christian, religious diversity has been recently highlighted because of the 2001 census that was conducted, which asked people to identify their religion; this is the first document to record this information since the 1800’s. The development in religious plurality has occurred due to factors such as Africanization, migrants and conversions predominantly over the last 100 hundred years. Weller, a sociologist, said that “the contemporary religious landscape of the UK should be seen as exhibiting contours that are ‘Christian, Secular and religiously plural.’” This explains the diverse range of religions that have developed in the UK and emphasises the growing secularisation due to individuals questioning religion and its relevance.
The 2001 and 2011 census still shows that the UK is predominantly Christian with 71.6% of people, who answered the question, in 2001 identifying themselves as Christian; the development of religious diversity was emphasised in 2011 when this figure dropped to 59%. Secularisation in the UK is constantly expanding, which could explain the decreasing followers of Christianity in the UK. Secularisation originated from the enlightenment period and the industrial revolution because they caused religion to be looked at scientifically or philosophically, which led to a realisation questioning whether religion was true. Karl Marx was an individual who believed religion was an illusion devised by the proletariats to satisfy their emotional needs from their exploitation from the bourgeoisie; this opinion from Marx lead to people turning to atheism during and following the industrial revolution, which lead to the UK’s slowly increasing secularisation. In addition to Marx’s negative view of religion, Charles Darwin introduced the theory of evolution, which was a scientific view of the beginning of humanity; it was the antithesis of the Bible’s creation story – therefore this
In the UK, which is traditionally Christian, religious diversity has been recently highlighted because of the 2001 census that was conducted, which asked people to identify their religion; this is the first document to record this information since the 1800’s. The development in religious plurality has occurred due to factors such as Africanization, migrants and conversions predominantly over the last 100 hundred years. Weller, a sociologist, said that “the contemporary religious landscape of the UK should be seen as exhibiting contours that are ‘Christian, Secular and religiously plural.’” This explains the diverse range of religions that have developed in the UK and emphasises the growing secularisation due to individuals questioning religion and its relevance.
The 2001 and 2011 census still shows that the UK is predominantly Christian with 71.6% of people, who answered the question, in 2001 identifying themselves as Christian; the development of religious diversity was emphasised in 2011 when this figure dropped to 59%. Secularisation in the UK is constantly expanding, which could explain the decreasing followers of Christianity in the UK. Secularisation originated from the enlightenment period and the industrial revolution because they caused religion to be looked at scientifically or philosophically, which led to a realisation questioning whether religion was true. Karl Marx was an individual who believed religion was an illusion devised by the proletariats to satisfy their emotional needs from their exploitation from the bourgeoisie; this opinion from Marx lead to people turning to atheism during and following the industrial revolution, which lead to the UK’s slowly increasing secularisation. In addition to Marx’s negative view of religion, Charles Darwin introduced the theory of evolution, which was a scientific view of the beginning of humanity; it was the antithesis of the Bible’s creation story – therefore this