Thursday, September 30, 2004
Welsh believers too busy to go to church
MANY Welsh people who believe in God say they are too busy to go to church or chapel, a survey has revealed.
Other believers say they stay away from services because religion is a private and personal matter for them.
Of the people who do attend services, nearly half say they go out of a sense of tradition and only a quarter go for purely spiritual reasons.
The survey, commissioned by S4C to mark the great Welsh revival of 1904-05, also found that fewer men than women believe in God, and younger people are less likely to believe than older people.
The S4C survey found that more than 50% of Welsh people believe in God. The figure rose to 60% among women but dipped to 47% among men.
Only one in three in the 16-24 age group professed a belief, compared with 77% in the 65-plus group. Attendance at church or chapel was even lower in the 25-34 age group than in the 16-24 - falling from 22% to 9%.
Of the people in all age groups who professed a belief, just 21% attended regular worship and almost 60% said they rarely or never attended.
"Lifestyle" was the main reason given for non-attendance among believers, with many saying that life is too busy.
A significant percentage said they regarded their religion as a strictly private experience.
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