Key Quotes for 2004

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Last update: Wednesday 25th March




Only 28 per cent of Britons pray regularly compared to two thirds of Americans and 95 per cent of Nigerians saying their daily prayers, according to a BBC poll. Just 21 per cent of Britons said they regularly attend organised religious services, less than half in the international average for such attendance. Apart from British attendance being 70 per cent lower than that in Nigeria, where nine out of 10 people take part in an organised religious service, 16 per cent of Britons "feel negative" towards God. South Korea is the only other country where more than 10 per cent of the population confessed such a feeling. On average, 92 per cent of people questionned in the survey, carried out for the BBC in December last year and January this year in 10 countries across Asia, the Middle East, North America, Africa and Europe, said they feel positive about God. Although the UK is a consistent low-scorer on "belief in God or Higher powers" compared to countries like the USA, Indonesia and India, nearly 20 per cent of Britons said they "would die for their beliefs". The survey reveals striking evangelistic inclination among Americans with nearly 60 per cent claiming "someone outside their family" encouraged them to believe in God. On average internationally, just over 20 per cent got extra-familial encouragement towards faith in God. Evangelistic efforts in the US are only rivalled by the 46 per cent of South Koreans saying "outsiders pointed them to God". But South Korea fills the bottom spot in inter-familial encouragement towards faith in God and a striking 84 per cent of South Koreans see religion as a "crutch for the weak minded". The intensity of commitment to faith peaked in countries like Nigeria and Indonesia where respectively 95 and 90 per cent of believers declared the willingness to "die for their God (Beliefs)".
Religion/Spirituality	The Church of England Newspaper - February 26th 2004



Soul in the City will take place in London this year four years after its Manchester predecessor mobilised 11,000 young people to do community work in the city of Manchester for 10 days. The Archbishop of Canterbury as well as the Prime Minister and the leader of the Conservative Party have voiced strong support for Soul in the City, which calls on Christians from across the country to team up with local churches in an attempt to transform London communities, between July 26-August 5 with the help of more than 15,000 young people from across the UK.
Religion/Spirituality	The Church of England Newspaper - February 26th 2004



Christian churches in the Bradford Diocese are celebrating their expansive community work as part of the Building Pride District Wide campaign along with other major faith groups today. The Rev Sam Randall said "Christians in this region serve 20,000 people, beyond any regular church or school work, and the people served are not churchgoers".
Church	The Church of England Newspaper - February 26th 2004



Between 1990 and 2000, the number of people getting married fell by nearly a quarter, from 331,150 to 267,961 and the proportion choosing a church wedding has continued to fall. Over half of those questioned had picked 1 Corinthians 13 (Love is....) as their reading, with Proverbs 31 (The wife of noble character) coming second. Yet, five per cent of women are still agreeing to the traditional reading from Ephesians 5 (wives submit to your husbands).
Religion/Spirituality	The Church of England Newspaper - February 26th 2004



Listening to Britain's Churches was started before the last General Election and encouraged Christians at the grassroots level that they could help shape Tory policy. Conservative leader Michael Howard stressed that their views matter to the party. Mr Howard said "The evidence I have gained already is that the Church is very much alive and making a real difference to the lives of thousands of people in some of our hardest pressed communities".
Church	The Church of England Newspaper - February 26th 2004



Approximately 17 per cent of Americans consider themselves to be evangelicals.
Church	The Church of England Newspaper - February 26th 2004



More than half of UK consumers claim to have boycotted at least one product during 2002 according to the Ethical Purchasing Index and figures ahead of the Fairtrade mark's 10th anniversary show sales of its produce grew by 23 per cent to nearly £60m in the same year.
Shopping	The Church of England Newspaper - February 26th 2004



The Christian Churches are losing 1,000 children under 15 every week, which is 50,000 a year or half a million every decade.
Church	The Church of England Newspaper - February 26th 2004



AIDS - If behaviour doesn't change, then 200 million people will be dead within the next 30 years. The World Health Organisation believes around 85 million people have the virus, but many who are infected probably do not know it yet. Dr Dixon quotes some shocking statistics: 20 million children have lost their mothers to AIDS: AIDS kills over 8,000 people every day: 43 million people (as many as the population of Spain) have already died through AIDS.
Health	Streetpaper - No.70



It is only 31 years since homosexuality was removed fom the American Psychiatric Association (APA) list of mental illnesses, and as recently as 1992 homosexuality was still classified as a mental disorder by the World Health Organisation.
Health	Direction, March 2004.



Nearly half of the country's workforce of 3.9 million people earn less than £7,500 a year, while the number of people earning in excess of £40,000 has leaped by 70,000, from 140,000 in 1996. The figures, gathered from data collected in the 2001 census, have been condemned by Mr Slack who said they "shamed our nation".
Money	Baptist Times - February 26th 2004



By October 2003, the prison population had reached 74,000- an increase of 6,000 in the last two years. This includes 4,500 women- again, the highest ever total. There has been an increase of 189 per cent in the population of women in prison in the last ten years. The UK now has the highest imprisonment rate in the EU. Over 16,000 prisoners are doubling up in cells designed for one. 59 per cent of prisoners are reconvicted within two years of being released. The reconviction rates for male young adults (under 21) over the same period is 74 per cent. In 2002/3 there were 105 suicides in prison- the highest ever recorded total. 25 per cent of the prison population are from minority ethnic groups. Black people are five times more likely to be stopped and searched than white people. 72 per cent of male and 70 per cent of female sentenced prisoners suffer from two or more mental health problems. 54 per cent of prisoners say they have a drug dependency problem. Each year, a third of all freed prisoners (around 30,000) have nowhere to live on release. Half of all prisoners are at or below the level expected of an 11 year old in reading; two thirds in numeracy and four fifths in writing.
Crime	JesusLife - No65 2004



Over half of the 235 participants that took part in a Premier Radio survey during National Marriage Week had the Bible passage on love from 1 Corinthians 13 read at their weddings. "We were amazed to see that so many people choose the same reading for their wedding", said Premier Radio's Martin Saunders.
Religion/Spirituality	Baptist Times - February 26th 2004



The cost of the average wedding in the UK has increased 29% since 2001 to £17,739, according to a survey. Honeymoon costs have risen 5% over the same period to £3,571, with the hottest destinations being Asia and the Far East, according to the brides magazine.
Money	The Sentinel, Feb 24th 2004.



Childrens waistlines have expanded by two clothing sizes over the past 20 years, according to a study by the Archives of Disease in Childhood. Research shows waists have increased by 4cm (1.57inchs). Girls are also getting fatter than boys.
Health	The Sentinal Feb 24th 2004.

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