Premier Christian Radio and the Evangelical Alliance have united to commission a special national Easter survey on faith and religion. The poll has revealed that Christians across Britain come out top in how happy they are in their lives.

|TOP|The study found that 75 percent of churchgoers stated that they were happy with life, this compared with just 54 percent from those that that never attend a church service.

The survey looked even deeper by carrying out a parallel study that took into account evangelical Christians alone, and this revealed that more than 80percent of evangelicals were happy in their lives.

The Chief Executive of Premier Christian Radio, Peter Kerridge said, “Christianity is a positive and affirming religion. Many Christians are happy because they feel supported and loved by God. It’s not that attending church or reading the Bible alone will make everyone happier, but I believe that many people can gain support or form a relationship with God through those activities, which, will, in turn, improve their outlook on life.”

The independent survey, carried out by CommunicateResearch, polled 2,000 members of the public, who each responded to a range of questions on the existence of God, and the relevance of Christianity in their lives, as well as the lives of the communities around them.

|AD|When comparing those that read the Bible at least once a month to those that never read the Holy Book, the survey found that 75 percent of those looking to the Bible for guidance considered themselves happy or very happy, whereas just 56 percent of those that never read it stated the same.

The General Director of the Evangelical Alliance, Rev Joel Edwards said, “There's no doubt that happiness is a sought after commodity in our culture. This survey makes it clear that Christian values and the community of faith support and promote happier lifestyles in a world filled with many challenges today.

Little wonder therefore that the survey also tells us that despite the negative associations people have with the Christian faith and evangelicalism in particular, Christianity still has a great deal to offer people seeking happiness.”

When looking across to America, religious surveys have been consistent with these latest findings in Britain. In the US it was found that evangelical Christians were significantly happier than the general public.

The Evangelical Alliance and Premier Radio also point out that a recent study for a British newspaper reported that the UK was among the least happy countries in the world, coming behind America and other parts of Europe.