The “quiet revival” in Britain, especially among younger men, may well be occurring in the Republic of Ireland as well, with new research suggesting increasingly favourable attitudes towards Christianity in the country, albeit with a fair amount of suspicion towards the Roman Catholic Church.
A poll of a 1,000 people commissioned by The Iona Institute, and carried out by Amarach Research, discovered that Gen Z (18 to 24 years-old) are more open to faith than Millennials (25 to 34 years old).
A majority of people in Ireland (61 per cent) described themselves as religious or spiritual in some way. The vast majority of the Irish population still identifies as Roman Catholic, however only about 16 per cent said they went to mass regularly.
Just over a fifth of respondents said they were not Catholic, with a quarter said they would not object if the Catholic Church were to disappear overnight.
Dissatisfaction with the Church, unsurprisingly, stems from the abuse scandals that have dogged it in recent decades, although there are signs that its reputation is slowly improving.
Forty per cent of people said they had an unfavourable view of the Catholic Church, down from 47 per cent in 2011, while favourable ratings went from 24 per cent to 27 per cent in the same period.
Concerns about abuse and other church scandals were the main concerns raised by nearly three quarters of those with an unfavourable opinion. Just 17 per cent objected to the Church not being pro-LGBT or pro-abortion and 14 per cent had concerns about the Church’s historic influence over politics in the country.
Despite significant concerns with the Catholic Church as an institution, many Irish people still see value in its teachings, with 45% saying there was a benefit to Catholic teachings. Half of respondents had a positive view of Christianity overall, and 21 per cent have a negative view.
Respondents were more positive about Christianity in general. Half said their attitude towards Christianity was positive, compared to only 28% who said the same about the Catholic Church. Nonetheless, one in five (21%) had a negative attitude towards Christianity, while over a quarter (29%) were ambivalent.
The Iona Institute noted in its conclusions to the research, “While perceptions of the Catholic Church remain negative on balance, especially among younger generations, nevertheless religious identity and spiritual orientation remain important for the vast majority of Irish people.
“Despite the legacy of the clerical abuse scandals, most people agree Catholic teachings and the Church itself remain relevant and important to the wider sense of Irish identity and as a source of values and guidance for the future.”
