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Poll demonstrates the decline of Christianity in Ireland
 international |
history and heritage |
other press
 Monday April 09, 2007 09:39 by Frugal Rural
15-24 year olds are almost entirely ignorant of basic Christian teachings and dogma
Only 5 per cent, or one in 20, of 15 to 24-year-olds could quote the first of the 10 Commandments when interviewed for a new survey in Ireland.
Almost one-third (32 per cent) could not say where Jesus was born and more than one-third (35 per cent) did not know what is celebrated at Easter.
These are among the findings, published today, of an opinion poll conducted last December and January by Lansdowne Market Research for the (Catholic) Iona Institute and the (Protestant) Evangelical Alliance Ireland group. The survey involved a representative sample of 950 people nationwide.
The poll on Christian teachings found that such knowledge was highest among those over 65 and lowest in the 15-24 age group.
The survey found that only 52 per cent of young people could name Matthew, Mark, Luke and John as the authors of the gospels, while only 38 per cent knew that there were four gospels.
Fewer than half of the 15 to 24-year-olds surveyed (47 per cent) could name "Father, Son and Holy Spirit/Ghost" as the three persons of the Trinity, while only 48 per cent were able to name Genesis as the first book of the Bible. Thirty-eight per cent were aware that there were seven Sacraments, but just 15 per cent knew that "transubstantiation" (whereby bread and wine is transformed into the body and blood of Christ) was the term used to describe what takes place at the Eucharist during Mass.
Only one in 10 of the young people surveyed was able to say that the Immaculate Conception referred to Mary, the mother of Jesus, being free of original sin. In fairness, less than one-third - 32 per cent - of the over-65s got that one right, compared to an average of 19 per cent for the survey as a whole.
David Quinn, director of the Iona Institute, said the findings of the survey indicated that the level of Christian knowledge among young Irish people was "alarmingly low".
This seemed especially so for those who were either still at school or had only recently left school, which was "probably the opposite of what you would expect", he said.
He called for an examination of the reasons why knowledge of the faith was "in such sharp decline".
(The first of the 10 Commandments is "I am the Lord thy God. Thou shalt not have strange gods before me". Jesus was born in Bethlehem and Easter celebrates his Resurrection).
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Comments (8 of 8)
Jump To Comment: 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1Seamus, I see you swapped one religion for another.
Not so easy to escape human nature is it?
Jack as typical of christian eejits believes that only by being a deranged follower of fantasy stories can one have morals. Its typical patronising rubbish. I opened the prison of my mind many years ago by throwing my catholic upbringing in the sewer where it belongs. I have never felt better since and wish I could have done it sooner then I did.
Brainwashing is a powerful tool in the christian bag of tricks. I am still a morally responsible person and am indeed more humanist as a secular agnostic then I ever was when following the right wing cant of the the catholic church.
My children are unbaptised and will have no problem learning right from wrong and how to care for there fellow human beings and fellow creatures and planet for that matter. They wouldnt get that in a thousand sunday masses or by having water poured over their heads by a pedofile in a dress.
Hopefully 'na daoine na hEireann' will revert back to paganism and get back to respecting nature before its too late.
Is mise
S
Irish are sex mad degenerates, drunks, cokeheads, gamblers, nudists(on our holiers) and spendthrifts and loving it!
Ian Paisley is right about Rome Rule - Fuck the Pope.
Islam can fuck off back to Mecca too.
Muslim immigrants can wear their shoes over the threshold but throw away the Koran and hajibs and have the craic.
Yawn! We hear stupid surveys like this about Americans all the time eg 10% know where Texas is. No intelligent person believes such surveys, nor would an intelligent person answer the questions honestly. As regards the end of religion here, well sadly Islam might replace it but happily I think football will. The next war will hopefully wipe out all the Manchester United supporters from Ireland. Then we'll be free of smarmy gits and the country will be a better place. Come on Chelsea!
I suppose if a kiddie of today doesn't understand transubstantiation, then the homoousia or homoiousia or iota or stigmatic guilt are non-starters. Maybe this is why so many of my references have previously gone un-noted by Irish readers. I reckon that's a bit sad considering how much of our canon of literature is reliant on some familiarity with not only the core Christian myths, legends, stories but also many of the lesser morality tales, ethical frameworks & of course the reasons for protestantism.
Oh well this is what you get when you offer gentiles the baptism.
if you don't know what the word means look it up. It appears most of Joyce will needed to be re-annotated for the future. By the way the sponsors of this poll are champions of conservative family values & I wouldn't see it as being reliable enough to completely write off latent knowledge of Christian figures. nor is it really anything to celebrate by those who yip yip;- I daresay the youngsters can't name 8 US presidents, 2 Anarchist writers, 5 key strikes, 5 famous Soviets or tell you who Fatima was.
If we had a cultural canon with which to replace over a millenia of framed philosophical conflict as well as dialogue - I'd be happy. But I'm not. I'm very saddened by this. No-one will bother annotating my work to explain the clever sneers and nods to medieval theological disputes. There are now so many people who will never get a clever giggle. Tragic. I warned ye Ratzinger would do this. Nihil Obstat +
have you forgotten where you stood on the homoousia?
This poll indicates that whilst most school call themseves 'Catholic', in fact very few are worthy of the title. The school authorities are engaged in sleight-of-hand and our children are the real losers.
If the Christian faith declines what will become of 'love thy neighbour'. I think we already know the answer - we have seen it in much of the history of the 20th Century.
So-called 'christian' bigotry has nothing to do with Christ and everything to do with tribalism, the opposite of 'love thy neighbour'.
A Dhiabhail!
Fuair Íosa bás in aisce, muise! ;-)
The decline of Christianity in Ireland is long over due.
I presume this poll relates to the southern 26 counties but I'm sure the same situation exists in Northern Ireland as well.
If the Protestant and Catholic traditions are declining it means that sectarian hatred will also inevitably decline.
I welcome the rise of secular society in Ireland.
The majority of Irish people seems increasingly indifferent to religion of any variety whatsoever.
Some right wing commentators are terrified about the rise of Islamic extremism in Ireland.
Hopefully this poll will assure them that if Ireland people have lost interest in Catholicism and Protestantism, then they certainly will have no time for other religious idiots.