You are here
WALES: Alarm as Welsh shun church
Sept. 14 2006
by Tryst Williams
Western Mail
CHURCH attendances in Wales have slumped by almost a fifth in just five years, figures show today. Estimates showed that fewer than 180,000 people in Wales regularly attended church last year compared with 218,500 in 2000.
Church leaders have voiced concern at the alarming drop in Sunday worshippers, particularly among younger members where Church in Wales numbers have dipped by 7% in one year alone.
A report produced by the Church in Wales, the nation's largest attended Christian church, noted, "Average attendances have continued to fall for both Sunday and weekday services at a relatively small but steady rate. But once again the rate of decline among members under the age of 18 is considerably steeper."
It added, "The decline in the number of baptisms and confirmations is of particular concern in the light of a similar decline in the number of young people coming to church generally."
Anglican and Roman Catholic church leaders in Wales partly blamed the increased competition from weekend leisure activities for the decline. And they called for fresh initiatives to help shore up the number of young worshippers in an increasingly secular society.
Barry Morgan, Archbishop of Wales, said, "Society is changing rapidly and it seems self-evident that the churches of Wales need to keep thinking afresh of ways in which that Gospel message can be communicated."
In just five years the percentage of regular churchgoers in all of Wales' chapels and churches has fallen from 7.4% to just over 6% of the population.
The figures come just days before one of Cardiff's most prominent churches is due to close - because its congregation has fallen to just 15.
END
