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Doug Ives \/ The Canadian Press files<\/p>\n
Regular attendance at religious services went from 60 per cent in the 1940s to around 10 per cent now, author Reg Bibby writes.<\/p>\n
Bibby chronicles these changes in a chapter in his new book, The Canadian Transformation: Social Trends 1975-2025. (Project Canada Books).<\/p>\n
That chapter contains Bibby\u2019s research and reflections about changes to the religious landscape since his first national survey on Canadian social trends in 1975 to his last one in 2025.<\/p>\n
Over the past five decades, religion ceased being central to the lives of most Canadians, he writes, citing as evidence the decrease in regular attendance at religious services. It went from 60 per cent in the 1940s to around 10 per cent now, with over half of Canadians today saying they never attend religious services.<\/p>\n
At the same time, a growing number of people claim no religious identity, he notes; the \u201cnones\u201d now are over 36 per cent of the population.<\/p>\n
Along with that there have been declines in belief in God (83 per cent in 1985 to 47 per cent in 2025); life after death (65 per cent to 48 per cent); the divinity of Jesus (79 per cent to 37 per cent); and hell (48 per cent to 30 per cent).<\/p>\n
\u201cBelief in just about everything religious has decreased,\u201d Bibby said.<\/p>\n
He attributes these changes to at least two factors. One is the loss of \u201csocial support.\u201d If people no longer grow up going to religious services, traditional religious beliefs are not reinforced through things like Sunday school, youth groups or other forms of religious education.<\/p>\n
\u201cReligious beliefs, like all ideas, require social sources to be instilled and retained,\u201d he said. \u201cThe obvious deduction is that if Canadians of all ages are decreasingly involved in religious groups, beliefs are going to decrease accordingly.\u201d<\/p>\n
The other factor is the freedom Canadians now have when it comes to things like relationships, sexuality, lifestyles and religious beliefs \u2014 things where religion once held greater sway. This freedom, Bibby said, has made it harder for religious groups to retain their traditional authority over moral norms.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe accelerated emphasis on freedom, choice, and egalitarianism has resulted in individuals increasingly feeling able to have alternative mindsets and embrace alternative values and lifestyles without any guilt or stigma,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
This includes how Canadians no longer feel any social pressure about not attending religious services or not believing in God. Nobody needs to be \u201ccloset atheists and agnostics\u201d today, he said.<\/p>\n
In an interview with me about his book, Bibby noted that most of the religious decline has occurred in Christianity. But he predicted the same will happen to other faith groups like Islam, Sikhism and Hinduism. They will also face the same challenges of retaining their youth as their children are shaped by the same Canadian culture of diversity and individual freedom that impacted Christian denominations.<\/p>\n
\u201cI would expect that\u2019s going to translate into all kinds of defection on the part of their children,\u201d he said, noting that sexuality is one area where youth and their parents may disagree.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat they are going to be met with in our culture is the freedom of people to choose. It\u2019s going to be extremely difficult for these groups.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\t\tWinnipeg Free Press | Newsletter\n\t<\/p>\n
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The same forces are in play for evangelicals, some of whom believe they are exempt from the same decline. But Bibby\u2019s research shows that\u2019s not the case. Although some independent, non-denominational congregations are growing, he said, traditional
\nevangelical denominations are also experiencing declining participation and identification.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe fact is evangelicals have not sustained their vibrance over the past 20 years,\u201d said Bibby, who grew up Baptist. \u201cThey have not sustained their numbers to the extent they thought.\u201d<\/p>\n
Despite all these changes, religion hasn\u2019t disappeared in Canada. Bibby noted that between 30 per cent to 50 per cent of Canadians still retain some or most religious beliefs, and as many as four million people across all faith traditions say they still attend religious services. Even among those who have left organized religion, 35 per cent say they are \u201cspiritual but not religious.\u201d<\/p>\n
His conclusion? While there have been many changes for religion in Canada over the past 50 years, \u201cthis is far from an age of total disbelief,\u201d he said. \u201cAs the sociologist of old, Emile Durkheim once aptly put it, \u2018Religion retreats, but it never surrenders.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Jdl562000@yahoo.com<\/p>\n
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\t\t\t\t\t\tThe Free Press is committed to covering faith in Manitoba through our Religion in the News project. This reporting continues because readers like you step forward to fund it.<\/p>\n
Donate now to support our reporting on religion. \t\t\t\t John Longhurst John Longhurst has been writing for Winnipeg’s faith pages since 2003. He also writes for Religion News Service in the U.S., and blogs about the media, marketing and communications at Making the News.<\/p>\n
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