Politics · United Kingdom · 1 day ago
UK Christian nationalism is driven mainly by people who rarely attend church
A survey of 1,765 adults in the UK found that the views most closely matching Christian nationalism were held by 11% of respondents.
Most in this group identified as Christian, but only 13% attended church weekly.
The researchers said this group was more focused on defending Britain’s Christian heritage than on practising faith.
It was also strongly hostile to immigration and Islam, with few supporting equal treatment for religions or welcoming asylum seekers.
Another group, making up 13% of respondents, included more regular churchgoers and was more supportive of religious diversity and asylum seekers.
The findings suggest that Christianity can serve as a marker of national identity without reflecting a revival in church attendance.
The survey was conducted in April 2026, and it does not state what happens next.
A report says Christian nationalism in Britain is driven largely by people who rarely attend church and are concerned with defending the country’s Christian heritage.
Theos identified five groups in a survey of 1,765 adults conducted in April 2026.
The group whose views most closely resembled Christian nationalism made up 11% of respondents; 81% identified as Christian, but 13% attended church weekly.
Another group with high levels of Christian affiliation was more religiously observant and less hostile to immigration and religious diversity.
The findings suggest Christianity is increasingly being invoked as a marker of British identity amid concerns about immigration, Islam and cultural change.
- Who
- Theos, a thinktank, produced the report; the survey covered UK adults.
- What
- The report found that Christian nationalism is driven largely by people who rarely attend church.
- When
- The survey was conducted in April 2026; the report was published on 11 October 2026.
- Where
- The United Kingdom.
- Why
- The findings suggest Christianity is being invoked as a marker of British identity amid concerns about immigration, Islam and cultural change.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
a difference between Christianity as an idea and Christianity as an embodied practice
If it matters enough for you to haul yourself out of bed on a Sunday morning, to spend time with people who you don’t choose – you don’t choose who you’re sitting next to in the pew, you don’t choose who’s next to you in the communion rail – it becomes a bit more human and more humane.
Some people carried wooden crosses at the Unite the Kingdom rally in London.
Theos conducted a survey of 1,765 adults about attitudes to Christianity and British national identity.
The Guardian published its report on the findings.
- Survey size
- 1,765 adults
- Identity integrationists
- 11% of respondents; 13% attended church weekly
- Belief integrationists
- 13% of respondents; 31% attended church weekly
- Churches becoming mosques
- 55% said they would be unhappy if their local church closed and became a mosque
- Great replacement theory
- 37% agreed that Europe’s white population was being deliberately replaced by migrants from Muslim countries
Sources
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