I missed this Economist item earlier. Seems that London is now the place to be if you're British and a Christian. (Relatively speaking, of course, given that church-going is very much a minorit
y pursuit. Even in the capital, the figure hovers just above 8 per cent.) What's behind the change? Immigration, for one thing. Then there's that old stand-by, class:
The other reason London still goes to church has to do with the city's odd social mix. The city has relatively few working-class whites — the group that has lost faith most dramatically in the past few decades. It does, however, have plenty of wealthy whites. Churchmen are ambivalent about them, partly because of a saying about camels and needles, partly because they suspect that some middle-class folk only come to church because they want to get their children into religious schools. But come to church they do.
Personally, I fell out of the habit a couple of years ago, although I have to say the spirit is starting to feel willing again. As for the roots of the overall decline, the Boulting Brothers hit the cassock on the head years ago in Heavens Above! One of Peter Sellers' unsung performances.