UK Armed Forces turn backs on religion

OUR Armed Forces are turning their back on the church, with the biggest recorded fall in the number of personnel declaring themselves Christian.

It comes as military units at home and abroad prepare to hold Christmas services.

Just 69.4 per cent of Royal Navy, Army and RAF servicemen and women consider themselves Christian, compared to 81 per cent in 2012 – the biggest drop since the Second World War.

And those stating they had no religion at all soared from 15.5 per cent to 27.7 per cent, according to the latest Ministry of Defence annual diversity statistics. The number in the Reserves rose from 17.7 to 24.5 per cent.

A small percentage of Hindus, Buddhists, Muslims, Sikhs and Jews made up the remainder of those surveyed.

The Royal Army Chaplains’ Department, which has 224 regular and reserve chaplains, is facing pressure to find ministers for service personnel of different faiths. It has 224 regular and reserve Christian chaplains but no uniformed ministers for other religions.

These slots are filled by civil servants.

For many years padres conducted camp-based services but now are expected to deploy to the danger zones alongside troops and this could be deterring chaplains from joining.

A senior Army source said: “This is just another sign that the UK population is losing its identity.

“There are fewer people going to church and for many people Christmas is often more about indulgence than consideration of the real meaning of the season.

“In the next decade, we are going to see huge changes in society, which could see the end of military church services traditionally held before going into battle.”

In the last UK census, held in 2011, 59 per cent of people stated they were Christian – a 20 per cent drop since 2001.