Do England's homosexuals outnumber Anglicans?

By Diogenes ( articles ) | Jul 10, 2003

The subtitle of the op-ed column in the Guardian says it all: "When is the C of E going to realise that homosexuality is now more popular in Britain than Christianity?"

Author Zoe Williams inveighs against the Anglican "extremists" and "homophobes" who oppose the gay-rights agenda. But that's old hat. What really stings is her analysis of survey data, which shows a clear rise in active homosexuality alongside a fall in Anglican church attendance. Any way you look at the statistics, she concludes, "you're still left with the C of E commanding fewer adherents, and you are also faced with the more important truth that churchgoers are an ageing population, whereas gay people are not."