Praying at a time of crisis was the most common reason explaining why people prayed, according to the Tearfund-commissioned poll. PICTURE: Olivia Snow/Unsplash
About half of British adults – 51 per cent – say they pray, according to a new survey commissioned by UK-based relief and development agency Tearfund.
The poll, carried out by ComRes, also found that even among those who said they were not religious, one in five prayed.
A crisis was the most likely driver of prayer, according to the findings, with 55 per cent saying they were most likely to pray at such a time but other common reasons for prayer including a belief in God (39 per cent) and a belief that prayer makes a difference (32 per cent).
Family was the topic most prayed about (71 per cent of those who pray said this was a subject they prayed about), followed by thanking God (42 per cent), healing (40 per cent) and praying for friends (40 per cent). Praying to address world issues such as global poverty ranked seventh on the list (24 per cent) but this figure was higher among the young and elderly – 31 per cent among 18 to 24-year-olds and 30 per cent among 65 to 74-year-olds.
Dr Ruth Valerio, global advocacy and influencing director at Tearfund, said it was encouraging to see that prayer was such an important part of life for many people. But she added: “Whilst it is often easier to pray for issues closer to home, we want to encourage people to continue to engage with global issues and pray for an end to extreme poverty.”
Some 2,069 people were surveyed in the poll with 51 per cent identifying as Christian and five per cent as belonging to another faith. Forty-two per cent of respondants said they had no religion.
The data also shows that while one in three pray in a place of worship and another third pray before going to sleep or waking, there is a growing trend toward incorporating prayer into their everyday lifestyle – “praying on the go” – with 20 per cent saying they prayed while doing household chores or cooking, 15 per cent while traveling and 12 per cent during exercise or other leisure-related pursuits.
About half – 49 per cent – of those surveyed agreed with the idea that God heard their prayers while 39 per cent agreed that prayer changes the world and 40 per cent said they were likely to feel reassured or hopeful after praying.
Other findings showed that 20 per cent of UK adults prayed at least once a month and that women are more likely to say they pray than men (56 per cent versus 46 per cent). A third of people – 33 per cent – said they attended church at least once a year but only nine per cent said they do so at least once a month.
