Another Window on British Secularization: Public Attitudes to Church and Clergy Since the 1960s

Opinion polls of adults are used to illuminate public attitudes to Church and clergy in Britain since the 1960s. Wherever possible, comparative data are provided for other institutions and professions. The standing of Church and clergy diminished over the half-century, especially in the 1990s and 2000s, mirroring the net decline in institutional Christianity revealed in performance indicators of church membership, attendance, rites of passage and affiliation. This loss of status reflects, not merely the passive effects of a secularizing climate, but active disenchantment with policies and practices pursued by Church and clergy. The paper exemplifies how secularization can be understood (following Chaves) as declining religious authority.