Is Ireland still really religious?

Question

I watched some movie about these Irish girls in a conventy because they had babies out of wedlock and were ostracised by the community, so basically locked away

Answer 1

It depends on who you ask and where you live! I think Ireland is still really religious even though church attendance has dropped I think the majority of people believe in the church and are guided by the church - especially the older generation.

Divorce is new and along with having children outside of marraige - it is still frowned upon.

Answer 2

Well, look at these statistics and you decide :

Religious Belief.

Two 'European Values Surveys' showed that Catholics in Ireland have a high level of religious belief.

1981 : 95% believe in God.

1999 : 96% belive in God.

Here we see that relious belief has not changed. Belief in God has remained at a consistantly high level.

1)  Belief in God.

1981 : 76% believe in life after death.

1999 : 80% believe in life after death.

2) Belief in Life After Death.

1981 : 83% believe in Heaven.

1999 : 54% believe in Heaven.

1981 : 54% believe in h**l.

1999 : 54% believe in h**l.

Here we see a dramatic drop in the level of people who belive in Heaven. However, the belief in h**l has stayed the same.

Religious Practice.

The two European Values Surverys found a decline in religious practice in Ireland over the period 1981-1999.

1981 : 87% go to Mass every week.

1999 : 59% go to Mass every week.

Religious practice has changed. Church attendance has dropped 14% in almost 20 years.

This means :

1) Religious belief remains strong but is not reflected in church attendance.

2) Religious practice is falling in Ireland but 59% is still one of the highest rates of religious practice in the world.

So, to answer your question, yes, Ireland is still very religious (but I am speaking only of the Catholic community). But we do not practice our religion as much as we used to, but we still believe in God.

Answer 3

stop kiddin urselves, of course it is. what was all the troubles about. RELIGION!!

Answer 4

No it's not. However it should be noted that the last laundry only closed in the 1990s. Also the Troubles have nothing to do with religion that's just an excuse it's unionists v nationalists not protestants v catholics.

Answer 5

The Magdalen Sisters? Gosh Ireland, Republic and Northern have both changed dramatically since those days.

Answer 6

The Elderly are very religious but We are not that Religious at all anymore.

= )

Answer 7

no not at all the majority of people that go to mass are over the age of fifty an thats only coz they were brought up like that. betcha that film ya watched was magdelene sisters i love that film

Answer 8

No its not...im Irish

Answer 9

Absolutely not.

There are still religious people in Ireland (though it seems their numbers are declining) but religion is no longer considered important in the everyday social sense the way it once was.

That said, ~95% of the schools in Ireland (I'm guessing, don't quote me on that statistic) are religious schools, but while they are still attached to parishes, there are few, if any priests/nuns involved activly teaching (and the few that are left are mostly nearing retirement), and the schools are run by an independent board of managment of parents.

Side note:  in the mid my parents were involved in trying to set up a non-denominational school, but were forbidden by the ministry of education.  Now, thanks to an increase in non catholic immigrants the ministry is talking about setting up non-denominational schools, as a few parishes have started to insist that only baptised children are given places.  This is a good example of how religious attitudes have changed in the last 10/20 years.

Answer 10

No, not any more.  It's mostly middle-aged people and older who would be religious, but even with them the majority wouldn't be strict about it.

Answer 11

we are like religious just like any other country!

gosh......

Answer 12

Naw, religion and church-attendance has dropped dramatically in the last 15 years. The churches in Ireland hold fewer Services/Masses and still only fill less than half the seats.

Very few people see religion as any sort of issue.

Most people tend to only visit a church at a christening, wedding, or funeral.

Answer 13

No, we are not that religious. Parts of America are far more religious than Ireland. The Irish seem to be more culturally religious, meaning they do the whole baptizing, communions weddings etc but they don't dedicate there lives to god, or even think about god that much. It is not uncommon to bump into Atheists either, especially in the younger generations and for the  most part   it isn't really a big deal if you are an Atheist. This is just my experience tho, i can imagine  rural areas being more religious.

Also, the majority of priests in Ireland are over the age of 50, and few young people are joining the priesthood,

(i read that in a poll somewhere but i can't seem to find it so you will have to take my word on that one)

Oh and "D" the troubles is more about land than religion. Catholic and protestants are more titles than it being a religious war. Even that said, the troubles have settled down alot now. (some might say its over but.....)