Massive majority of young people 'believe in God'
Thursday January 10 2002
The results of a new national "values" survey to be published in this month's issue of religious magazine 'Doctrine and Life' will show the vast majority of respondents aged between 20 and 35 have an experience of God.
Just 8pc of those questioned for the survey said they had no experience of God while 4pc said they felt God had not influenced their lives. Only 7pc said they had no relationship with Christ while 5pc said they never pray.
A majority of 62pc said they were sure of life after death while just 3pc said they thought there was no afterlife.
In relation to ethical behaviour, most of the young people questioned said they believed that morality was not merely obeying a law of God or church teaching. Some 87pc defined sin as personal integrity when they said that moral behaviour was being true to oneself.
Almost 70pc defined sin, as distinct from morality, not directly as disobedience to God or church teaching but as hurting others and 64pc said sin was not being true to oneself.
On a 28-item scale of moral behaviour, the four least immoral forms of behaviour were casual sex, missing Sunday mass, contraception and living with someone you intend to marry.
Child abuse, physical and verbal abuse within a relationship, and abortion were the four most immoral types of behaviour.
On attitudes to sex, 45pc said sexual intercourse symbolised total and final commitment, 26pc said it was a sign of fairly close friendship, 8pc thought it was fun and 4pc thought sex was only for married people.
On marriage, 75pc of respondents said that marriage should last until the death of one partner. While 28pc said they had experimented with drugs, only 1pc said they took them regularly.
The two prominent people most admired by young people in the survey were John Hume and Nelson Mandela.
Respondents to the survey included graduates, teacher trainees, garda trainees and Army cadets.
- Kathy Donaghy
