Bible reading in Canada …
According to the Canadian Bible Engagement Study (May 2014), 55% of Canadians never read the Bible, 28% seldom read it, 7% read it a few times a year, and 11% read it once a week or more frequently.
How do these statistics compare with Bible reading in the past? In the 1993 national survey by the Angus Reid Group, 20% of Canadians read the Bible once a week or more frequently. That means weekly-daily Bible reading has decreased by 45% in the last 20 years.
Regular Bible reading is a rarity. In 1993, nine percent of Canadians read the Bible daily. This has dropped by more than 50% in the past twenty years to just 4% of Canadians reading the Bible daily.
The decline in Bible reading differs across denominational traditions. In 1993, eighteen percent of Catholics (English and French) read the Bible at least once a week or more frequently. By 2013, it had slumped to 5%. In 1993, nineteen percent of Mainline Protestants read the Bible at least once a week or more frequently. By 2013, it had gone down to 10%. Evangelicals have also seen declines. In 1993, sixty-one percent read the Bible at least once a week or more frequently. By 2013, it had fallen to 50%.
Many assume that the decline in Bible reading is age-related. The common perception is that older people read the Bible more frequently, and younger people are less likely to read it. This was true for weekly Bible reading in 1996 (12% for 18-34-year-olds, 20% for 35-54-year-olds, and 28% for those older than 55) but is no longer true today (10% for 18-34-year-olds, 10% for 35-54-year-olds, and 12% for those older than 55) That is, age is no longer a factor in Bible reading frequency.
[Note: The main observable reason why there is no discernible difference in weekly Bible reading across the age groups is that Boomers (who are now in the 55+ group) have, according to social surveys over the past few decades, largely parted company with the Bible and the church.]
Obviously, for those who place a high premium on Bible reading, the statistics are deeply distressing. The drop in Bible reading is more than simply a decline in a spiritual discipline. Bible reading is intrinsically tied to the church’s spiritual health, and the slump is an alarming indication of how the foundations of the Christian faith are being deeply eroded.
So, is there something we can do to address the problem? Consider the following:
- confess sin, indifference and apathy
- recognize that 20th Century Bible reading guides/plans utilize modernistic approaches that don’t connect with post-moderns
- shift away from product and program-driven Bible reading strategies to relational and interactive strategies
- develop new paradigms and approaches to Bible reading that are multi-sensory and transformative
- encourage online and offline innovation in Bible reading methods
- learn from grassroots movements that are successfully helping people read the Bible
- advocate for the virtues and benefits of Bible reading
- promote confidence in, community around, and conversations about the Word
- tell others about Bible reading resources and tools that work
- model communal Bible reading
- ask God to reverse the decline
Have your say. How can we encourage Bible reading in Canada?
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Summary
The Canadian Bible Engagement Study (2014) reveals a significant decline in Bible reading, with 55% of Canadians never reading it, compared to 20% in 1993. The frequency of weekly Bible reading has decreased by 45% over the past two decades, with only 4% of Canadians reading the Bible daily. This decline spans across denominations, with decreases in Catholic, Protestant, and Evangelical communities alike. To address the issue, experts suggest moving away from traditional Bible reading programs and developing more relational, interactive, and transformative approaches to engage people while fostering a deeper sense of community and conversation around the Word.
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Canadian Bible Engagement Study: www.bibleengagementstudy.ca
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