Karl Faase Unpacks the Surprising Update on UK Church Growth Claims
Key points:
- Research released in March 2025 by the UK’s Bible Society suggested a u0022quiet revivalu0022 was underway, with young men returning to church in significant numbers.
- YouGov later admitted they could not stand behind their figures, and the Bible Society withdrew the research entirely.
- Despite the retraction, Karl Faase says there are still genuine signs of renewed interest in faith across Europe and Australia, including rising Bible sales, growing Alpha course attendance, and young people walking away from atheism.
Did you hear the incredible news about a “quiet revival” in the United Kingdom, with young people — especially men — returning to church in growing numbers?
There has been a shocking update, as Karl Faase from The Daily Nudge told Hope Mornings.
“So, there was a quiet revival in the UK … but now, hang on, there isn’t?” asked Hope Mornings’ host Ben McEachen.
Karl explained excitement about a “quiet revival” came from research released in March 2025, by the UK’s Bible Society.
“They came out and said, ‘Great news, there’s a revival … particularly among young men,’” Karl said about church attendance figures gathered by data analytics group YouGov.
“[The research showed a] jump from four per cent saying they were going to church to 16 per cent.”
Many people, including Australians, picked up on these findings and felt encouraged about what this meant for Christian faith.
“A lot of us heard ‘thousands, millions of young blokes are starting to go to church’ and we thought, ‘Fantastic,’” Ben said.
But questions were being raised behind the scenes.
A significant issue was attendance records released for years by denominations such as the Anglican Church, didn’t show the same growth as the YouGov research.
“If what [YouGov] is saying is true, we should see those figures in other places, and they’re not there.”
“Embarrassingly… YouGov came out and said, ‘actually, we can’t be confident on those figures,” Karl said about the shock announcement in March 2026.
Effectively, the fanfare about a “quiet revival” in the UK was instantly muted.
“Revival’s a strong word… but there is a leaning into faith and spirituality.”
Still, Karl urged us not to lose heart – or perspective.
“That doesn’t mean there isn’t something happening,” Karl said.
“There are lots of signs.”
He pointed to increased Bible sales, growing interest in Alpha courses, and more people exploring faith across Europe.
“Revival’s a strong word… but there is a leaning into faith and spirituality.”
“There’s… a growing interest.”
Such indicators suggest that the “vibe” of increased interaction with Christianity is stronger at present than hard data.
Karl agreed, adding that vibe is showing up in real lives, including in Australia.
“What you now see is people walking away from their atheism,” Karl said.
“That’s a change [from two decades ago].”
“We don’t live well without some sort of spiritual solace in our lives.
“Young men are just turning up to church.
“They’ve already been on YouTube for weeks … and then they say, ‘I need to go to church.’
“I think keep watching, keep reading.
“There’s lots of stories of this happening.”
Listen to the full conversation in the player above.
This article was prepared with AI assistance and then carefully reviewed, fact-checked, and edited by our Digital Team.
Feature image: Canva Pro
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