Young British Christians ‘more antisemitic’ and one in six blame Jews for 'most wars’, research finds
ROTHERHAM, UNITED KINGDOM, February 20, 2025 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Young British Christians are less sympathetic towards Israel and hold more antisemitic views than older generations, new research has found.
An independent academic study of more than 2,000 Christians of all ages across the UK also found one third believe Jewish people ‘still talk too much about what happened to them in the Holocaust’ — the Nazis’ systematic murder of six million Jews in World War II.
The groundbreaking study – the first of its kind in the UK – reveals a third of young people (33 per cent of Brits aged 18-29) express support for Palestinians versus 19 per cent supporting Israel, with only 14 per cent indicating 'strong support' for Israel compared with 22 per cent of those aged over 65.
Roughly one in six agreed it’s 'definitely not antisemitic to say that Israel doesn’t have the right to exist', with a quarter (26 per cent) feeling it’s 'probably true' that Jews 'don’t care what happens to anyone but their own kind'. One in six (16.7 per cent) feel Jews are 'responsible for most of the world’s wars'.
“Young Brits are significantly more likely to hold very negative opinions of Jews and Israel than older British Christians,” said researcher Dr Motti Inbari, a professor of Jewish studies at the University of North Carolina, and a co-author of the national study, ‘A Survey of British Christian Attitudes Towards the Israel-Palestine Conflict,’ funded by a coalition of groups that oppose antisemitism.
“With antisemitism being openly celebrated, it’s important to understand why many British Christians, especially the young generation, still embrace old antisemitic Christian views,” said Inbari, who will present the research findings to the public at a London seminar on February 22 with co-researcher Dr. Kirill Bumin from Boston University in the U.S.
The in-depth study of 2,062 Christians was conducted in December 2024 and surveyed respondents who said they had a Christian upbringing or are practicing Christians themselves. The sample included Christians of all denominations, ages, ethnicities, genders, and marital status, as well as across the income and educational spectrum. A similar study of Christians in the USA was conducted by the same researchers in March 2024.
In general, British Christians are 'less supportive of Israel and less likely to view Jewish people positively' than Americans, said Bumin.
Statistical analysis of the data reveals that Christians who believe that God’s biblical covenant with the Jewish people has ended or never existed, and support the accusation that Jews are responsible for the murder of Jesus Christ, are the most likely to hold antisemitic views. 31 per cent of British Christians in the sample endorsed the idea that the biblical covenant has ended, while only 8.6 per cent believed that Jews are responsible for crucifying Jesus.
Those respondents who described themselves as ideologically 'far left' are also significantly more likely to express antisemitic views than Brits who hold other ideological views. Those who identified as 'Asian or British Asian' were significantly more likely to endorse antisemitic views than those of other ethnic and racial backgrounds.
Overall, Brits are almost equally split on the Gaza conflict, with 23.6 per cent supporting Israel and 22.5 per cent backing Palestine. Most — 37.3 per cent — were neutral, and 16.6 percent ‘didn’t know’.
In comparison, American support for Israel in the conflict is much higher at 42.3 per cent, previous research showed.
Furthermore, there is widespread concern about the humanitarian situation in Gaza, with almost half — 47 per cent — saying they believe Israel has committed genocide in the Gaza Strip. Nearly four out of every ten UK Christians (38.8 per cent) — believe Israel has deliberately targeted Palestinian civilians, the study showed.
The findings are ‘like a mirror, showing us exactly where Christians in the UK stand — and it’s deeply concerning,’ said Dr Mitch Glaser, CEO of Chosen People, a global organisation that works with Jews and provided support for the research.
British Christians who hold Left-leaning political and social views, such as strong concern about income inequality and climate change, showed less support for Israel than those with conservative views.
Across Christian sects, Protestants held higher levels of support for Israel than Roman Catholics, the least pro-Israel Christian denomination.
The research’s margin of error is three per cent.
The “Fresh Perspectives on Israel and the Church” event is taking place on February 22 at Emmanuel Centre on Marsham Street with several guest speakers, in addition to Inbari and Bumin. See more info here.
**************************************
Note to media:
The full version of the research study is available on request. Members of the media are also invited to attend a research presentation and luncheon at The Carlton Club in London on February 24 with Dr. Inbari. Media interested in attending should contact Andrew Griffiths at andrew@expandpr.co.uk to be registered.
About the researchers:
Dr Motti Inbari is a Jewish studies professor at University of North Carolina at Pembroke, USA. Dr Kirill Bumin is Associate Dean of Metropolitan College and the Director of the Summer Term at Boston University, USA. They are joint authors of Christian Zionism in the 21st Century (Oxford University Press, 2024).
An independent academic study of more than 2,000 Christians of all ages across the UK also found one third believe Jewish people ‘still talk too much about what happened to them in the Holocaust’ — the Nazis’ systematic murder of six million Jews in World War II.
The groundbreaking study – the first of its kind in the UK – reveals a third of young people (33 per cent of Brits aged 18-29) express support for Palestinians versus 19 per cent supporting Israel, with only 14 per cent indicating 'strong support' for Israel compared with 22 per cent of those aged over 65.
Roughly one in six agreed it’s 'definitely not antisemitic to say that Israel doesn’t have the right to exist', with a quarter (26 per cent) feeling it’s 'probably true' that Jews 'don’t care what happens to anyone but their own kind'. One in six (16.7 per cent) feel Jews are 'responsible for most of the world’s wars'.
“Young Brits are significantly more likely to hold very negative opinions of Jews and Israel than older British Christians,” said researcher Dr Motti Inbari, a professor of Jewish studies at the University of North Carolina, and a co-author of the national study, ‘A Survey of British Christian Attitudes Towards the Israel-Palestine Conflict,’ funded by a coalition of groups that oppose antisemitism.
“With antisemitism being openly celebrated, it’s important to understand why many British Christians, especially the young generation, still embrace old antisemitic Christian views,” said Inbari, who will present the research findings to the public at a London seminar on February 22 with co-researcher Dr. Kirill Bumin from Boston University in the U.S.
The in-depth study of 2,062 Christians was conducted in December 2024 and surveyed respondents who said they had a Christian upbringing or are practicing Christians themselves. The sample included Christians of all denominations, ages, ethnicities, genders, and marital status, as well as across the income and educational spectrum. A similar study of Christians in the USA was conducted by the same researchers in March 2024.
In general, British Christians are 'less supportive of Israel and less likely to view Jewish people positively' than Americans, said Bumin.
Statistical analysis of the data reveals that Christians who believe that God’s biblical covenant with the Jewish people has ended or never existed, and support the accusation that Jews are responsible for the murder of Jesus Christ, are the most likely to hold antisemitic views. 31 per cent of British Christians in the sample endorsed the idea that the biblical covenant has ended, while only 8.6 per cent believed that Jews are responsible for crucifying Jesus.
Those respondents who described themselves as ideologically 'far left' are also significantly more likely to express antisemitic views than Brits who hold other ideological views. Those who identified as 'Asian or British Asian' were significantly more likely to endorse antisemitic views than those of other ethnic and racial backgrounds.
Overall, Brits are almost equally split on the Gaza conflict, with 23.6 per cent supporting Israel and 22.5 per cent backing Palestine. Most — 37.3 per cent — were neutral, and 16.6 percent ‘didn’t know’.
In comparison, American support for Israel in the conflict is much higher at 42.3 per cent, previous research showed.
Furthermore, there is widespread concern about the humanitarian situation in Gaza, with almost half — 47 per cent — saying they believe Israel has committed genocide in the Gaza Strip. Nearly four out of every ten UK Christians (38.8 per cent) — believe Israel has deliberately targeted Palestinian civilians, the study showed.
The findings are ‘like a mirror, showing us exactly where Christians in the UK stand — and it’s deeply concerning,’ said Dr Mitch Glaser, CEO of Chosen People, a global organisation that works with Jews and provided support for the research.
British Christians who hold Left-leaning political and social views, such as strong concern about income inequality and climate change, showed less support for Israel than those with conservative views.
Across Christian sects, Protestants held higher levels of support for Israel than Roman Catholics, the least pro-Israel Christian denomination.
The research’s margin of error is three per cent.
The “Fresh Perspectives on Israel and the Church” event is taking place on February 22 at Emmanuel Centre on Marsham Street with several guest speakers, in addition to Inbari and Bumin. See more info here.
**************************************
Note to media:
The full version of the research study is available on request. Members of the media are also invited to attend a research presentation and luncheon at The Carlton Club in London on February 24 with Dr. Inbari. Media interested in attending should contact Andrew Griffiths at andrew@expandpr.co.uk to be registered.
About the researchers:
Dr Motti Inbari is a Jewish studies professor at University of North Carolina at Pembroke, USA. Dr Kirill Bumin is Associate Dean of Metropolitan College and the Director of the Summer Term at Boston University, USA. They are joint authors of Christian Zionism in the 21st Century (Oxford University Press, 2024).
Andrew Griffiths
Expand PR
andrew@expandpr.co.uk
Powered by
Distribution channels: Human Rights, Religion
Legal Disclaimer:
EIN Presswire provides this news content "as is" without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the author above.
Submit your press release