ABSTRACT

One of the most striking aspects of social change in northern European societies over the past century has been the radical transformation of the religious sphere. This has been most apparent in that area of public life defined as ‘civil society’ (Thomas 2000) and its most visible expression has been in the rapid decline of visible public participation in organised religion. Individual religious belief itself remains a widespread phenomenon, measurable through such indices as the European Values Survey (Davie 1994, 2000) and the continued relevance of institutional religion to the vitality of the public sphere should not be underestimated (Casanova 1994; Fukuyama 1995). Nevertheless, as Steve Bruce (1995) notes, organised religion in northern European societies progressively lost both power and influence throughout the twentieth century and this loss of social significance is most visible in the decline of both denominational membership and attendances at places of worship. This chapter will seek to focus primarily on the relationship between religious adherence, institutional forms of belonging and group identity formation as they relate to Wales and the Welsh people.