MORE than three out of four people in Ireland believe in God, heaven and the concept of sin, while more believe in hell than doubt its existence.

However, despite being a nation of believers, declining numbers are going to weekly mass or attending other religious services.

By contrast, the overwhelming majority say they pray, with almost two out of three doing so on a weekly basis or more often, and more than eight out of 10 praying at some time, even if only in moments of crisis.

The mixed picture of religion in modern Ireland emerges from an Irish Examiner/RedC opinion poll, which surveyed 1,000 adults across the country in the middle of last month.

They were asked not only about their beliefs and practices, but also about their level of agreement with the Catholic Church on issues of moral significance and whether there is a role for religion in politics and other issues of public importance.

The results suggest that people are retaining their faith even while questioning and/or rejecting the influence of churches, but are increasingly unlikely to express their faith through formal religious observance.

Some of the other striking findings relate to the wide regional, class and age divides.

Non-believers are most likely to be found in Dublin and among the higher social classes while the strongest beliefs, practices and loyalty to the Church are found in Connacht/Ulster and among the farming classes.

Older people are more likely to express their faith formally and to question less the teachings of the Church and its role in society.

The survey was carried out during the controversy over Cardinal Desmond Connell’s attempt to secure a High Court order to keep investigators into clerical child sex abuse from accessing Catholic Church files and a very high proportion, 83%, said all files should be turned over.

The poll was also conducted in the wake of allegations that the Catholic Church was leaving some immigrant, non-Catholic children without places in their local primary schools because of a bias towards accommodating Catholic pupils.

Those allegations were refuted but it is notable that three in four of the population stated that Catholic schools should not pursue a Catholics-only policy.

Parts of the poll can be compared to the long-running European Values Study, conducted jointly by academics across Europe on a voluntary basis since 1981, to see how religious beliefs and practice have changed in Ireland over the past 25 years or so.

In 1981, the proportion in Ireland who said they believed in God stood at 97%. Nine years later in 1990 it was 98%. Another nine years on, in 1999, it was 96% and now, after a further nine years, the Irish Examiner/RedC poll shows the first significant drop to 84%.

Belief in heaven and sin also fell to a similar extent.

The most dramatic difference, however, is in the numbers attending mass or other religious service on a weekly basis.

In 1981, the figure was 82%; in 1990, it was 81%; in 1999, it fell substantially to 59%; and in today’s survey it has fallen again to a mere 45%.

By contrast, there is no change in the numbers who say they pray, be it regularly or just on occasions.

In 1981, 1990 and 1999 those who prayed numbered 81.5%, 84% and 82% respectively, while today’s survey shows it to be 84%.