Only 12 per cent of adults and seven per cent of those aged between 18 and 24 really know the story of Jesus’s birth, a survey from the theological think tank Theos suggested this week.

Some parts of the story were better known than others to the 1015 who responded to the poll. Although 73 per cent knew that Jesus was born in Bethlehem, nine per cent thought it was Nazareth, and ten per cent, Jerusalem.

The percentage correctly identifying an angel as the one who told Mary she would give birth to a son was also 73, but six per cent thought the Wise Men told her, and five per cent thought it was the shepherds.

Correctly identifying Jesus’s cousin proved tricky for more than half the respondents. While 48 per cent said it was John the Baptist, 12 per cent suggested Peter, and six per cent, Luke and James. Asked where Joseph, Mary, and Jesus went to escape from King Herod when Jesus was a young child, just 22 per cent of respondents gave the correct answer — Egypt.

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Filed under: * Culture-Watch • Religion & Culture • * International News & Commentary • England / UK

1. APB wrote: Did they determine how many believed that Mary and Joseph were “homeless?”  I would think, judging from the wretched sermons which are now typical, the clergy would score particularly poorly on this one. December 14, 9:51 am | [comment link]

2. Adam 12 wrote: Actually, identifying James as a potential cousin of Jesus would have support in Roman Catholic theology. December 14, 11:04 am | [comment link]

3. Bob from Boone wrote: This report about the lack of knowledge about the Christmas story reminds me of the anedote in the news a few years ago: a child in England asked his mother what Jesus’ mum named him after a swear word. December 14, 1:15 pm | [comment link]

4. Bob from Boone wrote: I meant “why” December 14, 1:16 pm | [comment link]

5. Vincent Lerins wrote: I’m willing to bet that if the questions were about the birth of Anna Nicole Smith baby or Brittney Spears baby, everyone would know all the details and could give detailed analysis of the events. -Vincent December 14, 5:21 pm | [comment link]

6. rugbyplayingpriest wrote: Faith in england effectively began to die in the sixties when secularists drove religious assemblies out of primary schools. The church did little to fight this and know we wonder why children have no idea about the Christian story…as my American freinds like to say…go figure http://www.sbarnabas.com December 15, 3:20 am | [comment link]

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