Speaking at the third of the Cardinal’s Lectures in Westminster Cathedral on Thursday, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, examined some of the reasons why substantial numbers of people consider themselves 'spiritual not religious'.

One reason, he argued, is that affiliation and commitment to groups and associations in general is less popular today. "We generally prefer these days to be patrons rather than subscribers," he said, "We reserve our liberty in regard to our various affiliations rather than committing ourselves to regular and unquestioning support."

Another reason is the perception that religion is exclusive. "Those who find it unacceptable ... [argue that] religion introduces an alien element into reasonable human discourse;" he noted.  "It makes life difficult for anything approaching a universal language of rights and liberties, law and equity, a language to transcend the various forms of murderous tribalism which afflict our world."

Despite this, Williams sees signs of the tide turning, citing "the recognition [in the recent book Spiritual Capital: Wealth We Can Live By] that calling and shared discipline, of a kind typical of traditional religious practice, are a necessary undergirding for any sustained attempt to question and transform institutions."

Williams closed by suggesting that to truly influence the culture, Christians "need to examine the degree to which our practice looks like a new world... 'The unleavened bread of sincerity and truth' is the gift of the Easter Gospel, we are told in the liturgy; 'Lord, evermore give us this bread' (The Gospel According to St. John 6.34)."