The British evolutionary biologist and author Richard Dawkins, one of the most well-known atheists of our time, has long been a vocal critic of all religions. Yet on Easter Sunday in 2024, Dawkins made an unexpected statement: he considers himself a “cultural Christian”. He explained that, while he did not actually believe the Bible’s teachings, he enjoys carols, hymns, church buildings and so on.

Some might say that these comments indicate he is no longer an atheist. I would disagree, and so would he. He appreciates ‘nice’ things that the church has to offer, but openly rejects key Christian beliefs.

And Dawkins is not alone. There are many people who, whether they admit it or not, are ‘cultural Christians’. They acknowledge the positive impact of Christianity and its general values (e.g. love, forgiveness, charity, humility, service of others etc), they may have been christened as infants and have some nominal affiliation with a church. Yet ask them if they really, personally believe what the Bible teaches about the Lord Jesus Christ, and I suspect they’d avoid giving a direct answer.

The Scriptures make it clear that you either are a Christian or you are not; there is no in-between spiritual category such as ‘cultural Christian’, or ‘appreciator of Christianity’. John 20:31 says, “these [things] are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His Name.” A Christian is someone who has trusted in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour. They truly believe the gospel: that Christ is God in human form, that He gave His life for our sins, that He rose again and that eternal life and salvation is found in Him alone, by God’s grace.

So let us not set too much store by cathedrals visited, carols sung, church schools attended, and census boxes ticked. Let us pray instead that Richard Dawkins and every other unbeliever comes to believe in Jesus Christ and have life in His wonderful Name.