I believe in miracles says new BBC Local Radio survey

According to research commissioned by BBC Local Radio, three in five UK adults say they believe some form of miracle is possible.

The research, published this morning, says that nearly half of those questioned admitted to praying for a miracle at some time. However, when it comes to the miracles of Jesus, nearly half say they do not believe he did miraculous things.

The research was conducted by Comres and surveyed 2,002 British adults by telephone between 16 and 26 August.

Other findings in the research suggested that:

• 62% of British adults believe some form of miracle is possible today
• Nearly three-quarters aged 18-24 say they believe some form of miracle is possible today, more than any other age group
• 43% say they have prayed for a miracle
• 37% of British adults who attend a religious service at least monthly say they believe the miracles of Jesus happened, word for word as described in the Bible
• Half of this group say they have prayed for a miracle which was answered in the way they had hoped
• But 37% of Christians have never prayed for a miracle

Speaking after the publication of this research, Graham Nicholls, Director of Affinity said:

“I am grateful to the BBC for conducting this research with ComRes to assess attitudes to miracles.

The results are fascinating because they are a reflection of opinions both inside and outside of the church. It is interesting to see that more than half the population hold the view that miracles are possible. This would suggest to me that people are not as closed to the prospect of things happening outside our human experience which cannot be explained.

Within the Christian church there seem to be a confusing range of viewpoints. It was a challenge to see that less than half of people who attend religious services believe the biblical accounts of the miracles of Jesus, or expect God to ever answer prayer in a miraculous way. This is a challenge to us who lead churches to explain clearly and persuasively the power of God.

I hope this research will start a conversation…”