A new Angus Reid Institute poll has found that a majority of Canadians believe in some form of life after death, a proportion that has remained stable for decades.
Conducted in February and March, the survey collected responses from more than 2,000 Canadians, with a variety of religious affiliations, across the country. Continuing a trend found in previous polls conducted by ARI and Gallup, at least three in five respondents said they believed in an afterlife.
“Whether it is the heaven or hell of the Christian faith, the Jannah or Jahannam of Islam, or the reincarnation of the soul believed by Sikhs and Hindus. Belief in the afterlife has consistently remained at a majority level throughout survey data looking back to 1960,” reads an ARI statement on the survey results. “Only one in eight (13%) Canadians ‘definitely’ rule it out.”
The proportions of those who believe in an afterlife varied across the country, with respondents in Ontario and the Prairies most likely to believe, and those in coastal Canada and Quebec expressing doubt most often.
Manitoba had the highest proportion of those who believed somewhat or strongly in an afterlife at 72 percent, followed by Saskatchewan (69 percent), Alberta and Ontario (63 percent), British Columbia (60 percent), the region Atlantic (59 percent) and Quebec (50 percent).
Quebec also had the highest rate of strong feelings of doubt about the afterlife, at 17 per cent, compared to 13 per cent among the national population and six per cent in Saskatchewan, where the smallest proportion of Canadians do not. believed at all.
“Quebecers are the least likely to believe in an afterlife, perhaps due to that province’s greater propensity for secularism,” the statement read.
Belief rates also varied by religious affiliation. Muslim respondents were the most likely to report a belief in an afterlife, with 87 percent saying they believed somewhat or strongly, followed by Christian (76 percent), Hindu (71 percent), and Sikh (67 percent) respondents. hundred).
Among the Christian denominations examined in the survey, evangelicals were the religious group most likely to report believing in an afterlife at 93 percent, while mainline Protestants and Roman Catholics were least likely to believe, at 75 percent. and 67 percent, respectively.
Among the religions examined, Jews surveyed were the only group in which fewer than half reported believing in an afterlife, possibly a reflection, ARI notes, of what it describes as “ambiguity in the matter.” in the teachings of Judaism.
“Belief in some form of life after death is a fundamental tenet of many religions,” the survey statement reads. “What that life encompasses varies.”
Conducted shortly before Easter, the survey also asked respondents about their beliefs regarding the resurrection of Jesus Christ, which the holiday commemorates, and certain religious observances.
Among Christians surveyed, 48 percent of Catholics, 55 percent of mainline Protestants, and 81 percent of evangelicals reported that they agreed or strongly agreed that the resurrection was a historical event that occurred in the 1st century BC Across all Christian denominations surveyed, 21 percent reported that they did not know or preferred not to answer.
Among non-Christian religions, 26 percent of Muslims, 16 percent of Hindus and Sikhs, and nine percent of Jews surveyed indicated they strongly or somewhat agreed with the statement.
Hindu and Sikh respondents reported the greatest uncertainty or lack of engagement in the question, at 63 and 56 percent, respectively, saying they were unsure or preferred not to answer.
“The Easter weekend is important in the Christian calendar as it marks the resurrection of Jesus Christ after his death on the cross,” the statement read. “This account is in the New Testament of the Bible, but whether or not it was a historical event is an unresolved issue.”
Methodology
The 2024 survey was conducted by ARI and Cardus between February 20 and 25, 2024 among a representative random sample of 2,026 Canadian adults. The institute notes that a sample of that size has a margin of error of plus or minus two percentage points, 19 out of 20 times. Percentages may not add up to 100 due to rounding.
Additional surveys were conducted between March 11 and 14, 2024 among Canadians from four religious groups, including Muslim, Hindu Jewish and Sikh respondents.