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'Almost 30%' of children unfamiliar with religious tales

Bible literacy is falling with almost three in 10 children unaware the Nativity story comes from Christianity, research showed.

Some 6% of the children questioned though Hercules was a Bible story. Credit: PA

A survey from the Bible Society showed how many children could not identify Adam and Eve or Noah's Ark as religious tales.

The report, based on surveys of around 800 eight to 15-year-olds and about 1,100 parents, found that 29% of children did not think that the Nativity came from the Bible.

Some 36% of youngsters questioned failed to identify the Good Samaritan as coming from the Bible, while two in five did not know David and Goliath was a religious story.

The Society's report said the statistics were "symptomatic of the fact that many children indicate they have never read, seen or even heard these stories".