For most organised Christian religions this period has witnessed a steady decline in attendance and membership. By the 1960s less than 10 per cent of the city's population attended church. The effects on individual churches have been dramatic. Glasgow's largest Church of Scotland congregation had belonged to the Barony with a membership of 2,993 in 1928, falling to 317 in 1978 and by the 1980s the church had closed. The Roman Catholic churches experienced a steady decline in baptisms, confirmations and marriages. Glasgow can take some comfort in that this decline has been a phenomenon in many European cities.
In Glasgow the decline resulted from many factors - from increasingly secular lifestyles to the redevelopment of many city centre areas where the churches were traditionally located. People have moved to peripheral housing schemes where religion has found it more difficult to gain a substantial presence. The growth of middle class suburbs, such as Bearsden and Milngavie, has also drawn people away from the city-based churches.
The decline of organised Christian religion has been in contrast to expanding numbers of non-Christian faiths. The city has four Sikh gurdwaras and in 1984 the Iman of Kaabah opened Glasgow's first purpose-built mosque.