Just as the question, "Is the Pope a Catholic?" is rhetorical, once it would have been a given that Italy was a Catholic country. 

But while Italy is enjoying one of the most accessible and popular Popes ever in Francis, a new poll published in L'Unità newspaper has revealed that just half of Italians consider themselves to be Catholic.

The survey by SWG found 63 per cent in total regarded themselves as Christian. A further four per cent said they were Orthodox or Protestant, two per cent Buddhist, and a one per cent each declaring themselves to be Muslim, Jewish or Hindu.

A further eight per cent said they believed in God but were not religious. One in five Italians said they were atheists. And of those who did believe, just 22 per cent said they were "practising" on a regular basis. About a third were sporadic churchgoers. Nearly half did nothing at all.

However, beyond traditional religion, many confessed to a variety of alternative spiritual beliefs. More than half said they believed in coincidences, more than four in ten believed in luck, a quarter believed in reincarnation and more than a fifth in healing miracles.  Nearly a fifth believed in karma and astrology and 16 per cent believed that aliens were present on earth. More than one in ten believed in demonic possession and nearly as many in tarot cards and magic.