Why are Young Christians Leaving the Church? - Part 1: Overprotective and Afraid of culture and Creativity)
Recently, I was asked by someone why I thought that we were losing the "postmodern generation"--why younger Christians are leaving our fellowship. It is a good question, and a question that other fellowships are asking as well. David Kinnamon, in his book You Lost Me: Why Young Christians are Leaving Church and Rethinking..., gives six reasons that young Christians are leaving Christianity based upon research.
In a series of blog posts I will share Kinnamon's six reasons, as well as my own thoughts on the subject.
In this first post, I will examine David Kinnamon's first reason that he gives for why young Christians are leaving church. According to Kinnamon, young people are leaving church because they find that the church is:
Reason #1 - Overprotective [Afraid of Culture and Creativity]. The impulses toward creativity and cultural engagement are some of the defining characteristics of the Mosaic generation that are most obvious. They want to reimagine, re-create, rethink, and they want to be entrepreneurs, innovators, starters. To Mosaics, creative expression is of inestimable value. The church is seen as a creativity killer where risk taking and being involved in culture are anathema.
My thoughts - In our fellowship, we are much more comfortable with a rational, left-brained faith. Churches of Christ were shaped during the 1800s in a time in which linear, deductive reasoning was prominent. Thus, today we still are much better at reaching or keeping engineers or blue collar workers than we are reaching or keeping artists/right-brained people. And with the rise of video, the Iphone and Ipad, movies, and music, we are increasingly becoming a right-brained world--a world which is leaving us behind.
Most of our churches and preachers still do not use video, use powerpoint to merely highlight "points" (linear thought) rather than show vivid pictures, have little creativity in worship, and ignore social media. Because our roots are rural and poor, we have not (generally) valued design in our presentations, our buildings (which seem to have all been designed by one architect from the 1950s), our publications (most bulletins are crammed and assault the eye), or our websites (which are generally terrible, if a church even has one). We view such things as being wasteful, or worse yet, unnecessary.
We simply have not understood or valued these things, and we mistrust anything that would evoke "emotion." We believe that emotion will always lead us astray (but strangely never seem to think that our reasoning could be doubted). Thus we have failed to engage the heart/emotion, which has been detrimental not only to younger generations, but to all of the generations. Emotion is a fundamental part of what makes us human. We cannot fully love God without this essential part of us. And by failing to fully engage the emotion, the right-brained part of us, we have left the increasingly right-brained, younger generations feeling that the church and/or God is dull and dry.
(Even our number one evangelistic tool, the Jewel Miller filmstrips, was never updated. I have tried to provide an updated evangelistic tool in the Story of Redemption-www.StoryofRedemption.com.)
As to involvement in culture, we have rarely looked to find truth in culture as Paul did in Acts 16 at Mars Hill. In this passage, Paul carefully examines the Athenians' objects of worship, and he somehow finds something in their culture--the altar to the unknown god--to point towards the God of heaven. We often have either been only condemning of culture or merely ignorant. Narnia, the Lord of the Rings, the Passion of the Christ, the Matrix--these are just a few examples of recent movies that all have powerful biblical themes. And yet, I would guess that fewer than 10 percent of churches used these movies as outreach or inreach opportunities. That means that on any given week, most preachers probably reference almost nothing from culture, providing no guidance for younger Christians to "redeem" popular culture.
And as for music, we provide no cultural relevance. And yet, the gospel can be found or illustrated in even artists that are not noted to be Christian. Take, for instance, the lyrics of the young singer, Avril Lavigne (pictured above), in her song, I'm With You.
I'm standing on a bridge
I'm waiting in the dark
I thought that you'd be here by now
There's nothing but the rain
No footsteps on the ground
I'm listening but there's no sound
Isn't anyone tryin to find me?
Won't somebody come take me home
It's a [very] cold night
Trying to figure out this life
Won't you take me by the hand
Take me somewhere new
I don't know who you are
But I... I'm with you
I'm with you
Within this song there is the human longing for friendship, companionship, community, value--all of which can be found in Christ and the church, which is his body. But few preachers are quoting Avril Lavigne. If we showed up at Mars Hill, would we have been able to preach Christ from the altar to the unknown god? Today, we are surrounded by Mars Hill, with all of its artists, its paintings, its sculptures, its music and its images. We need to learn how to engage these artists, interpret their world, and use their gifts to share Christ. Through these beautiful pictures, healing can be brought to a broken world.
Do you think that Churches of Christ (or your fellowship) are good at reaching or keeping "artists"/the increasingly right-brained, postmodern generations? Why do you think this is? How could we better reach this group/generation?
Comment
Martin, I think that you make a good distinction between the knowledge and experience emphases in the different generations. People today care little about theory. They will only "believe" something if it actually seems to work and they can "experience" the truth of something.
Good thoughts bro. I have also started to read Kinnamon's book: want to know what the younger generation (compared to me) is thinking. One generalized difference I believe is that the older generation is more about knowledge: assuming knowledge will change behavior. While the younger is about experience: they want to engage life! So what I am attempting to get at: the current religious model is about facts, while the mosaic wants to experience something real and relevant to life. Just my humble opinion.
Great quote and verse, Kurt! By the way, I am preaching from James 1 tomorrow on Joy in the Midst of Trials. Should be familiar territory for you. I love how you have grown in God's word, Kurt. Very inspiring.
Bill's comment immediately brought this to mind (from my very limited study of the Bible, this is one of my favorites): James 2:12-13: Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, (13) because judgement without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgement.
Thank you, Bill! It is helpful to gain insight into the thinking of those who have felt alienated by churches. Here is a link to the Pew Research Poll which shows that 20 percent of Americans no longer give any religious affiliation. The number is 30 percent for younger generations. http://www.pewforum.org/Unaffiliated/nones-on-the-rise.aspx
an article in this morning's Dallas News is related to the subject from a church going teenage christian.
Related
Chance Hays of Midlothian is a senior at Ovilla Christian School and a Student Voices volunteer columnist.
I am a Christian. I even go to a Christian school. That’s not exactly something most people are so proud to say anymore.
This week, a Pew Research Center said that 46 million Americans don’t associate with any religion and that, for the first time in our nation’s history, less than 50 percent of us say we are Protestant Christians. The trend is most visible among people under 30. A growing number of former Protestants are now checking the box for “none.”
I think part of the reason is that Christians have gained a bad reputation for judgment, condemnation, political agendas and even hatred. Many have seen the exploits of the group known as Westboro Baptist Church, as they protest at military funerals, contending that God is punishing the military for the U.S. tolerance of homosexuality. Or perhaps you’ve heard of the less famous hate-filled Detroit Arab-American festival, in which Christians stuck the head of a pig on a stick, parading it around Arabs. One of these “Christian missionaries” was even heard shouting, “You’re gonna burn in hell!”
I have grown up in an increasingly pluralistic society, and those who are judgmental and narrow-minded are becoming enemy No. 1 among people my age.
I even grew up in a “churchy” environment, and what I see outside of that environment is a general dislike for Christians as a whole.
For too many people, church is a place of pain — a place of constant reminders of their past, without any indication of a future. For example, my neighbor of 11 years refused to go to any church. He was rejected because of his appearance; he was very rough around the edges. He was a habitual smoker and lived a lifestyle that was hard for many to accept. He was also one of the nicest men I ever knew, but because of one church and the pain it caused, he lived with a wound that could not be mended. The last time he was in a church was at his funeral.
I believe in a man named Jesus, and the Jesus I know, the Jesus I follow, loved. He was a friend to failures. He loved the unlovable; he gave incredible grace to those who didn’t deserve it. So why does a church, an establishment that once stood for such love, reject grace and embrace judgment instead? The Jesus I know wasn’t very kind to those people. In fact, the religious leaders of his day (surprisingly similar to “churches” today) hated “sinners” and in turn, Jesus was very harsh to them, while the kind of people many Christians judge today were given extravagant love by Jesus.
Recently, many “Christians” have been known for anti-gay rallies, pro-life protests and political bias. But would Jesus, the one who we claim to follow, be telling gays that they are going to hell, or would he be comforting the hurt?
According to the 2009 documentary Lord Save us from Your Followers, 9 out of 10 Americans profess some sort of belief in God. Furthermore, writer-producer-director Dan Merchant found that while many people disliked Christians and what they stood for, they understood that Jesus was a kind, loving, incredible person. So it’s not Jesus that’s the problem! It’s us!
It’s time to stop. It’s time for our reputation for hate, judgment and walking all over those who are hurt to end.
Mahatma Gandhi once said, “I like your Christ. I don’t like your Christians. They are so unlike your Christ.” I am a Christian. It’s time we were all more like our Christ.
Tony, it is great to hear from you. I love what you have shared that you guys are doing.
1. Mobile technology/You Version - this is a great way for people to "pre-view a service." Just as people check out movies through their Iphone, playing a trailer to see if it catches their interests, so too can churches use this technology to interest people in coming to a worship service or other event. (I wonder if maybe we should do this for small groups, or youth events?) Just by using this technology we say to people that we speak their language and understand their world.
2. Love the interact texting that you are doing. Some of our lectureships have started doing this. It can help keep people engaged by requiring them to think through the message enough to answer or ask questions. Dr. Archibald Hart, a professor whom I respect, spoke on this at a class that I just audited at Fuller Theological Seminary (where I got my D.Min.). He said that in one church that was doing this, people were using texting to criticize the speaker.
To this I would say that texting is not the culprit. It simply is the medium for unkind expressions. If people are criticizing during texting, they are probably doing this after the sermon too. We should address the issue of gossip or people not following Matthew 19 (going to your neighbor if they have a problem), rather than not use a current communication form. Yes, every technology has its drawbacks. But it is always the previous generation that criticizes the next. (I am sure that there were people criticizing flannel graphs at some point).
3. LTC - Great idea. LTC is really great because it sends the message that everyone has a gift that they can use for God--including the creative gifts. (By the way, you might want to check out my spiritual gifts inventory and website at www.YourSpiritualGifts.com).
I will address the challenges that typical youth ministry creates as teens transition to the college age/young adult years soon. Stay tuned!
Great article James. Looking forward to the rest...
A few things we are doing to bridge the gap and engage a younger (and even older) audience..
1. We are encouraging the use of mobile technology during worship. Auditorium has wifi, and each Sunday we now host a YouVersion live event for folks that are using YouVersion on their phone, tablet or other device.
2. Our minister regularly puts his phone number up during a lesson and encourages folks to respond via text to a question asked. We have been blown away by the number and depth of the responses. He weaves those responses later into his lesson...
3. Leadership Training for Christ has various "art" events for the kiddos and teens. We encourage ours to participate in those and then display the art afterwards. (We could do a better job with this though).
We have to be flexibile and adaptable with our methods of sharing the Gospel and engaging culture. We can definately do that without compromising the message...
I can't wait to see if the book addresses our commonly accepted model for youth ministry that constantly separates our young folks from the larger church body. IMHO, that is a huge reason why younger folkshave a hard time finding their place after they graduate.
Kurt, thanks for the thoughts! Yes, I am 39, which is pushing the "young generation." However, both you and I are in a primarily postmodern generation, whether or not we are still young. Hey, they are calling Paul Ryan young, and he is 42, so maybe we still are.
Anyway, it is true that many are spiritual but not religious. That is a whole other category and blog post. Stay tuned!
Great points! Though I can no longer speak for the "younger generation" (not chronologically anyway), I can remember having these same thoughts as to why I didn't want to go to Church. I think Sandy's comment, about the younger generation being "spiritual" but not "religious" can be ascibed to a significant portion of the world's population as a whole. Looking forward to reading the rest!
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