Two recent articles grabbed my attention, partly because they resonate quite a bit with the pieces I've written about why young adults leave church. It's also interesting to me that so many people seem to be talking about this at this particular time. Rachel Held Evans and I came out with some pieces at the same time, and then a similar story by Andrew Sullivan hit the cover of the April 9 issue of Newsweek. My wife, Amy, sent me an article by Adam J. Copeland from The Christian Century called "No Need for Church: Ministry With Young Adults In Flux."
In the article, Copeland recounts three snapshot portraits of three "typical" young adults who are seeking to follow the way of Christ without church:
A young woman told me that she too had grown up in a loving Lutheran church but felt pushed out when she revealed her sexuality. She now prays regularly, attends spirituality retreats at a Catholic ministry center and volunteers in a variety of settings. But she is not connected to a congregation.
A young man described how he had hoped to be a youth pastor in his conservative evangelical denomination, but then the rigid faith he was taught at Bible college sent him into a crisis of faith. Now his questions about the Bible, and about piety and certain theological doctrines, make him feel unwelcome in the church of his youth -- and uninspired to try another church.
A young woman explained that she planned to live in Fargo for only a year. She felt that it wasn't worth expending the time she'd need to get connected to a congregation but wished she had a place where she could ask faith-related questions, a place where she might grow in her love of God and neighbor.
The teachings of the church are seen as devalued. This doesn't have so much to do with the inherent importance or validity of what is being said, but rather it's a reflection of the value of information overall. It's really a matter of supply and demand. Abraham Lincoln probably wouldn't have walked so far to get a book from the only area library, after all, if he had Wikipedia and Google Books at his fingertips. Most anything being said, taught or preached about in a church on Sunday can be found somewhere else, wherever and whenever we want it. Why wait?
The institutions have outlasted their original purpose. Most of our churches were built when populations were static. People didn't divorce, change jobs and move around like they do now. This mobility, combined with the diversification of networking opportunities, on-line and through other means, puts bricks-and-mortar institutions in an awkward spot of hoping people find them where they are. And much of the outreach efforts of church is still an attempt to get people "in the doors." But the fact is that most young adults don't particularly care.
Our understanding of community has changed. This builds on the previous point, actually. Community used to imply a specific geographic focus, like a church, country club or lodge. All of these kinds of institutions, incidentally, are not what they used to be. Our understanding of relationship is different, and what we come to expect out of being connected to one another has evolved (or mutated, depending on your point of view) in both size and content. For example, I am still in contact with hundreds of folks from my past who are all around the world. A few years ago, we would never have heard from each other again. But I also don't have many close friends. Everyone's too "busy." People are increasingly wary of investing their limited time and resources into anything new, including other people.
This all being said, there is still a significant interest in, and pursuit of, a life following the path lived out and described by Jesus. In some ways, we younger adults are starving for the very community we're wary of much like the young woman from Fargo described above. But we're distracted, skeptical and even a little paranoid, especially when it comes to institutions.
So what's the answer? Those invested in ministry have to decide what matters most.
There's a question I ask nearly every congregation I get asked to come speak to. Before we get into any other real substance about congregational transformation, I ask them: "If you could realize your vision for the community today, right now, but it meant closing the doors of your church forever, would you do it?"
If the answer is "no," then the mission has taken a back seat to something more nefarious. If the answer is "yes," and if they are truly committed to doing WHATEVER it takes with their personal and material resources to live out the Gospel, then we have something to work with.
I'm not saying every church has to -- and will -- shut down forever in order to meet their new mission field's needs. But if we're not even willing to consider the possibility, it's we who have a distorted value system; and those young adults wary of our motives are actually right in their skepticism about us.
Follow Christian Piatt on Twitter: www.twitter.com/christianpiatt
Bruce Reyes-Chow: Trusting God as Some Leave the Presbyterian Church
So the *structure* is dissolving and a few generations from now, "going to church" will be something people did "back then".
Religion simply cannot keep up with 3 main components which is going to dissolve religion as we know it into individualized passive beliefs
1) Population - Religion cannot keep up with the rate of population growth. (this is in part why non-believers are the fast growing group)
2) Science - Religious ideas largely stay the same or are far behind accepting what science is discovering, Science is constantly bringing new information about our world that directly interferes, as a byproduct, with strong religious belief. And the coming Scientific leaps we are about to make in the coming 40 years will change many belief systems
3) Information technologies - There is more and more information available to more people than ever before, in fact a 15 yr old today has more access to information than presidents had in the 70's, maybe even the 80's, and religion works by containing outside information and belief.
Religions have changed many times, and I believe we are at the beginning of a major evolution of religions becoming individualized secular meshing of philosophies and beliefs without uniformity or holding to mythology of the past.
So what's the answer?
---
GPS For the Soul.
If you're happy and feel this is what you need at this time, then blessings to you. But please - leave yourself open to teachings and wisdom from multiple views.
I honestly don't see how the Christian life can be practically lived in the modern age without the support of a local church. It provides opportunities for worship, bible study, fellowship, discipleship, evangelism, charity, and personal accountability on a daily basis.
My husband and I were very involved in a liberal Lutheran church in New York City for a number of years, but finally we couldn't take the frustration of trying to fit into a Baby Boomer-dominated community. The Boomers don't understand GenX and Millenials, and many of them are resentful when we try to have any kind of influence and impact on "their" communities. The Senior pastor actually dismissed me as "youth" of the church at age 37! They just can't stop seeing us as irresponsible kids and usurpers of their right to an eternal youth. Gee, why wouldn't we want to go to church?
Whenever I talk to a GenXer about church, I hear the same story again about how they tried it for a while and then just stopped going because they didn't fit in. No wonder the Millenials aren't bothering!
Therefore because He is not a man that He might lie~ then it is obvious that those young folk who have "left the building" did just that~ in that, they were never really in the Church that Christ built and is yet building.
And besides, maybe it's a good thing they are leaving those "synagogues of Satan!
This is not something that could be avoided because of the deep and abiding problems with Christian theology. The intellectuals will leave the church as a result of their unanswered (and unanswerable within the Christian theological framework) questions and the non-intellectuals will leave because it no longer has anything "uniquely beneficial" to offer. It would be nice if returning to the "teachings of Jesus (a.s.)" were an option for Christians, however, this is a tiny portion of the Bible and what is there is either incomplete or of questionable authenticity.
Most of biblical and Jesus' teachings are about end time events when all works of man are to be eliminated until earth and sky appears new with only those living like Adam prior to Eve's removal made them both "woman," only a remnant enters therein, that remnant are called "the alive and remaining" and the parable of the fig tree say the year 2028 is the latest before all prophecies are fulfilled, we are seeing the awakening of the remnant in preparation for the end. That's the work of spirit in fulfilling prophecy.
Although man-in-mass are to be destroyed with civilization's termination they reincarnate for the second Adam to make them quickening spirits to live in a spiritual civilization where bodies are not recognized any more than spirits are today. For detailed explanation see
http://prop1.org/protest/elijah/vision.htm#unsealed
Take a circle and twist it in half then cut it leaving 2 separate ball you get an idea of what the operation on Adam was, one having the feminine and the other the masculine attribute leaving each woven from the other. That's how man becomes one flesh, each develop both attributes within themselves and their flesh.
OT has written a remnant of my people and people left upon the land the NT calls "the alive and remaining."
The parable, budding fig tree, was when Israel became a nation in 1948 and man's life expectancy is maximum 80 years making 2028 the maximum before civilization ends.
Revelation 19:21 say the remnant "not the alive and remaining" will be killed by the sword and 20:5 say they live again after the 1000 years of 20:4 are finished [for] replenishing earth for Revelation 21's civilization without physical feelings and sun. So how much gibberish is that?
The notion of the lone wolf christian is a cultural construct that exists only in Western Europe and North America, and in my experience tends to be espoused by those who don't want the accountability that comes with being part of a church family.
The "Church" as we know it in the West - was born through an imposition of the Roman Empire. Prior to that imposition - Christianity was widely divergent as you well know. It was in many ways a spiritual movement with a few key beliefs and lots of innovation. It was short on theology and long on community and spirit.
Fundamentalist Christians who cannot acknowledge this historical fact- are simply not credible enough to engage in a conversation about the transitions and the evolution of the Christian Church over the past 2,000 years and especially in contemporary society.
You seem to be caught in a time warp along with most Baby Boomers who were socialized to accept "top down" hiearchies. That sensibility is changing rapidly into an "open source" and collaborative model. Its already to late to fight it. If you find that you are fighting it and trying squeeze people back into your comfort zone - then you are a spiritual ghost.
It is true, that some attempt to 'play' church. That's because they've wandered from the path of wisdom, righteousness, and revelation. But to say the church has evolved into an open source and collaborative model is wrong. The church that is led by the very spirit of Jesus, will not be deceived.
The reason for those things happening is because organized church was the destiny but not Jesus' teachings. What does the "Great Commission" say to followers? How is the life of the "born again" supposed to be? If we live Matthew 6:24-28 how would we live?
What you are looking at is how the church was supposed to become until the last days most biblical teachings suggest. It was designed to happen so spirit's letters to the 7 churches could be written as a symbol of how they would come to today's present mega "Laodicean" churches.
Sometimes it's easier to teach love, compassion, and such outside of organized religion, and even outside of religious beliefs.