Reviews, Interviews, News, Commentaries, Excerpts, My Top 5 Books, Wilson's Bookmarks, Book AwardsThe Leavers: Young Doubters Exit the Church
Some striking mile markers appear on the road through young adulthood: leaving for college, getting the first job and apartment, starting a career, getting married—and, for many people today, walking away from the Christian faith.
A few years ago, shortly after college, I was in my studio apartment with a friend and fellow pastor's kid. After some small talk over dinner, he announced, "I'm not a Christian anymore. I don't know what happened. I just left it."
An image flashed into my mind from the last time I had seen him. It was at a Promise Keepers rally. I remembered watching him worship, eyes pinched shut with one slender arm skyward.
How did his family react to his decision? I asked. His eyes turned to the ground. "Growing up I had an uncle who wasn't a Christian, and we prayed for him all the time," he said wistfully. "I'm sure they pray for me like that."
About that time, I began encountering many other "leavers": a basketball buddy, a soft-spoken young woman from my church's worship team, a friend from youth group. In addition to the more vocal ex-Christians were a slew of others who had simply drifted away. Now that I'm in my early 30s, the stories of apostasy have slowed, but only slightly. Recently I learned that a former colleague in Christian publishing started a blog to share his "post-faith musings."
These anecdotes may be part of a larger trend. Among young adults in the U.S., sociologists are seeing a major shift taking place away from Christianity. A faithful response requires that we examine the exodus and ask ourselves some honest questions about why.
Sons of 'None'
Recent studies have brought the trend to light. Among the findings released in 2009 from the American Religious Identification Survey (ARIS), one stood out. The percentage of Americans claiming "no religion" almost doubled in about two decades, climbing from 8.1 percent in 1990 to 15 percent in 2008. The trend wasn't confined to one region. Those marking "no religion," called the "Nones," made up the only group to have grown in every state, from the secular Northeast to the conservative Bible Belt. The Nones were most numerous among the young: a whopping 22 percent of 18- to 29-year-olds claimed no religion, up from 11 percent in 1990. The study also found that 73 percent of Nones came from religious homes; 66 percent were described by the study as "de-converts."
Other survey results have been grimmer. At the May 2009 Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life, top political scientists Robert Putnam and David Campbell presented research from their book American Grace, released last month. They reported that "young Americans are dropping out of religion at an alarming rate of five to six times the historic rate (30 to 40 percent have no religion today, versus 5 to 10 percent a generation ago)."
There has been a corresponding drop in church involvement. According to Rainer Research, approximately 70 percent of American youth drop out of church between the age of 18 and 22. The Barna Group estimates that 80 percent of those reared in the church will be "disengaged" by the time they are 29. Barna Group president David Kinnaman described the reality in stark terms:
"Imagine a group photo of all the students who come to your church (or live within your community of believers) in a typical year. Take a big fat marker and cross out three out of every four faces. That's the probable toll of spiritual disengagement as students navigate through their faith during the next two decades."
Grieving with the Good Friday God
La complejidad hispana: Todo cambió en el 2012
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Gene Scarborough
I have now had time to read many of the comments. They seem to have the most common theme of HIPOCRACY in the church being a source of motivation for leaving. I am now age 64 and reflect back to my young, preacher's kid, honestly answered questions era. It was the source of my examination of everything and still deciding to be part of the organized church. In that era my SBC was one of challenge and AUTONOMY. Now that has changed drastically in many organized churches--especially the mega church. A sociologist is studied at Emory posited that everyone has a time of "Psycho-Social-Moritorium" in order to achieve an adult status in life. In other words: "Chunk the presuppositions of early life / examine it all / gain your own adult status of owning your thoughts and outlook on life." I think too many today are afraid to "OWN" anything. We would all rather float with the crowd and stand for as little as possible. For me, it is a cop-out to leave and never return to AUTHENTICITY
Gene Scarborough
This amazes me. The few comments I have read thus far indicate as problem with "isms" and categories required of young believers these days. If we were less judgemental and willing to let the young ask honest questions where "I really don't know" is a legitimate answer, would it be better? Also, I think an "I don't know, but this is what I believe and makes sense to me" might help as well. I think too many adults are too certain that their answer must be their child's answer that the only alternative for youthful searchers is to get out of the stupidity!!!
Dan H
@JB: Hey, we are the same - but different. You see, I used to be a non-Christian. And it was the hypocrisy of non-Christians, the wretched sinfulness and evil in this world - not to mention my own sinfulness and my own inability to find peace and forgivness - that moved me to convert to Christ. Also the incredible contradictions in the scientific community. Man, they just can't even agree on evolution. One school espouses punctuated equalibriumism and another gradulism and another...well, you get the point. And then I began to read the Bible! It described me just the way I felt - sinful and in need of a Savior. And then when I believed on Christ as Savior I felt clean on the inside, forgiven, loved by God, an heir and adopted son. Oh, and did I mention I felt loved to an extent I had never felt before. And those contradictions in the Bible you mentioned - well, I saw them too, but I found out my own ignorance was the fault there. So with all that God offers you, how could you leave?