Why millennials are leaving the church

by | Posted March 28th at 9:52am

It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age and who have fallen away, to be brought back to repentance. To their loss, they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace. – Hebrews 6:4-6 NIV

It’s no secret that millennials are leaving the church. Churches of all denominations are grappling with the phenomenon of young adults born between approximately 1976 and 1994 who are failing to engage in traditional, institutional Christianity.

In fact, research indicates that among those who describe themselves as atheists, agnostics, or “nothing in particular”—“the nones”—a significant number of them are millennials.

This reality is addressed by Alex McFarland and Jason Jimenez in their book Abandoned Faith.1 The authors, specialists in Christian apologetics and family ministries, offer their observations and suggestions for addressing this situation.

The book is divided into four sections: What Went Wrong; Forces Shaping Our Sons and Daughters; Steps to Mend to Move Forward; and Winning Back Your Millennial Child. Each chapter in its respective section is carefully crafted to blend sociological research (fully documented), contemporary and biblical case studies, and scriptural counsel.

The reason millennials are leaving the church is summed up in this sentence: “Too many Christians have forgotten that the goal of the church is to help people follow Christ [rather] than [just] show up for an hour on Sunday.” And it isn’t just the church that is blamed for millennials’ disinterest in organized religion. Other causes include the changing influence of the home and changes in culture.

The thing that takes the greatest hit in terms of blame is inauthenticity on the part of such authority figures as parents, church members, and religious institutions. The authors point out that millennials don’t want to be preached to; they want to engage in conversations. They don’t want to be numbers on somebody’s tally or report card; they want to belong to a cause that’s greater than themselves. They don’t want to be a cog in a piece of machinery; they want to be part of the body of Christ.

A recurring theme in the book is the guilt felt by parents who come to realize (too late) that their children’s interest in Christianity is waning or absent altogether. The authors’ suggestions for remedying the situation are helpful, but certainly not guaranteed to produce positive results in every case. Let’s face it: young adults in university, or in their first jobs, are less likely to conform to parental influence than when they were younger.

The ideal audience for Abandoned Faith is not those whose children have already abandoned their faith; it’s for parents, family members, church members—indeed, all Christians—who are determined to live their faith, not just talk about it.

1 Abandoned Faith, A Shared Review of the Book


Article posted by Glen R. Jackman, founder of GraceProclaimed.org

Glen has optimized his eldership role to teach the full scope of the New Covenant of Jesus Christ without boundaries.
You can read his testimony.