There’s a HUGE difference between organized religion and faith.

I have faith in droves, but try to get me to celebrate any sort of organized religion, and I’m out.

But I don’t think the whole generation is losing the value of religion, just that religion – as it’s traditionally been presented, doesn’t work for us. We don’t like the traditional structures, we like sleeping in.

It’s not a lack of morals, either, but we also seem to like our own “custom” version of God. I personally don’t buy that an all-powerful, all-knowing and all-seeing deity would show traits like vengeance, anger, or jealousy. The universe is not so poorly designed.

Anyway, great video, great post!

-Nick Armstrong

This is a conversation I’ve had many times in the past few months, particularly with other expats who were raised in very devout families, and live quite differently here in China.

I joke that China’s religion is money, but going to church is kind of cool among young people.

One of my colleagues bragged that Hillary Clinton visited her church during a recent visit, and several of my former colleagues acted in a Christmas pageant.

A student of mine, a patent attorney with a pHd in chemistry, always wants me to bring Bible stories into his English classes, since he considers the Bible the base of Western civilization.

Half of my family is Christian and half is Jewish. When I was growing up, we celebrated lots of holidays but didn’t officially observe any religion outside those days, My mom does say grace before dinner every night, and always loves putting up Christmas and Hannukah decorations side by side.

I agree with Nick, that we seem to like our own “custom” version of God, rather than traditional structures.

Great video. I like it.

Personally I have completely moved away from going to church and believing there is a God somewhere up there.

As it was said, that whole structure of believing something that hasn’t been proven just doesn’t work for us.
I personally see it as believing in an illusion and its a waste of time, and money too.

[...] Is Gen Y losing religion? [...]

@ Nick – I like that you’ve presented it as not liking traditional structures. In many other cases – like companies – we’re creating new structures. Do you see this happening with religion? Tat’s the part I worry about. By losing the traditional structure of religion, it seems we’re replacing it with such custom structures as you mention. I hope this means we’re all becoming incredibly tolerant of other people’s beliefs. Thanks for the comment!

@ Leslie – Thanks so much for sharing your experiences. It’s always interesting to hear what other cultures do. My boyfriend was raised similarly to you and doesn’t currently identify with either religion. It’s interesting. If someone were to ask, I would say I was raised Lutheran, but don’t currently go to church. Which makes me wonder what I will do for my wedding some day, and ultimately, my funeral too…

@ tomasz – I appreciate you sharing another viewpoint, thank you. I’m curious, not believing in a God, what do you in those situations that are steeped in religious traditions, like new life, marriage, funerals and death? And since religion seems to often to provide the purpose in life, or the “meaning of life,” where do you find such answers?

As the son of a liberal baptist minister and irish catholic mother, I grew up with a lot of conflicting messages regarding religion, seeing my parents speak and act one way, while other folks who claimed to have the same faith acting in the complete opposite. It didn’t help that at the age of 12, I decided I was an atheist (long story).

Then, in my early 20′s, I had an experience that brought me back to a belief in god. Not in Jesus, Budda, Allah, or anything else, but rather a faith in a god of my own understanding. And I’ve kept it real simple since that point. There is a god, and I’m not it.

Beyond that, it’s just someone else’s idea.

@ Norcross – That’s quite the history! Thanks so much for sharing. It always interests me to hear how people came about to their current religious views. Similarly to you, I had an experience that makes me want to believe in God, but beyond that, it’s difficult for me to adhere to the certain tenets of many religions. I wonder as we grow older if our opinions will sway back towards more faith or less?

I was raised Methodist. Growing up, I could never understand why I didn’t seem to “get” what was being taught in sermon and sunday school classes. I thought I was weird. At age 18, I decided I wasn’t the weird one for not understanding – organized religion is weird.

I’m not religious, but I suppose I would consider myself spiritual. I believe in helping other people and making the world a better place. I’ve never once felt a void in my life just because I’m not a part of an organized religion.

As far as situations that are steeped in religious traditions… my husband and I were married in the state capital assembly chambers in a non-religious ceremony. We’ll have kids soon, and they won’t be baptized or brought up in a church. We’ll figure out what we’ll do when we die, but I’m fairly certain organized religion won’t be involved.

@ KO – Thanks so much for sharing a different perspective. I like the idea of not being religious, but being spiritual. And while I definitely understand and respect organized religion, I do see how it’s not for everyone. I appreciate you sharing the ways your building your own traditions.

I don’t know who is losing what, but I can tell you a bit about me and what I am into. So here you go:

I think brief generalizations are what get us all into trouble with regard to Religion. Saying one thing and doing another – something we all do at one point or another – is something that I struggle seeing so called “religious” folks do pretty consistently. The generalizations and structures of religion – no matter which one or their intentions – set themselves up for hypocrisy.

I say one thing but do another many times. I screw up in other ways as well. But that is exactly what makes me love having a relationship with God.

To clarify, I would say I am a person who tries to follow Jesus. Not a baptist, catholic or methodist. These are just words to describe an organization same way we group intel, microsoft and alice.com as tech companies, when they all have a technological piece to them, but alice is mainly consumables, intel is mainly hardware, and microsoft is software.

The faith I try to carry is one of relevance. Its loving God and loving people at the same time and with balance. Its not shaming people. Its not about being worthy(or better than anyone). Its about becoming more fully yourself and accepting that I will never escape my(and I guess humanity’s) desire for self-loathing.

Plus, I enjoy what I learn from my church – The current series at the church I attend is all about loving our city. A quote from last weeks message:

“I like to see a man proud of the place in which he lives. I like to see a man live so that his place will be proud of him.”
Abraham Lincoln

Its my desire to continue to learn amazing quotes like this one, and stop self-loathing that keep me engaged.

Here is a link to the talks about loving your city – just substitute your city for Cincinnati and it would work just the same! Plus the videos they make at Crossroads are AMAZING! (plus if you are ever in cincy, they have free wifi and free coffee (best coffee in town-btw) all day if you need a place to work virtual!)

Talks: http://www.crossroads.net/downloads/messages.php
Cool Video: http://www.crossroads.net/downloads/playVideo.php?idMedia=898

I think with all questions like this, we have to define “religion.”

If we mean the commonly accepted organized religions led by belief systems in God(s), etc. or if we mean any type of organized belief requiring personal sacrifice and adoption of a specific set of morals (which could include certain secular practices or quasi-religious practices).

I suppose I would say Gen Y is losing the tradition concept of organized , God(s)-led religion, but is eager to substitute other things that are very religious in nature. The Eco-conscious movement is one example, or the adoption of certain socio-political beliefs as another.

I think that humans are innately driven to seek community, order, and principles-based living, and even if they are fleeing from Christianity, for example, they will find surrogates for the need to have a “higher purpose.”

God didn’t give Adam a religion. He gave Adam a kingdom. Adam lost the kingdom when he obeyed Satan instead of God. When Satan got the kingdom, he made religion(s) to hide the fact that God wants us to have the kingdom. Jesus Christ came and died to recover the kingdom for us, which is why Jesus never talked about a religion. He only talked about the good news of salvation (or regaining the kingdom, which is restoring our relationship with God back to it’s original form, like it was before Adam and Eve fell).

The Christian “church”, which was then Roman Catholicism, didn’t start until after his time on earth. Christianity, Catholicism, Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, etc… are all religions, and did not come from God. As mentioned, God gave Adam the kingdom, and He also wants humans to get it back, through Christ. This is the story of the Bible: the gift, loss, and regaining of the Kingdom.

Hey Rebecca! Great video! I’ve frequented your site for a while now but never posted. This video however just seemed to interesting to pass up. I apologize if there are any formatting issues, I’m not accustomed to posting comments to sites.

I too can very directly identify with this concept of losing religion. Growing up my family was, and in many cases still is, very religious. Through a set of experiences both growing up and into adult life I’ve concluded that I cannot accept the idea of a personal God or consciousness that is somehow involved at all with our day to day routines. The idea that there is “a higher power” seems plausible to me but is often, in my opinion, a mask for a “god who isn’t god” concept.

As for areas of life that have been infused with religiousness, I tend to either ignore them (Lent for example) or simply focus on the more secular versions (Christmas as a time for reflection and giving for example). My wife and I were married within a church by a minister. I found no real conflict with this, I did not utilize the ceremony as an opportunity to seek God’s blessing but viewed the ceremony as a cultural tradition I was willing to indulge for the sake of those in which it was important too (family, friends, my wife wanting an actual ceremony). Though, since that time, I have developed stronger opinions on religion and could possibly see myself facing a greater dilemma if I were to find myself needing to remarry. As for funerals, I think they may be the easiest to comprehend without a religious idea attached. To focus on the life one lived and fond memories would be fine for me. I need not have my family comforted with the idea of me existing beyond death but out of their reach. I am fonder and even aim for a memory of a person that willingly accepted this life as “all there is” and therefore aimed to make the most of it while he could.

Interesting post! I was raised Lutheran and I still identify as such, but the truth is I’m a doubter. I like the idea of a higher power but I often feel it’s too good to be true. I am one of those weird people who actually likes going to church, though. I enjoy singing in choir and the sense of community I get from going. But I think it’s definitely a custom experience. I don’t have a church here yet but my last church was very liberal and still they would say things from time to time that were just too fundamentalist for me. And those things I would simply choose to ignore.

I also think both religion and atheism get a bad rap in the media. We only ever hear of extremists – never the middle of the road believers and non-believers who go about their day and don’t push their beliefs on others. Which is part of the reason I don’t talk much about religion with people I don’t know well. I don’t want them to worry that I’m going to chase them down with a bible and try to convert them.

I’m sure this will spark some passionate conversation and debate.

My family is Italian-Catholic (extended family that is). I was however, baptized and attended church on major holidays with my family growing up. my parents have been extremely open and exercises what I would call faith AND spirituality, but I don’t call myself Catholic or find an affinity with a particular religion. My family meditates and passed that ontp me, as a way to release stress, spend time with yourself and reflect. They also appreciate and believe in a higher power, which I do too.

I feel like 90% of my Gen Y friends are not religious. That’s a broad statement, but it’s true. I have friends of “all religions” but it sort of ended with their parents, and their open-minded choice seems to embrace many thoughts and practices. I think that Gen Y is losing religion and I don’t think it’s a bad thing, but I do believe in BELIEVING IN SOMETHING. I think exercising faith is good for prosperity and growth and if we lose that, where to next?

My most religious friends, that are still practicing, are Jewish. I love the community they’re part of and that they believe and practice their denoted religion. It’s beautiful. The part about religion that really turns me off is when it’s imposed upon someone else. I have a hard time believing there is only ONE way and that if I “sin” then I should feel guilty. Says who, sinning, what?

I almost want to send out a poll to Gen Y and see the reactions and answers to religion (like you have here). Interesting as always, Rebecca :)

@ Joe – I love that you described what faith means to you and that you do enjoy going to church. I’m glad that a person with such a viewpoint joined the conversation, because I can very much remember enjoying church at one point as well. Thanks for sharing those links as well!

@ Milena – Great points – I see this happening a lot and over at Brazen someone specifically mentioned that what is happening now is just the evolution of religion and how we’re practicing faith now will help to define history. Exciting stuff.

@ Tony – Thanks for sharing – I never really thought about it that way, but I think it brings up some good points. And how we respond will certainly continue to change, I’ll bet.

@ Lyndon – Thanks so much for your first comment (I love comments)! I appreciate you sharing your experiences growing up and how your thoughts and opinions have changed over time. I enjoy hearing how other people approach different situations. Specifically, a funeral. Because I always like funerals that are focused on the person’s life, but because my father died at a young age, that alone is keeping me believing that there is a higher being and an after life. Which carries a lot of other implications too. Ah, I guess I’m still figuring it out : )

@ Liz – I was raised Lutheran too! I’m glad that you shared your positive church experiences as I think that’s important. And I think you’re right about religion getting a bad rap on either side in the media. A wide-reaching study would be quite interesting.

@ Grace – Thanks for sharing those thoughts! You bring up a good point about those who marry different religions and the resulting children grow up not identifying with either religion. This wasn’t as accepted in the past. Ninety percent seems like a lot, but I (obviously) do agree that Gen Y is not as religious as previous generations, but that believing in something is good. That that helps form a foundation and a value system that is important to life.

I think this is the real crux of the matter in “young people aren’t religious anymore.” The truth is that we are NOT a religious generation. I’ve spent a lot of time and brain efforts trying to figure out why that is. For awhile I considered that maybe we have become so disenfranchised with the commercialization and insincerity of a lot of organized religions. Then I thought about the lies and power plays that organized religion makes. All these things have been contemplated and “done before” though (hello existentialism or Spanish Inquisition?!)

I believe that we are a generation that for the first time has been extremely exposed to different thoughts and experiences and cultures like none before us. Wherein before only the philosophers and vagrant travelers mixed east and west beliefs now all we need is to Google “reincarnation” or pop in a eastern yogic DVD or heck even pick up a copy of Eat, Pray, Love. We don’t have a religion because our beliefs have been formed by many religions…we have become spiritual beings, not followers of a particular sect or church.

Its so crazy that you post this Blog because I am actually having a discussion about this very subject in LA on the Future of the Church from a younger generaitons perspective Augsut 29, 2009. To learn more visit speakonitevent.com.

Quite frankly, I am a chrisitan and I wanted talk about this subject matter because after researching Gen. Y for a few years, I noticed that alot of young people were not attending church…I also noticed that many more young adults were becoming atheists and many of my friends who really LOVE GOD were not satified with the church.

I persona;lly believe this is occuring because the church has been ineffective at reaching young adults between the ages of 18-35 years of age..When you look out the amount of christians that drop out of church after high school graduation, its staggering.

If the church made more of an effort to reach yougn adutls and changed up the way they do church weekly to our audeince, I beleive they would be more effective…Now, this process in itself is an hour lng talk, but let’s just say there are some churches that are effective, but a majority are not!

With that said, I do believe many young adults will come to God in the future, but it will be done with an out the box style of ministry.

Great Post and Discussion!

Joshua Fredenburg

For Gen Y, I think the shift comes down to 2 (over-simplified) things:

- Distrust of large, authoritarian entities (see Gen Y’s love/hate relationships with corporate America, big business and “because-I-said-so” leadership)
- Rapid technological advancement leading to a deeper understanding of global neighbors

In other words, we no longer trust structures or people “just because.” And many religious arguments (apologetics) eventually devolve into that line of reasoning. Gen Y doesn’t buy it.

And, we’ve been exposed to more people and ideas than previous generations. We know more about world religions because we’ve traveled to other countries, seen and learned about other faiths and been exposed to different ideas. Our parents might not have had these experiences and thus became/stayed Christian(s) because that’s what everyone they knew did.

As most people have said, there is a BIG difference between religion/faith/church attendance. On the whole, America’s religious landscape is shifting (and has been for 200+ years. Gen Y brings the discussion of that shift to the forefront – because they blog about it. :)

For me, that’s what makes it all so exciting.

Great discussion starter, Rebecca.

Great post, Rebecca, and you’ve sparked a great discussion here among your readers.

Those who have said there is a big difference between religion and faith/belief are right-on. I think that’s the most important thing for people to get comfortable with and used to if they’re going to be able to pursue any kind of belief for themselves.

There are several books and communities emerging around this theme. Two of my favorite social media networks, both with Christian leanings, are “Divine Nobodies: Shedding Religion to Find God” (http://divinenobodies.ning.com/) and Christianity Unplugged: “people living a life of faith outside the box of religion” (http://christianityunplugged.ning.com/).

Clearly a movement is brewing, which I find exciting. Thanks for addressing it (and for the link to my post!).

In many ways I look at the evolution in religious beliefs a lot like homosexuality. Though homosexuality is much more understood and accepted now in 2009 than it was 20 or 30 years ago, and especially 40+ years ago, I don’t necessarily believe that less people were gay in those times. I believe people feared coming out and were ignorant to their own feelings because of the way people were raised and what was culturally acceptable.

With religion, I think it is a very similar phenomenon, where many people questioned religion altogether for years however it was so taboo to express these concerns and doubts. Now, we’ve evolved as a country, as independent thinkers, and as a generation where we fear less what others will think.

I am an atheist and I have felt this way for a long time, however growing up I questioned it even more because I was such a minority. The more people speak openly about their ability to leave a meaningful, deep, and happy life without any religious beliefs, the more others will feel comfortable doing the same.

This is not to say that there is a right or wrong, but atheism has always been the worse case scenario. It’s bad enough if you aren’t the same religion as everyone else, but if you are atheist – well then what do you believe in?

We’ve got a long way to go, but I’m proud to be part of a generation unafraid to express their religious views or lack of.

I believe it was the historian Will Durant who demonstrated a historical pattern across multiple societies of pious generations eventually giving rise to generations of infidels…only to lead to a pious backlash once again. History has shown us that what may seem to be a linear trend toward disbelief at a given time may simply be a short period in a more complex,cyclical pattern.

With that said, I think we are on an irreversible course toward becoming a secular society. People have always been skeptical of the religions of the masses, but only now has Western society accepted disbelief in the mainstream. While the secularization of society won’t necessarily have a profound impact on people’s core beliefs, it will certainly allow many skeptical people to come out of the closet without fear of bullying. It is becoming more and more acceptable in mainstream culture to be non-practicing, non-believing citizens, whether “spiritual” or not.

Back to the issue you raised: Gen Y is perhaps the first generation that will start to get married outside of churches in any considerable numbers. These people will be far less likely to raise their own kids with religion, leading me to believe that we are on an irreversible trend toward a more secular society.

Religion will not go away, though. There is obviously something innate in us that looks for patterns in the Universe and seek explanations for things where our understanding of science fails. People will still be religious, spiritual, whether for social reasons or for a desire to experience the transcendent.

I feel that the younger generation is more about “purpose” and less about “protocol.” I actually think people are more into “relationship” and less about “religion.”

I can only speak for the Christian church because I am a Christian. I was also a Youth Pastor at one point. I can say that as an organization, the church is ineffective. They are not relevant, practical or friendly as a whole. Of course there are some that are exceptional, but as a whole I’d call it a “spiritual recession.”

Churches that are pro-social justice and serve the community stand out. It’s not about “telling” it’s about “showing.” People want to see what you’re all about, not be told how to live.

So I will conclude by saying, Gen Y is seeking the truth. I’m just not sure the “church” is where to find it.

Interesting conversation! I appreciate what Dani writes, “We’ve got a long way to go, but I’m proud to be part of a generation unafraid to express their religious views or lack of.”

I wouldn’t box Gen Y’s into saying that they are losing religion. I think it depends on who you spend time with. For me, a vast majority of my Gen Y friends are Christians. My personal Christian faith is extremely important to me and I find encouragement from my church community as well.

Thinking about the early Christian church, as found in the book of Acts, it wasn’t this massive building with a program. It was a group of believers who met together daily to encourage and help each other. The poor and rich pooled their resources together and gave to everyone as they had need. They prayed for each other and worshipped God together. It was a pretty grassroots, organic and holistic movement.

I’m not really sure how one would define religion, but my personal faith and community with other Christians gives me joy and purpose.

I think it has to do with our generation’s way of thinking and questioning. I don’t feel that we’re necessarily losing religion I just feel that it’s becoming less of a focus. I personally questioned my religion because I didn’t like the idea of having to follow what my parents believe. So basically it’s our independent thinking that’s causing us to be looked at as less religious.

The way I view it, we’re becoming more concerned with religion than previous generations. In the past, people seemed to just “go through the motions” because they had to, not because they wanted to.

When I was forced into Baptist church on Sundays, I noticed that the congregation cursed stuff like the radio for being impure/un-Christian. They’d scream and cry about it. And as they tore out of the parking lot after service, they blasted their Madonna.

I believe that a lot of Gen Y tries to live by religious principles without letting weird congregations get in their way. We just left the churches to stay true to the core religion.

[...] Is Gen Y Losing Religion? [...]

[...] Is Gen Y Losing Religion? [...]

I seem to be late to the party. It’s interesting to see that a majority of the commenter’s here seem to not recognize a particular religion but still have faith in something greater.

I think the truth is that we have a lot more information available to us about religion via the internet and a lot of organized religions flaws has been brought to the forefront.

I am personally an atheist. I grew up Christian, went to 8 years of bible camp, ran some bible studies while in high school and gave up when i got to college. I looked up to people like C.S. Lewis and Josh McDowell who seemed to have it all figured out. In the end however I am comfortable with the randomness that is me and want to enjoy it as much as possible. I don’t know what happens when I die but I find comfort in not thinking there is anything afterwards and that this life is my gift … not the next life.

Late to the party as well! I am going to disagree. I know the recent stats on the Pew Studies (suggesting, among other things, that most people raised in Christianity leave it, and most denominational numbers are just cross-traffic, though other religions are slightly gaining numbers).

I think the idea of religion is changing. One of the commentators mentioned that civilization is based on the morality tales of the Bible. And in many ways, despite what the new atheists claim, it is very very true. It is why they can say we are in a post-Christian time, because those morality tales are ingrained into the cultural fabric (they can’t claim both to say it is post-Christian, and not based on these tales). We are in a unique time where the world is rapidly changing. The standard questions that people ask (unconsciously) to figure out the world (Who am I? Where am I? What is Wrong? What is the Solution?) are beginning to require different answers. And that plays out in changing the Symbols and Stories (both within and outside religion) that we orient our lives around. The symbols that are now changing include the institution of religion, and the church. The question is, what answers to those questions will “win out” and become the basis with which our generation, and the next will see the world.

I do believe in God, and I’m a masters student in Theology.

I haven’t read the other comments, so forgive me if I’m merely going over territory already covered, but I think the heart of this question goes to how organized religion is perceived in America today.

Turn on any news channel, scan any political website – left or right – and organized religion, for the most part, looks like that thing crazy bible thumpers do on weekends. Belonging to a church, it would seem, means you hate gays, love guns, and think Jesus was a white guy with a beard. (And his dad’s a whiter guy with a white beard.)

I know because after years in Democratic politics I thought I knew exactly what organized religion stood for. Then I found the Episcopal Church, and discovered a place that puts reason on par with scripture and tradition. That performs – gasp! – gay marriages. And that believes the questions and the search matter more than the answers. (Other denominations are like this, too, I just happen to like mine the most!)

Unfortunately, as in the political word, us moderate Christians aren’t as loud as our extremist brethren. So it’s no surprise when people think that religion, as you put it, creates a “space between ourselves and our faith.”

While you can certainly have a relationship with God or a higher power outside of church, you miss out on the thousands of years of beautiful and insightful thought that has gone in to answering those most fundamental and important questions. You pass up lifetimes of soul searching, and have far more difficulty “standing on the shoulders of giants” to explore a deeper and more meaningful relationship with God.

In the same way a great professor can make a text come alive, church services with a well educated pastor/preacher/priest/imam/rabbi/lama can open up a world of ideas that would have otherwise taken years to unfold through individual study. That’s just one of the reasons I’ve decided to give up on a successful political career to pursue a graduate degree in divinity. :-)

One final bit of advice. When picking up a bible, don’t read it like a science book. Algebra (at least for most people) doesn’t stir the soul. Faith in God doesn’t come from reason and the fundamental truth of why we exist can’t be expressed by a formula. So read the Bible – or any religious text – like you would read poetry, and measure it by those standards instead.

Oxycodone….

Is oxycodone or hydrocodone stronger. Oxycodone m357. Oxycodone….

Good post – interesting, relevant topic.

I’m not sure that we’re losing religion per se – rather, we are sensibly responding to the modern condition.

Millenials are delaying marriage, children, and permanent employment. David Brooks of the NYtimes has noted that in 1960, roughly 70 percent of 30-year-olds had achieved these things. By 2000, fewer than 40 percent of 30-year-olds had done the same.

Married people and families are more likely to participate in religious communities. Princeton sociologist Robert Wuthnow argues that our society provides lots of structural support for children and teens, but leaves younger adults to fend for themselves during their 20s and early 30s – the decades when they’re making crucial decisions about family and work. This lack of structural support and increased self-reliance – along with delayed marriages – are all factors contributing to the decline in religious participation among millenials.

There’s a lot of literature on this topic – check out “After the Baby Boomers” by Wuthnow.