Why are Young Adults Leaving the Church?

Every pastor in the Northern Hemisphere knows that young adults are leaving the church in record numbers.  I’m not saying that to scare you.  I’m just pointing out the fact so that I can point to the reasons why, in my opinion, it’s happening.  I’ll only share two here.  

1.  The church tends to make faith in Jesus a mental exercise rather than a spiritual experience.

Most young adults I know have a deep respect for the scriptures, are orthodox in their beliefs and serious about doing theology.  But they know that faith is trusting in someone, not believing some things.  Most of the young adults I know are drawn to Jesus, sometimes almost irresistibly so.  But they insist that faith in him is about more, much more, than our attempts to explain him.

Intuitively, young adults know that faith in Jesus is deeper than being convinced that what the church teaches about Jesus is empirically true.  In fact, some young Christians I know have huge doubts about some of those teachings.  And yet, they love Jesus and are fully devoted to following him.

If we want to connect with young adults, the church must become a safe place for them to question and doubt and live out a messy faith.  We must give them permission to believe in their hearts that God raised Jesus from the dead (Romans 10:9), even while they struggle to reconcile that belief in their heads.  I think if we’re really honest, we’re all living out a messy faith.  Young adults are just not afraid to admit it.

2.  The church proclaims Jesus as the divine Son of God, yet often neglects his most basic teachings.  

Young adults are drawn to the church’s insistence that Jesus is the way, yet pushed away by what they perceive to be the church’s weak commitment to follow the way of Jesus.

Some of the core teachings of Jesus, such as caring for the poor and oppressed, love for our enemies, refusal to retaliate against those who harm us and extreme generosity seem to be watered down, casually dismissed or actively opposed by the church. 

Many young Christians I know point out that the modern evangelical church seems to chase after riches more than giving them away.  They are bewildered by the church’s endorsement of military campaigns.  And they don’t understand how we can say we love our neighbors but insist that they stay on their side of the border.    

This is not just empty rhetoric.  Many young Christians are embracing a different way, what they would describe as the way of Jesus.  And they wonder why they do it in the face of opposition from the Christian church.  Some choose to leave, not because they are giving up on the church, but to embrace it more fully in a friendlier context.

If the church is going to give these Christians a home, we will need to rethink our understanding of Jesus and repent of the ways we have failed to take his teachings seriously. 

In naming these two reasons I’m not taking pot shots at the church.  I’m a pastor who loves the church deeply.   I’m committed to being part of the church in my community.  I’m quite hopeful that the church is making great progress toward becoming a more beautiful bride of Christ in our world.  I’m convinced that young adults need the church.  That’s why I’m praying that the church becomes the kind of place where they feel safe and free to live out their faith.  I’m praying that prayer not only because they need us, but because we need them.  They have much to teach us.