From The Christian Post:

Millenials, those born between 1980 and 2000, are not anti-Christian or anti-religion, but they are, in general, just not interested in religion, says a new book based on a survey of members of this generation.

An apathetic attitude toward religious and spiritual matters is common among members of this generation, according to The Millennials by Thom Rainer, president and CEO of LifeWay Christian Research, and his son Jess, a Millenial born in 1985. Members of this generation are likely to care less about spiritual matters than those from previous generations, the Rainers wrote.

Nearly two-thirds (65 percent) of this generation rarely or never attend religious services, according to the survey conducted by LifeWay on 1,200 Millenials. And spiritual matters was ranked sixth, below friends and education, in a list based on an open-ended question on what is important to respondents…..

But this is the statement that got my attention:

Rainer suggested that the church has become less effective in reaching the Millenials because members of this group tend to be a high commitment generation and they see most of what takes place in churches as low commitment so they are not interested. Another possible reason is that three-fourths of these Millennials come from an unchurched background, meaning they have no Christian faith background.

“They are not anti-religious or anti-Christian, but they tend to be totally ambivalent towards anything religious or Christian,” he said.

The survey also found that Millennials are “a confused generation spiritually.” Although, 65 percent of this generation describe themselves as Christian – notably many of them do not know or practice the basic teachings of the faith….

I also thought this was interesting:

The Rainers state that most Millennials see churches as “business as usual” and inward focused, which turns them off. The members of this generation are looking for radical churches that are dedicated to living the life of the disciples in the first century.

“Millennials don’t ask what the community can do for the church; they ask what they can do for the community,” the authors stress. “Millennial Christians are seeking to move as close to New Testament Christianity as possible.”

In other findings, Millennials are not as environmentally driven as previously thought; they have a surprisingly close relationship with their parents; they respect older people; and they consider family the most important thing in their life.

This is just as relevant to us in the UK church as it is in the USA.

Any thoughts?

Read the full article here.