From the Christian Post (HT: Ken Silva):
Younger generations are not bound by traditional parameters of the Christian faith and instead are embracing values that are not necessarily based on biblical foundations, according to a recent analysis by The Barna Group.Although faith is an acceptable attribute and pursuit among most young people, their notions of faith do not align with conventional religious perspectives or behavior, the research group reported on Monday.
Young Americans have adopted values such as goodness, kindness and tolerance, but they remain skeptical of the Bible, church traditions, and rules or behaviors based upon religious teaching.
When goodness, kindness and tolerance are seen as counter to the culture of American Christianity perhaps its a movement of God that younger generations are not bound by traditional parameters of the (American) Christian faith.
Interestingly enough the same research group (Barna) released a study that found the church’s image has taken a beating. Check it out:
This battered image is the result of a combination of factors: harsh media criticism, “unchristian” behavior by church people, bad personal experiences with churches, ineffective Christian leadership amid social crises, and the like
Notice that of the four specific factors listed three of them are self-inflicted, and are the result of being, well, unfaithful to living the gospel. If that is representative of the experience of the church thank God that younger generations’ religious notions “do not align with conventional religious perspectives or behavior, the research group reported on Monday.”
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12 Comments(+Add)
Nathanael,
I noticed that too. Since when are goodness and kindness not considered Biblical values? Even tolerance could be considered a Biblical value, depending on its definition. Sometimes I feel like I’m speaking a completely different language than these people.
I think the language is the problem.
If you asked me if intergrating discipline and regiming into my faith is vital, I’d have a reaction, because I don’t think that’s what they would mean.
I’d ask if they view their faith as something they take seriously and something they need to be intentional about, and I think I’d get a better response and I’d be asking about the same concepts.
But frame it that way for the reaserchers and I’m sure they’d disagree with me.
I know that I used to use the terms absolute moral and spiritual truths, until I saw it hijacked so much I have a reaction to it. Usually when I hear someone say that, they follow it up with a total non absolute opion. I once heard absolute truth brought up in my discussion of how you don’t need to wear a tie to act your age as an adult!
So I could see how those being interviewed could have a less then positive reaction to that question, but I’m sure if you broke down and asked a yes or no as to if certain particular truths are absolute you’d get a much different response.
I see that same thing al through this article, I would really like to see how the data was collected and what their own personal definitions (especially of Biblical foundations, Biblical worldview) of a lot of these things are. I think they could do with a volunteer to translate their surveys
As for skeptisim, that is always helpful in how we approach the way we live out our faiths. Blindly accepting traditions, values and interpretations is a whole lot less healthy then asking questions and reasoning things out. I would much rather prefer that each generation carefully work out their faith instead of us just handing off the keys and telling them to do everything our way. Because then you aren’t living by faith, you’re working a machine.
Do you see the subtle jab and not being able to put forth a systematic theology?
But the hope I see in this article , even in all it’s negativity (they may have even missed the hope they put in themselves) is that in their view many people are becoming more hostile to the Christian faith, but when you look at the specific objections it’s not so much a reaction to the theology but some particular practices
(I hit submit by accident, here’s the rest)
” A majority say that Christianity is judgmental, anti-homosexual, hypocritical, old-fashioned and too involved in politics.”
Out of which only one is of a particular theological tensions (homosexuality), the rest are practice and approach..
Reading that after reading how carefully younger generations are approaching the traditions, practices and approaches it shows me hope that this generation will be better equipped to reach out to the specific concerns of those that hold these negative reactions, an ability to present that our faith doesn’t have to be like that, that those things come from a series of decisions on how previous generations worked out their faith and not our faith itself.
You can’t discount that the greater part of this world, generally, is supposed to not like Christians. I believe the word used was ‘hate’, in Scripture.
I think that factors in to all the ‘polls’ too. Even if we’re more compassionate, more loving, grace filled, tolerant, etc etc, if we stick to the Gospel and Jesus Christ as our Savior, we’ll take flak. Someday American Christians will be put in jail and be murdered too. Always happens.
Well, on a side note, I’d rather have the younger generation following Jesus, the Word, rather than man-made handed down traditions. And be able to recognize the difference too.
Love,
Joe
Tradition is a wonderful thing.
Christian tradition is amazing. It would be the height of foolishness to discount 2,000 years of Jesus followers’ experiences and writings and conclusions. We are one family. And we will be together for eternity. We owe a huge debt of gratitude to our fathers and mothers of our faith.
But to give those traditions the same weight as (or seemingly more than) the words of Jesus and the apostle Paul and Peter and James and Jude and John and Luke and Mark and Matthew is just asking for trouble.
We have the scriptures. They speak clearly on many things. Some issues seem amazingly clear to me. But to you, they very clearly say something else. What to do? O wait…“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another†(Jesus of Nazareth).
Hmmm…
Nathanael,
I don’t think anyone will disagree that traditions are wonderful and can be helpful. As you note, it is when they receive more weight than simply ‘tradition’, things go awry. When entire institutions and faux “ministries” then spring up to “enforce” tradition, the train has left the tracks.
and good tradition is worth keeping, bad tradition worth unloading, the difficulty is in being able to tell the difference.
Joe C.,
You are right that the Gospel can be expected to create persecution or hostility. On the other hand, I think a lot of the poor reputation that Evangelicals face in the States, and Christianity in general in the world, has more to do with behavior that is ancillary to the Gospel.
Neil
Neil, you are exactly correct bnecause their behavior is congruent with a shallow and sometimes false gospel. We have Americanized the gospel and we Americans are so caught up with our nationalism we have even made the US a “Christian” nation.
We are not, there is only one Christian nation and it is the invisible body of Christ.
Rick,
Funny how we can be in agreement on this thread, and at odds on the other… at the same time!
Neil
Isn’t that refreshing, though, that we can disagree and agree and still be brothers?