Christine Elba in the WaPo writes about what is lost when Millennials leave religion and don't come back. I was struck by this:
"Faith and practice can’t persevere through our generation without attendance, and neither can the hope they tend to bring."
Any of your parishes addressing the absence of Millennials with any success?
Or would you just as soon have them light up a doob and crawl into their screens on Sunday morning?
My sense is that parishes see Millennials as a problem they would rather not deal with. Millennials don't accept Church teaching on important life issues--abortion, marriage, homosexuality, birth control--and they are easily bored by explanations. They are highly skeptical of promises of Eternal Life and a God who cares. They are more interested in social justice and planetary catastrophe, but that's not what anyone at church talks about.
To what extent should the Church be willing to de-emphasize doctrine in favor engagement? And would that even be enough?
I'm not sure about millenials being all that concerned about planetary catastrophe. Old fart Catholic me attended climate marches. I don't know any of my secular millenial proteges who did so. I suppose you can say they are more tolerant if that means not giving a crap one way or the other. There's a gap between tolerance and loving thy neighbor.
ReplyDelete"I suppose you can say they are more tolerant if that means not giving a crap one way or the other." That made me laugh, Stanley. But it's true. Among the ones who aren't engaging, there's a bad case of not giving a crap. Whose fault that is, is a matter for discussion. One can make the point that it's all the intolerant mossbacks' fault. But at some point we are responsible for our own lives. The ones who don't believe in Eternal Life and a God who cares have a different problem than the ones who are turned off by political stuff in the church.
DeleteThe sentence Jean quotes from Christine Elba, "Faith and practice can’t persevere through our generation without attendance..." I believe is true. It's hard to maintain faith by bowling alone.
I don't know that the church needs to de-emphasize teachin in favor of action; we can do both. If that were the main obstacle, we would see the churches who don't emphasize doctrine, and favor action, filling up. I haven't seen that that is the case.
Yes, Katherine, though I see a strong place for individual devotion and spirituality, I can't see it without a communal dimension, the religious binding together.
DeleteWe had a group called Acts 29 (the book ended with Chapter 28. Up to now) that flourished for awhile. The folks in it eventually aged out, but they would have been the last of the Gen Xers. They arose from the original CHRP, which is back now after a six or seven year hiatus, and the first receiving team of women was so young I didn't know any of them. They'd be in the millennial category, so we'll watch what happens with them.
ReplyDeleteIt's so depressing to me that the church is perceived as preaching and teaching doctrine. If the church is on her game, she should be proclaiming the Good News about Jesus, the son of God who came to us as a human being, died for us, and rose from the dead to break the chains of death. He did this because of his steadfast love for us. Through that salvific act, our sins are forgiven and we are given the bread of eternal life.
ReplyDeleteDoctrine and social justice both should be secondary and derivative (which isn't to say unimportant) from that basic message.
Jean, we're going to try to reach Millennials with that message, through the Alpha program. We've done one round of it already, for parish leadership (and leaders from other parishes in our deanery).
We're gearing up to offer it to parishioners in the spring. The round that comes after (maybe a year from now? Maybe sooner than that) will be the start of our outreach to Millennials in earnest. We'll see how it goes.
Keep us posted!
DeleteOne thing I've noticed about the young people of my acquaintance who are engaged with the church is that it tends to be an emotional attachment for them. Some of them participated in Focus or other programs. But it seems to be a heart thing rather than a head thing.
ReplyDeleteIn the early years, there were more Christians for whom it was a heart thing rather than a head thing. If it's just in your head, all you can get out of it is a degree that won't impress most employers.
DeleteKatherine, you are correct. Although the RCC continues to lose members at a higher rate than any other christian denomination, the overall losses of millenials are widespread. Both "liberal" and "conservative" christian churches are losing them. Even the Baptists and evangelicals are now losing their young adults, for many of the same reasons the Catholics are losing them.
ReplyDeleteJim: Doctrine and social justice both should be secondary and derivative
Doctrine is secondary? I was taught the following doctrines (among others) - Jesus is the son of God - and is God (doctrine of the Trinity); Jesus came to us as a human being (doctrine of the Incarnation); Jesus died for us so that our sins are forgiven (doctrine of atonement); Jesus rose from the dead (doctrine of the Resurrection); we are given the bread of eternal life - assume you are referring to the eucharist - and thus to the doctrine of transubstantiation.
So, what you are teaching as the "basic message" IS doctrine.
Aside from whether we call it doctrine, the basic message is...basic. The things you and Jim just named off are core beliefs of what it means to be Catholic. I don't think we can de-emphasize those and still be who we are.
DeleteYes, fair enough, Anne. I guess I think of doctrine as a sort of systematization of the basic Good News. Once we start organizing the Gospel into outline points and subpoints (cf the Catechism), I think we're a degree away from the kerygma.
DeleteJim, with the exception of RCC teaching on the eucharist, the doctrines you name are shared by almost all christian denominations. Those doctrines are not the driving force behind the exodus of the young adults.
DeleteIt seems the RCC addresses every issue EXCEPT the hot button issues that are driving away the young adults from all organized religion, especially christian denominations.
Hypocrisy, judgmentalism, condemnation of homosexuals and gay marriage, aligning with the GOP on too many issues, the teachings that claim that women are to be subservient to men, in their churches and in their families. In the RCC, add the teachings on contraception and abortion to the list of teachings that are driving away the younger generations.
Since JPII first started talking about a "new evangelization" (of those leaving the RCC), the American church has run through one new program after another - all aimed at stopping the bleeding. It hasn't worked. As seen in the latest Pew Report, the exodus from organized religion continues.
Apparently Alpha is the new magic wand. I see Alpha courses advertised on billboards on churches when I drive around (of various denominations). I like to research, and since I first heard of Alpha in England when staying with devout Church of England friends, I started researching it then. So, curious about it being the latest and greatest for American RCC churches, I looked up some numbers.
Alpha was started in England in the late 80s. Alpha central is a church in London, headed up by an apparently highly charismatic priest. His parish is booming, and he has spread Alpha to more than 100 countries now - calling that a "success".
But - if the point was to stop the bleeding out of active members in C of E, it has not been a success, in spite of thousands of people having completed the course.
According to the latest C of E figures, active participation is at its lowest level ever. Affiliation by young adults has dropped to 2%
Younger people are significantly less likely to identify with the C of E than older age groups, and evidence suggests that people rarely join organised religion in later life. The trend indicates that affiliation with the C of E could become negligible with successive generations.
People over the age of 65 are most likely to say they belong to the C of E. But at 30% it ...has fallen from 52% in 2002. This older demographic also saw the biggest increase in those saying they had no religion, up from 18% in 2002 to 34% last year.
The proportion of people of all ages identifying with the C of E has fallen from 31% in 2002 to 14% last year. The sharpest decline was among 45- to 54-year-olds, from 35% to 11%.
Overall, 8% of people identify with the Roman Catholic church, 10% with other Christian denominations and 8% with non-Christian faiths.
I suspect the charismatic weekend might be a turn-off for a lot of people too.
p.s The priest in London is charismatic in more than one sense of the word! Religious and in personality apparently.
DeleteBy de-emphasizing dogma, I mean moving away from an emphasis on rules and rubrics, the mainstay of RCIA and catechesis for children, and on purity in the the Big Four: Abortion, contraception, divorce, and homosexuality.
ReplyDeleteCatholicism is often defined in the larger world by what you cannot do. I don't see Church officials trying to counter that in any way. And the reality of modern life is that Millennials themselves or beloved family members and friends have struggled with these issues.
I'm not suggesting the Church throw out any teachings, but to take a less strident tone when people question or run afoul of them.
For sure I would favor de-emphasizing the culture war and "purity on the Big Four". Because it leads to crap like this. Way to lose a bunch of millennials in a hurry is for the Church as an employer to cyber-spy on social media.
DeleteHoo boy.
DeleteAnd yet some more culture war b.s. Joe Beden was denied Communion in a church in SC.
Delete"Beden" should be Biden.
DeletePS to above; using the Eucharist as either a carrot or a club is a really good reverse evangelization tool.
DeleteBut the carrot/club is pretty much where we've ended up. Protecting Christ in the Host from sinners strikes me as ludicrous. If Christ can insert himself into the bread and wine, He can certainly exit it if an individual recipient is unfit. The consecration of the elements does not trap Him in there.
DeleteIt isn't really about protecting Christ in the host. The relevant scripture is I Corinthians 11:27, "Therefore whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner, shall be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord." Of course they are being rather selective in how they define "in an unworthy manner".
DeleteAnd I see that canon law, and not Scripture, is being quoted in defense of this incident. And for some people, canon law is above every other concern.
DeleteJean, I agree. The RCC is really caught between a rock and a hard place. If it "develops" the teachings that are at the root of the exodus, especially of young adults, then is it still the RCC? The Baptists and evangelical churches are now facing the same thing.
ReplyDeleteThe RCC has the additional turn-off of the sexual abuse scandal, especially the scandal of a complicit hierarchy hiding the crimes (and sometimes bishops and cardinals participating in them themselves)
Yet progressive, mainstream Protestant churches are ALSO losing people, especially young adults. And, as in the RCC, few go back to baptize their children and remain as active members.
So, WHAT is happening? It's more than just aversion to church teachings on hot button issues. Most studies show that those who are leaving organized religion are still seeking a spiritual path. Most believe in God. Most pray. Many read scripture regularly. The churches refuse to listen - continuing to blame the leavers, while dragging out the same old program approaches that have been failing for 40 years.
They aren't LISTENING to what the "lapsed" say. Jim wrote a homily on the subject of listening. And in it, he did the same thing - he made a few somewhat judgmental, negative assumptions about those who aren't in church pews every Sunday - the "nones" and "spiritual but not religious". The conventional wisdom among the church professionals. They aren't listening.
Several writers have expressed different ideas, suggesting that our era is one of those historic turning points in christian history - those that occur every 500 or so years.
Among those writing about this historic turning point, with different "theories" and approaches, are Phyllis Tickle, Diane Butler Bass, Harvey Cox, Richard Rohr and others. A few groups with innovative social justice programs attract new members also.
"Is it still the RCC"? There are so many Catholic traditions in the Church to draw on that, yes, I think it can change/renew without cutting itself off from its roots. A Mass 1,000 years ago would look shocking to us now. But it was still Catholic.
DeleteI think bringing back the lapsed takes lay participation and one-on-one outreach. Possibly falling away is lower in parishes where the sense of community and engagement with other parishioners is high outside of church.
I enjoy Jim's homilies. They force me to examine my conscience and come to terms with my beliefs, though I have drifted very far from Catholicism specifically and traditional Christianity in general.
Young Ross Douthat has made another new discovery about religion. It ain't dead. Not if you include pantheism and, maybe, I don't know, Druidism. It's at the NYT, of course:
ReplyDeletettps://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/29/opinion/american-christianity.html?action=click&module=Opinion&pgtype=Homepage
Young Ross usually annoys me, but I find myself agreeing with about 60 percent of this column. Maybe more if he wouldn't be so Young Ross about it. Anyhow, the basis of his discovery is long term Gallup research shows that the percentage of people who attend church "most Sundays" is a straight line; all the losses have been among hangers-on, but the "most Sunday Christians" are standing steady. He does say Catholic losses are more grievous than other denominations, mostly because the Vatican has long been out of it.
Interesting.
DeleteI always like how Boomers are blamed for Millennials. As if the GenXers who raised.most of the younger Millennials were innocent bystanders and victims.
I guess it boils down to whether the regular attendees want the lapsed and fallen away. Or they're happy being a a graying minority without the irritations that Millennials with short attention spans and, in some cases, unruly small children bring. My parish made its choice long ago.
Yours?
Jean, I enjoy Jim's homilies also. (Jim - I do not mean to offend, because you are an excellent deacon, but since this is your vocation, maybe it's good practice for you when you run up against a reprobate like me)?
ReplyDeleteAs an SBNR myself, I flinched when Jim spoke so condescendingly about the "nones" and "sbnrs". He is not alone. His viewpoint is shared by most professional religious. But if any "nones" or "sbnrs" are in the pews (visiting the grandparents or whatever) when this type of opinion is given from the pulpit (or in the bulletin or....), it's not going to entice them back on a full-time basis.
I found it ironic that in an otherwise good homily about "listening", it was clear that Jim (like most of those who criticize the sbnrs and nones) may not have taken the time to actually listen to this group of seekers. Most of the articles I have read by professional religious, and a few live discussions, put the "blame" on this "shallow" and/or "hedonistic" group who are just too lazy to come to church. They never look in a mirror, nor into their own minds, and reflect on what they - the organized churches - might be doing "wrong" to drive so many away.
It is not surprising that all of the programs they invent to bring them back to the pews don't work. They need to start listening.
The sbnrs might find something in the RCC if they hung around long enough. Spirituality is never preached. I had to go looking for it. By Godoincidence, I happened to encounter Merton's "The Inner Experience" just as I was starting a course in Spirituality by someone who knew of what she preached in a diocesan School of Christian Formation. The book for the course was by our old friend Lawrence Cunningham (and Keith Egan), and it was helpful, although the teacher was most crucial. I wound up pretty much back with Ignatius Loyola for my old age, but now I knew what I was doing and what to expect.
DeleteI don't know that it's up to preachers to "entice"anyone back to the Church if s/he has been there and decided it didn't meet his/er needs. If I were confident that I knew more than 2000 years of people, I'd be un-enticeable. If I expect to be offended, there are many opportunities every time a homilist speaks. I expect to have to cut them some slack. So they'll cut me some.
Tom, I take your point. I personally am not waiting to be wooed back to the communion line. I get something from Mass once in a blue moon, and the rest of the time I'm making Raber less frightened for my soul by showing up.
DeleteHowevever, if you believe the Church is called to evangelize, does it make sense to start with those who have had some connection with it in the past? And, if so, what is the best way to reach those people?
Jean, two good questions. Coming up, two bad answers.
DeleteI love liver. Chicken, calves, beef, I like it. Some people have tried liver and hated it. I can't talk them back into liver. Others, though, have heard of it and seen it but not tasted it. With the proper presentation they might like it. When my parents introduced me to lobster tails, they said they were "Walt Whitman's duck." I don't know where that description came from, but I ate lobster tails three times before I found out they were seafood. By then I was calling for more Walt Whitman's duck. There are always obstacles; it's easier to get past them if you don't know they are there than if they stopped you before.
We used to run a program called Re-membering in which we invited alienated, departed and pissed off Catholics in for finger food and talk for three weeks (if they kept coming). Pastor finally de-budgeted us because he thought (rightly) we were "recovering" Catholics for other pastors, since one doesn't go to that sort of thing closer to home. But we lifted a lot of self-imposed excommunications and regularized a lot of marriages in our day. We didn't change the Church to "entice" them back; we simply showed them how we live with the Church as it is. They missed something (or they wouldn't have been there). Some of them decided, though, that they would have to put up with too much crap to get back what they were missing, said thank you and didn't come back.
Look:If I want to quit something it would be the United States of America. But everybody has a different boiling point.
Tom: The sbnrs might find something in the RCC if they hung around long enough. Spirituality is never preached. I had to go looking for it. .. I happened to encounter Merton's "The Inner Experience" just as I was starting a course in Spirituality by someone who knew of what she preached in a diocesan School of Christian Formation.
DeleteTom, from reading your posts, it seems that you have been an extraordinarily committed Catholic throughout your life. So, you might be willing to wait out the nonsense and then work to find what you need in your spiritlual journey.
But, it's very hard - and if the point is to attract and make genuine "new believers" out of the SNBRs- why is it up to them to find Merton and spirituality on their own?
That's why so many have left - the spirituality they seek is not easily found in the institutions. Since they have had to go out and find it on their own anyway, why waste time in the pews on Sunday? Their spiritual life is not fed in the institutional settings, so they read on their own, they pray on their own, they study on their own, and at some point may seek out a small group of like-minded seekers in a Centering Prayer group, or a book group, or in a course on spirituality, or in some other place outside of a church's walls.
As I have said ad nauseum - the religious "leaders" in the institutions aren't listening when it comes to the SBNRs.
More on the young adult, former Catholics.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.ncronline.org/news/opinion/grace-margins/us-nones-increase-we-must-start-asking-different-questions
Kaya Oakes wrote a book about the "nones" a few years ago. At a recent symposium at Fordham about the continuing challenge of bringing the "nones" back into the pews she is critical of Barron's approach.
... the questions we need to ask have changed.
Or at least they should, said Kaya Oakes, ...author of the 2015 book The Nones Are Alright: A New Generation of Seekers, Believers, and Those In Between.
"The better questions we should ask instead of how to get the nones back is, where do we meet them and what do they need?" said Oakes.
She offered pointed critique of Auxiliary Bishop Robert Barron of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, whose Word on Fire Catholic Ministries aims to bring the nones into the fold.
"He's obviously very concerned" ... Oakes said, and yet his use of catechetics gives "the feeling he's never met one."
"He doesn't ask why they left, but only how can we get them back," she said, adding, "there are no stats to suggest that buying Word on Fire merchandise can retain young Catholics."
Oakes says Barron's rhetoric creates a danger of making nones the "other," which creates a problematic "us versus them" dynamic.
"A lot of what he says is from a very clerical point of view," said Oakes. "He should spend time with them rather than telling them what they should do."
"He should spend time with them rather than telling them what they should do."
DeleteI agree with Kaya Oakes about that. I'm not a fan of this or that shiny new program as far as attracting people or keeping them.
Jesus did not have a marketing department, nor does he seem to have do followup research on the order of "how was your visit?" as my cell phone asks all the time, even though it is none of its business. I think we think too much in terms of "how was our visit?" and maybe if we fill out the Survey Monkey we'll get a free order of French fries.
DeleteEither he was the Messiah, or he wasn't. If he wasn't, there's no point in filling out the form because the French fries aren't coming our way. If he was, we have to face the fact that God's ways are not necessarily our ways.
Now you will say South Carolina pastors treating the Eucharist as a Good Conduct medal and announcing he rejected Biden at the altar can't possibly be God's way. I agree totally. A lot of Catholics disagree with us. Machts nichts, either Jesus was or he wasn't.
Guess the SC priest wants four more years of Trump.
DeleteIn summary, none of us but Jim are personally doing anything to try to evangelize the young and unchurched. Hope he will update us on how that goes.
ReplyDeleteTom's rehab program for the fallen away sounds like it probably went in the right direction, lay people helping the lapsed learn to live with the Church as it is. Pretty hilarious (in a sad way) that the pastor didn't want to spend money to feed someone else's sheep. Like something out of a JF Powers story.