Millennials and Gen Zers in my experience care about community and authenticity but largely don’t compromise with outdated, inhumane beliefs, or those given with authority or conformity as it’s only basis. This is where religious institutions lose them.
Inauthenticity, not giving real reasons for what they believe, or just ostracising young people because they are young or have “x” expectations/stereotypes for them, are largely why young people don’t participate in religious community. Most of the young people that I know that are still apart [sic] of conservative churches are there because they don’t want to break off a relationship with their parents or they endure what they know to be fake/bad teaching for the community that they care about.
Conservatives are so scandalised by kids deconstructing or leaving the church as soon as they hit 18, leave for college, or just all of a sudden. Saying that this culture poisoned them, the “woke” virus, etc. No, they’ve probably been well aware of the bs since 13-16 years old, But they held out until an event when their community ties are cut.
I was once apart [sic] of a church meeting on how to teach celibacy/sexual “ethics” to young people. I was a representative young person in the discussion. The adults spent the majority of the meeting going on and on of how teen’s brains aren’t developed yet, they don’t have any experience yet, we can’t trust them to make decisions, how they’re just generally stupid. I shut my mouth and stopped participating. They said this after giving me the pretence of “valuing my opinion.”
I expect many other teens if they aren’t just out right spiritually/emotionally abused run into similar inhospitality. And then church leadership wail that church attendance is dropping and complain that religious decency is ending. No, you killed that a while ago.
Aidan McGuire on Twitter (emphasis added)