No one cares about your church

[James Nored]

I was asking a young woman in Starbucks the other day where she went to church. Her name is Katie.

Katie said that she had started going to a church. She had only been only been going one time, but she liked how the minister was interactive and applied to lesson to real life.

 

Her co-worker asked her, you don't know which church it was or it's name?

 

She said, "Does it matter?"

 

Three things struck me about this conversation. First, though she had only gone once, this young woman said that she "going to this church." Church "attendance" is at an all time low, particularly with younger people.

 

Second, this girl could care less about the church's denomination. Denominational loyalty is also at an all time low, including my own fellowship ("Church of Christ"). If we think that we can make denominational appeals to younger people and that they will care, think again. They care about Jesus, social justice issues, mission, practical daily living, that type of thing.

 

Third, we have no conception of just how low the appeal of "going to church" is today amongst most younger people. It takes a burning, passionate, Christ-centered church that meets people where they are to reach them. And even then, they may be perfectly content to worship once in a blue moon and feel that they are a part of that church.

 

What trends do you see in church "attendance" and church loyalty amongst younger generations?

[Timothy Tien]

I think the church in America is too traditional and too preservational.  The church today might be like the synagogue was to the Gentiles back in New Testament times, or a blasphemous (e.g. anti-science) cult to the priests and Levites (for my comment, let's call them today's cultural elites, which basically is anyone who graduated from college and holds a job that required the college degree they earned, roughly 20% of Americans).  If that is the case, then the first chapters of Acts may hold some important clues and strategies on what we need to do.  Part of that might mean letting go of "attendance" and "loyalty" for what the church in Jerusalem (and its subsequent diaspora) was holding on to.