Millennials: What We Need to Know, but are Afraid to Ask

Will our children’s children continue the work of Jesus?  The most recent report by the Pew Research Center provides little reason for optimism.  It isn’t surprising that the Pew survey shows a continuing downward spiral in church attendance in North America.  What is more alarming is the sharp increase in the number of young adults who identify themselves as atheists, agnostics or “nones” which is the abbreviation for “nothing in particular.”  The “nones”, are the fastest growing segment of the religious landscape in America.  And the Millennial generation is the most likely segment of our population to list their religious preference as “nothing in particular.”

Millennials are those who were born between 1980 and 2000.  They are three times more likely to identify themselves as “nones” than to identify themselves as mainline Protestants.  While the Church in North American has done a pretty good job of reaching the Silent generation; those born between 1928 and 1945, most churches are clueless about how to reach Millennials.

Reaching Out to Emerging Generations

Frank Powell offers some interesting insights about Millennials and their aversion to organized religion in a blog post entitled, 10 Reasons Churches Are Not Reaching Millennials.  Frank has written for Relevant Magazine, Catalyst , ChurchLeaders, and posts on a blog entitled Restoring Culture through Christ. Here is Powell’s list of reasons why the church may not be reaching Millennials:

1. There is a strong resistance to change
2. A compelling vision is lacking or non-existent
3. Mediocrity is the expectation
4. There is a paternalistic approach to leading millennial
5. There is a pervasive insider-focused mentality
6. Transparency and authenticity are not high value.
7. Mentoring is not important
8. Culture is viewed as the enemy
9. Community is not valued
10. The church is a source of division, and not unity

Getting to Know the Millennials

Before you dismiss the importance of understanding Millennials, consider this: when I Google searched “Millennials,” the first site that appeared at the top of the search page was a Goldman Sachs website!  MILLENNIALS appears at the top of the home page in all caps followed by this explanation: 

One of the largest generations in history is about to move into its prime spending years. Millennials are poised to reshape the economy; their unique experiences will change the ways we buy and sell, forcing companies to examine how they do business for decades to come.

There is little evidence that mainline churches are doing much to understand and reach out to this generation.  But Goldman Sachs and many other corporations and financial institutions have invested millions trying to know how to reach 92 million young adults who are about to move into their prime spending years.

So who are the Millennials?  Here are a few traits that have been gleaned from the writings of several contemporary American thinkers and sociologists:

• Millennials tend to be pragmatic idealists
• They tend to have a deep desire to make the world a better place
• They tend to be optimistic, engaged, team players
• They would rather network with friends than work through institutions
• They embrace the idea of community, both locally and globallyThe Church needs Millennials!  

We need to reach out to this generation, not simply to sit in our pews and fill our offering plates.  Without their idealism, optimism, and desire to make the world a better place, the Church will be unable to continue the work of Jesus.