Young American Adults...and their lack of religious zeal

[FormerFundie2004]

This is not a thread bashing young American adults. Rather, I seek to examine the situation and discuss it with others. I myself am a young adult, but I am somewhat different from what appears to be the norm.

In my experience, this seems to be the case:

Young American adults (YAAs) are attending church a lot less than ever before. They might even make up the smallest age group in the church.

YAAs work like crazy these days. They also have nice cars, cell phones, nice clothes, and lots of other nice things. Perhaps this is why they have 2 jobs, one being full-time.

YAAs have to have it now! They can't wait for the nice car, the nice phone, the nice clothes, etc. And they will work 50+ hrs/wk to get it.

YAAs these days seem to be juggling school, work, and/or family at once. They have very hectic schedules and many responsiblities. Maybe this is because they have to have everything now.

YAAs, for the most part, don't believe in Biblical literalism, but do believe that the earth is several billion years old, and that we evolved. They are fine with pre-marital sex, smoking, cussing, drinking, and a free lifestyle. They are less likely to question whether or not something is a "sin" before they do it. But perhaps this is so because they see that the Bible is not a manual for human behavior; it has been proven to be morally unacceptable and scientifically inaccurate. And therefore, why bother to take it seriously and obey it's every dictate literally?

YAAs have no sense of direction or purpose. Obey the Bible? Follow the will of God? What is that? How could anyone "know" what it was anymore? We've been cut off from the perceived "will" of God, as we realize that this leads to bigotry and prejudice. We've been cut off from patriotic pride, as we realize this leads to war and destruction. We've been cut off from our families, as we realize that we can't tell them all of this.

Now we stand alone, trying to sort out things for ourselves. Before us was a generation that dealt with different problems, and does not understand the ones we now face. Where do we go? What do we do? What is right? What is wrong? How can we know God anymore? How can we find ourselves?

YAAs are lacking in religious zeal because they realize that the "truth" of the past was not truth, but lies and ignorance. Now they don't know what the truth is.

So, to the generation that came before us, don't expect us to satisfy your moral and spiritual standards. We can't anymore.

And so, how am I different from my fellow YAAs? I don't want a hectic schedule; I can wait for the nice car and the nice stuff until I finish my degree and get a nice job. I don't want to work 60+ hrs/wk. I don't want 2 jobs.

I also don't want to smoke, drink and party. I don't cuss. This makes me a cultural conservative, but I am still a social liberal.

What I want is a smooth life. No excess stress. No hectic schedule. Career, yes please. Friends, the more the better. One job, yes please. A single-paycheck, no payments car? Yes please. Thank you. I can wait a little longer.

As for my spirituality, I am in a state of transition, of unknowing, of searching. I have to find my purpose and to find God again.

[LadyShea]

Why do you need to find a god again at all? What's wrong with searching and learning being your purpose?

[livius drusus]

I see a lot of generalizations in your OP, FormerFundie2004, and although I certainly know people who would fit those descriptions, I am reluctant to accept that they are particular to young American adults.

Where do you get your impressions? Are you sure you're on strong enough grounds to assume these general impressions are correct?

[Adora]

Now they don't know what the truth is.
How do you know this?

Why can't they discover their own truths? Why do they have to go back to rubbish nostalgia? Why does not being like the previous generation instantly mean they're like some lost little bunnies in the wilderness?

And before you say "They're not attending church", say which churches, where, what denominations, and then maybe, just maybem wonder if this isn't because they're inventing new spiritualities for themselves.

[seebs]

FWIW, I have certainly known many people with these problems... And many people a generation back who go to church but don't mean anything by it.

I don't know whether or not "finding god" will help, but in general, the people I know who have some kind of spiritual life are a lot happier than the people I know who don't.

[Ymir's blood]

Find yourself and you will have all the god you need.

[Godless Dave]

in general, the people I know who have some kind of spiritual life are a lot happier than the people I know who don't.

Whereas I observe the exact opposite in the people I've known.

[HelenM]

And so, how am I different from my fellow YAAs? I don't want a hectic schedule; I can wait for the nice car and the nice stuff until I finish my degree and get a nice job. I don't want to work 60+ hrs/wk. I don't want 2 jobs.

I also don't want to smoke, drink and party. I don't cuss. This makes me a cultural conservative, but I am still a social liberal.

What I want is a smooth life. No excess stress. No hectic schedule. Career, yes please. Friends, the more the better. One job, yes please. A single-paycheck, no payments car? Yes please. Thank you. I can wait a little longer.

I think there are other young adults out there like you. If you're feeling that the other young adults you know have very different values from you - which seems to be what you're describing - perhaps you could look for ways to broaden your social circle so you can meet them.

Or call that guy you were working with :). You know where he works - you have his work number, right? Until he tells you point-blank that he's not interested, then for all you know he might be interested in you and just have been too nervous to say anything about it on your last day.

As for my spirituality, I am in a state of transition, of unknowing, of searching. I have to find my purpose and to find God again.

Most of the posters here don't believe in God and their responses will reflect that.

One thing about Christian young adults is that they may share some of your values - because Christians are encouraged not to make possessions or partying the most important things in their lives. I'm not saying they all do but rather that I've met Christian young adults with similar values to yours. But I also think there are non-Christian young adults who have similar values to you. That's why I suggested you may benefit from widening your social circle somehow.

My church has quite a few young adults - probably because all but one of the worship services have contemporary music and there is an active young adults ministry. Churches that make an effort to be fun and interesting places for young adults generally do succeed in drawing a number of them, in my experience.

Helen

[godfry n. glad]

FWIW, I have certainly known many people with these problems... And many people a generation back who go to church but don't mean anything by it.

I don't know whether or not "finding god" will help, but in general, the people I know who have some kind of spiritual life are a lot happier than the people I know who don't.

I've know many in that "generation back" (which I suspect is my generation) who did much the same thing as was described here. It's not unique to this young generation.

As to your second statement here, I've found that those folks who have no "spiritual life" are more content and happier with their lives than those who do. Indeed, my limited perception is that those whose lives are screwed up in one way or another seek some kind of solace in "spiritualism", whatever it's form.

godfry

[LadyShea]

My church has quite a few young adults - probably because all but one of the worship services have contemporary music and there is an active young adults ministry. Churches that make an effort to be fun and interesting places for young adults generally do succeed in drawing a number of them, in my experience.

Helen

I have seen this amongst my Christian friends, though we are no longer YAA's, but most of them sought churches with alot of people of their own age and "less stuffy" services.

[Socratoad]

I have trouble with the word "spiritual" Everyone of those who have known me personally insists that I am a very "spiritual" person. Many have told me that I am the most spiritual person they have known and yet I do not believe in the concept of spirituality. I do not believe in higher powers or any sort of mysticism.

So how to I get by or perhaps more helpful what works for me. Reverence for all sentient life and every entity that supports life on the planet.

In short: empathy empathy empathy.

One does not need any religion to follow these principles, although a belief in a higher power certainly does not preclude these principles.

I found out at a very early age that beliefs in higher powers, rituals, etc clouded issues rather than clarified them ..... sort of like observing life through an opaque screen. I speak only for myself in this regard.
All this does not mean I do not believe in a higher good, quite the opposite.

[seebs]

I think the term spiritual may be fairly vague. Note that many religious people have no recognizable spiritualism in their lives. If a religion is a set of empty assertions one holds to in order not to be set on fire after one dies, with no impact on much of anything, then it's not particularly spiritual.

[godfry n. glad]

I think the term spiritual may be fairly vague. Note that many religious people have no recognizable spiritualism in their lives. If a religion is a set of empty assertions one holds to in order not to be set on fire after one dies, with no impact on much of anything, then it's not particularly spiritual.

Okay...I'm agreeable to the vagueness claim, because to me it seems to be all over the map.

I'd appreciate your attempting a decent enough definition to fully explain your statement here:

...the people I know who have some kind of spiritual life are a lot happier than the people I know who don't.

What do you mean by "spiritual life"?

godfry

[lisarea]

I could be wrong, but the way I've seen the term 'spiritual' used in this context, it just seems to imply the opposite of shallow and materialistic.

And I haven't noticed any correlation between religion and that definition of 'spiritual.' In fact, all too often, young people are religious because they lack the insight, independence, and curiosity to question the beliefs they've been raised with, and haven't made any real effort to learn about other perspectives. (I shouldn't need to say this, but I will just in case: That's not universal, of course, but it is a fairly significant trend in my experience.)

I'm not sure what exactly you're comparing American youth today to, but I expect that what you perceive as a decline in morality is more akin to a decline in conformity. I can assure you that I would not go back and raise my son in the social climate of the 1950s, for example.

[Socratoad]

Further to uses or perceptions of the word spiritual and/or spirituality. And this time I'm not gonna take any swipes at the major religions, rather its the overuse of the term to mean practically anything a person wishes it to mean, from astrology, dancing by the light of the moon or simply as an excuse for assuming a blank look and avoiding any sense of responsibility to any entity other than oneself. As I mentioned earlier spirituality held no charms for me, but now the term seems IMO to have no currency at all. Some of the most vacuous naval gazing people, often holding doctorates make a great display of claiming to be spiritual.

I have a homegrown theory about the flowering of "spirituality" in its many manifestations. And that is: Society is moving at far too fast a pace. Technology and many of its more dubious uses have developed at a far faster pace than our emotional and moral abilities to keep pace. Not to mention the ever increasing separation between us and the earth and its processes. Very little is in a scale that the average human can readily understand or even cope with. I mean the national debt is X trillions of dollars. Who the hell can possibly relate to such things, and yet they still have the power to instill fear, depression and even despair. So ever increasing numbers of people turn towards what seems spiritual to them. Its a form of escapism. A signal of the societal rot of our times.

So sayeth the Toad

In short: like my earlier observations regarding homelessness, drugs, etc, modern spiritualism in itself should not be derided because like the preceding its or they are symptoms.

[Johnny Pneumatic]

For finding the truth nothing compares to the effectiveness of science.
For happiness look at the world around you. My pet cats make me smile with their antics and the purr of a cat is one of the most soothing sounds I know of. My pet gecko Midas makes me smile by how funny he looks with his large unblinking eyes.

[Dingfod]

Find yourself and you will have all the god you need.That's nice. While I may agree with you, I think that if a religionist was here preaching to you that the only way to find yourself was to find God, you probably wouldn't like it.

[Ymir's blood]

Find yourself and you will have all the god you need.That's nice. While I may agree with you, I think that if a religionist was here preaching to you that the only way to find yourself was to find God, you probably wouldn't like it.
Yes, but you could remove every word between the second and third instances of 'you' and the sentence would still be true. :D