Why religion is unprepared for revival in America

Religion in America is losing its edge.

Even as young people are becoming more “spiritual,” the Western Christian Church is entirely unprepared for — and, in some cases, actively stifling — revival.

Here’s why.

“As Spirituality Rises, Many Young People Are Redefining and Rethinking Religion,” Teen Vogue reported. The Washington Times ran a piece titled “The Surprising Surge of Faith Among Young People.” And The New York Post sought to explain “Why Generation Z is returning to God.”

“Evangelist Billy Graham wisely said, ‘When we come to the end of ourselves, we come to the beginning of God,’” Carrie Sheffield wrote for the Post. “In this time of rising depression and suicidal despair, it seems many in Generation Z reached this point, with a new study showing a rising share of young adults have religious faith.”

To be clear, this does not mean that young Americans have become any more pious or “churchy.” At least not yet. Instead, it means that, in the wake of the chaos of the collapse of the secular age, young people have become desperate for meaning, turning to God as a possible fix for their diffident wallow. 

Unfortunately, American Christianity, as we know it, is embarrassingly unequipped to fill that void. Having neutered itself of the real brunt of its draw, houses of worship are now forced to regurgitate and repackage the world’s rejected crumbs, hoping to God newcomers don’t notice we’re simply feeding them the same old tired beer and skittles.

Contrary to what most church growth and planning committees would tell you, the faith community in the West lost its edge for one simple reason: we abandoned our rules. We abandoned — or became lackadaisical about — our unique, heavenly injunctions because we forgot that such bylaws produce order, structure, meaning, and purpose — the very things that, from time immemorial, people have turned to religion for.

Young people are not sick of the world because it offers them entertainment. They are not sick of the world because it lacks strobe lights or coffee shops. They are sick of the world because it is lawless and confused. Because it cannot answer their deepest, darkest depressions or questions. Therefore, we should not try to “lure them in” with “Christianized” entertainment, willy-nilly outreach programs, or “casual” sacraments but with the serenity of order in a restless world. 

The early church did not aim to replicate the bread and circus of the Roman Empire. We should not aim to replicate the Eras Tour. Our pastors should not have to get their hair cut, tailor their suits, or throw eggs LIVE! on stage to maintain our interest in church.

The smoke and lights of the age have left our young people high and dry; orthodoxy, tradition, and propriety are coming back into fashion.

The question is: can the church offer them what they seek? Or have we, too, drained ourselves on the blunting stone of chaos?