Intergenerational relationships, sense of belonging ‘key’ to keeping young people in church: experts

April 25, 2024

Youth ministry experts are warning that a rapidly growing number of young people are becoming untethered from truth and find themselves disconnected from meaning and purpose. According to the Christian Post, this trend is connected to the rise of so-called religious nones across the U.S.

John Stonestreet, president of the Colson Center for Christian Worldview, says intergenerational relationships play a key role in helping young people stay connected to their faith.

Stonestreet said, “Students today, just quite simply, need two things. They need, first of all, to hear the truth. The reason they need to hear the truth is that we live in a particular cultural movement where they don’t hear the truth very often. … They’ve actually been detached from the truth from the very beginning. In other words, we live in a world that’s detached itself from the source [of truth].”

Stonestreet cited a decade-long British study that found initially, 13 years ago, that 90% of young people between 18-28 believed that life had meaning. However, when asked that same question 10 years later, the survey found only 10% of respondents said life had meaning.

According to Stonestreet, the solution to such a significant drop in a sense of purpose is found in intergenerational relationships. He said, “There needs to be something along with truth: a context, relationships, mentoring, intergenerational relationships, family relationships. When you have truth and relationships in a package deal, it is a powerful force. It is a force that can actually get around the challenge of being untethered from truth and untethered from meaning.” 

The Christian Post reports that Stonestreet made his remarks earlier this month in Chattanooga, Tennessee as part of the One Hundred Years campaign to bring generations together in faith.

Photo: top, Credit: Watermark Community Church