Millennials Are Leaving Religion And Not Coming Back

[steve_bank]

I have been listening to a radio show Coast To Coast AM. A successor to Art Bell.

The people on the show make theists look tame. There is vast array of belivers in the pasranormal and conspiracies.

The show has a dating service to match people who believe in paranormal and conspiracies'. Listened to a guy talk at length on something called psionics. Akin to the old Orgone Machine. It is not just the speakers but the callers as well.

The idea that millennials are abandoning religion for something more rational does not seem to hold water.

 

[Politesse]

I'm still waiting for the explanation as to how anyone knoes what Millenials will do in the future, at the age range (40-60) when changes in religious participation are the most commonplace? One's twenties and thirties are not and have never been the prime years for religious participation, at least not in Europe/US from which we have the most data. So absent all else, decline in church attendance etc. is exactly what you would expect of any generation that happens to be passing through that stage of life.

 

[ronburgundy]

I'm still waiting for the explanation as to how anyone knoes what Millenials will do in the future, at the age range (40-60) when changes in religious participation are the most commonplace? One's twenties and thirties are not and have never been the prime years for religious participation, at least not in Europe/US from which we have the most data. So absent all else, decline in church attendance etc. is exactly what you would expect of any generation that happens to be passing through that stage of life.

The article explains it. There is a predictable pattern within prior generations where people become less religious in their 20's, but then return to religion when they get married and have kids. There is evidence that these events are causal factors. People used to feel that raising one's kids in the religious tradition they were raised in was important, or at least withing some religious tradition. I know many Boomers and GenXers that were not at all religious but suddenly baptized their kid and/or started going to Church once they had kids.
Millenials are now as old as 38 and the older one's have been tracked for 20 years. Many are now married with kids, and yet they have not shown the previously predictable pattern of returning to religion by this point. While some may still do so at a later age, given that having kids is a likely causal factor, there is good reason to infer that most of those who haven't done so after having kids and reaching their mid-30's won't do so later on. The article also says that Millenials were raised with less religion than prior generations. Thus, the pull to return to it may have weakened below a kind of threshold. Another thought, not in the article, is that much of the pressure to return to religion after kids comes from the grand parents and extended family. Many Gen Xers had "Silent Generation" parents who were raised very religious and as Grandparents put lot's of pressure on GenXers to raise their kid's with religion. But with every generation, the degree of religiosity of the grandparents get's weaker. Millenials have GenXer and Boomer parents who aren't putting as much pressure on Millenials to raise their kids with religion.

Another possible factor not mentioned in the article is that grandparents don't play as big a role anymore in how kids are raised. This could be partly due to physical distance (adults with young kids living farther from their parents than they used to), and part due to cultural changes in whether grandparents serve as major caregivers and how much influence young parents let their parents have.

 

[Politesse]

I'm still waiting for the explanation as to how anyone knoes what Millenials will do in the future, at the age range (40-60) when changes in religious participation are the most commonplace? One's twenties and thirties are not and have never been the prime years for religious participation, at least not in Europe/US from which we have the most data. So absent all else, decline in church attendance etc. is exactly what you would expect of any generation that happens to be passing through that stage of life.

The article explains it. There is a predictable pattern within prior generations where people become less religious in their 20's, but then return to religion when they get married and have kids. There is evidence that these events are causal factors. People used to feel that raising one's kids in the religious tradition they were raised in was important, or at least withing some religious tradition. I know many Boomers and GenXers that were not at all religious but suddenly baptized their kid and/or started going to Church once they had kids.
Millenials are now as old as 38 and the older one's have been tracked for 20 years. Many are now married with kids, and yet they have not shown the previously predictable pattern of returning to religion by this point. While some may still do so at a later age, given that having kids is a likely causal factor, there is good reason to infer that most of those who haven't done so after having kids and reaching their mid-30's won't do so later on. The article also says that Millenials were raised with less religion than prior generations. Thus, the pull to return to it may have weakened below a kind of threshold. Another thought, not in the article, is that much of the pressure to return to religion after kids comes from the grand parents and extended family. Many Gen Xers had "Silent Generation" parents who were raised very religious and as Grandparents put lot's of pressure on GenXers to raise their kid's with religion. But with every generation, the degree of religiosity of the grandparents get's weaker. Millenials have GenXer and Boomer parents who aren't putting as much pressure on Millenials to raise their kids with religion.

Another possible factor not mentioned in the article is that grandparents don't play as big a role anymore in how kids are raised. This could be partly due to physical distance (adults with young kids living farther from their parents than they used to), and part due to cultural changes in whether grandparents serve as major caregivers and how much influence young parents let their parents have.

There is a lot of speculation attached to that line of reasoning, and some factually incorrect sociological information. (for instance, the number of children whose primary caretaker is their grandparent has been increasing for decades; for instance, a study of the 2000 Census found that the number of children in this situation in the US had nearly doubled proportionally since 1970, and households with resident grandparents have also increased generally, likely a byproduct of longer lifespans)

 

[ronburgundy]

I'm still waiting for the explanation as to how anyone knoes what Millenials will do in the future, at the age range (40-60) when changes in religious participation are the most commonplace? One's twenties and thirties are not and have never been the prime years for religious participation, at least not in Europe/US from which we have the most data. So absent all else, decline in church attendance etc. is exactly what you would expect of any generation that happens to be passing through that stage of life.

The article explains it. There is a predictable pattern within prior generations where people become less religious in their 20's, but then return to religion when they get married and have kids. There is evidence that these events are causal factors. People used to feel that raising one's kids in the religious tradition they were raised in was important, or at least withing some religious tradition. I know many Boomers and GenXers that were not at all religious but suddenly baptized their kid and/or started going to Church once they had kids.
Millenials are now as old as 38 and the older one's have been tracked for 20 years. Many are now married with kids, and yet they have not shown the previously predictable pattern of returning to religion by this point. While some may still do so at a later age, given that having kids is a likely causal factor, there is good reason to infer that most of those who haven't done so after having kids and reaching their mid-30's won't do so later on. The article also says that Millenials were raised with less religion than prior generations. Thus, the pull to return to it may have weakened below a kind of threshold. Another thought, not in the article, is that much of the pressure to return to religion after kids comes from the grand parents and extended family. Many Gen Xers had "Silent Generation" parents who were raised very religious and as Grandparents put lot's of pressure on GenXers to raise their kid's with religion. But with every generation, the degree of religiosity of the grandparents get's weaker. Millenials have GenXer and Boomer parents who aren't putting as much pressure on Millenials to raise their kids with religion.

Another possible factor not mentioned in the article is that grandparents don't play as big a role anymore in how kids are raised. This could be partly due to physical distance (adults with young kids living farther from their parents than they used to), and part due to cultural changes in whether grandparents serve as major caregivers and how much influence young parents let their parents have.

There is a lot of speculation attached to that line of reasoning, and some factually incorrect sociological information. (for instance, the number of children whose primary caretaker is their grandparent has been increasing for decades; for instance, a study of the 2000 Census found that the number of children in this situation in the US had nearly doubled proportionally since 1970, and households with resident grandparents have also increased generally, likely a byproduct of longer lifespans)

That's a good fact to know, but hat only speaks to contact with grandparents, not any of the other reasons I laid out. The empirical fact is that people who leave their childhood religion and then return, usually do so when they get married and have kids. But Millennials are not doing that, which predicts that they will not return to the same degree that prior generations have. OF course figuring out exactly why this is the case requires "speculation" (aka reasoning), because we don't have the controlled experiments to test causal theories.

It's an empirical fact that millenials were generally raised with less religion and by less religious parents and grandparents than GenXers and Boomers were. This implies that there would be less pressure on them to return to the religion of their youth and that they would be less likely to think that religion is important to impart to their own kids.

 

[Politesse]

There is a lot of speculation attached to that line of reasoning, and some factually incorrect sociological information. (for instance, the number of children whose primary caretaker is their grandparent has been increasing for decades; for instance, a study of the 2000 Census found that the number of children in this situation in the US had nearly doubled proportionally since 1970, and households with resident grandparents have also increased generally, likely a byproduct of longer lifespans)

That's a good fact to know, but hat only speaks to contact with grandparents, not any of the other reasons I laid out. The empirical fact is that people who leave their childhood religion and then return, usually do so when they get married and have kids. But Millennials are not doing that, which predicts that they will not return to the same degree that prior generations have. OF course figuring out exactly why this is the case requires "speculation" (aka reasoning), because we don't have the controlled experiments to test causal theories.

It's an empirical fact that millenials were generally raised with less religion and by less religious parents and grandparents than GenXers and Boomers were. This implies that there would be less pressure on them to return to the religion of their youth and that they would be less likely to think that religion is important to impart to their own kids.

Well, this social scientist, for one, isn't especially fond of speculation beyond data being stated as though it were established fact. We really have no idea what Millenials will do, to the (extremely dubious) extent to which they are statistically meaningful grouping at all, unless by comparison to previous generations, which behaved very differently either to their successors or to the predictions of the article.

 

[steve_bank]

I heard they are turning to Paganism.

 

[Politesse]

I heard they are turning to Paganism.

Paganism has grown very slowly but steadily over the past few decades. It is a craft that pairs well with social media platforms in a way other relifious bodies have often struggled with, and it's non-commital nature appeals to those with an anti-authoritarian edge.

 

[steve_bank]

What the gospel era Jews thought of Pagans...today we;d say sex, drugs, rock and roll. Giving in to passions, libertine and gay sex. It is what Paul refers to in his statement on homosexuality. Pagan practices, not beliefs.

In Christian traditional terms and values our culture is turning Pagan.

 

[bilby]

What the gospel era Jews thought of Pagans...today we;d say sex, drugs, rock and roll. Giving in to passions, libertine and gay sex. It is what Paul refers to in his statement on homosexuality. Pagan practices, not beliefs.

In Christian traditional terms and values our culture is turning Pagan.

Nah, you're just turning old.

 

[DrZoidberg]

Since 2012 I've been active in secular religion. I even took part in starting a religion. I think that's the new big thing. Considering how extremely fast it's spreading. Spiritual work is really big now. It used to be only for New Age hippies. But now it's for sensible people who are scientifically litterate. We're also "converting hippies".

My point is that most of those in interact with in our group/religion don't identify with being religious. Or it's a bit vague and nebolous. They see it more as somewhere to train life skills, as learning the piano, theatre class, go dancing etc. Spiritual work is just another one of these. Whether we should call this a religion is a matter of definition. I do. But there's no talk of beliefs.

I see this as what will completely replace religion in the future. It fills the same function IMHO. And is more suited to the post Internet/social media world we have today.

 

[T.G.G. Moogly]

Since 2012 I've been active in secular religion. I even took part in starting a religion. I think that's the new big thing. Considering how extremely fast it's spreading. Spiritual work is really big now. It used to be only for New Age hippies. But now it's for sensible people who are scientifically litterate. We're also "converting hippies".

My point is that most of those in interact with in our group/religion don't identify with being religious. Or it's a bit vague and nebolous. They see it more as somewhere to train life skills, as learning the piano, theatre class, go dancing etc. Spiritual work is just another one of these. Whether we should call this a religion is a matter of definition. I do. But there's no talk of beliefs.

I see this as what will completely replace religion in the future. It fills the same function IMHO. And is more suited to the post Internet/social media world we have today.

That strikes me as having no religion be a religion. In that case everything becomes religion.

So let me see. I used to put teeth under my pillow because everyone told me the tooth fairy would take my tooth and give me money. Now I know that that exchange was being pulled off by my parents and there was never a tooth fairy, even when I believed there was one. So now I do other things with that time that used to be used believing in the tooth fairy. Do you see where I'm going?

 

[steve_bank]

If you search atheist church in Seattle you will get some hits.

Universalist Unitarians have a church like environment and structure, but theism is not required.

Sem
ems like a contradiction in terms, church and atheism. Secular Humanism does not invoke religion or church.

Atheist religion or church sounds like people want the comfort and structure of religion without the baggie. Inevitably becomes an ideology with a structure and a power hierarchy.

There are so many existing alternatives existing why invent something new? Because moist people need a group identity of some kind.

 

[T.G.G. Moogly]

It should be noted that a lot of millenials never had any religion to leave, thanks to their parents. So to say they're leaving and not coming back is to imply that they were religious at some point. Most probably were not. Maybe they were baptized and taken to churches as kids but getting to sunday's soccer game was always more important to them than going to church.

 

[ideologyhunter]

From what I can see, they worship their goddamned phones. Think about those phones all day. Heed them instantly. Have a personal relationship with their phones. Are lost without them. With a phone in their little mitts, they have purpose-driven lives, assuming the phones are charged up.

 

[Tom Sawyer]

From what I can see, they worship their goddamned phones. Think about those phones all day. Heed them instantly. Have a personal relationship with their phones. Are lost without them. With a phone in their little mitts, they have purpose-driven lives, assuming the phones are charged up.

Their version of Hell likely involves them finding themselves having gone to the toilet and not brought their phone with them, so they just have to sit there wondering what exactly they should do with themselves while they're in there.

 

[DBT]

Those trying to find a life texting those who have no life but staring into a screen.