Is There a ‘Religious Revival’ Happening Among Gen Z?
Many people in the Christian community say there is. But researchers and political scientists have cast doubt on the idea.
A new TikTok series by a 23-year-old named Anthony Gross has shown that young people, known as Gen Zers, are flocking to Catholic churches in New York City. The videos of Gross touring and ranking different churches have garnered tens of thousands of likes online. At some services he attended, he noted a significant number of other Gen Zers present.
This observation has led many pastors and priests across the country to claim they've seen a surge in attendance among young people at their services. For example, Bishop John Dolan of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Phoenix has reported hundreds of baptisms over Easter weekend, most of them from Gen Z. Additionally, young Christian influencers have gained popularity online, and religious conferences and gatherings have seen large numbers of young attendees.
In August, nearly 2,000 young people convened for a three-day Catholic youth conference in Houston; a similar event will be held in New Orleans next month, and the largest gathering of Catholic youth in the country will take place in Long Beach, California in November. The Passion Conference, a non-denominational Christian event designed for 18- to 25-year-olds, will also be held in two stadiums in Texas and Georgia later this year, marking a significant increase in capacity.
However, researchers and political scientists argue that these anecdotes may not reflect a nationwide trend. According to a report by the Pew Research Center in December, there's no clear evidence of a nationwide religious resurgence among young people. The data indicates that young adults are still less religious than older generations; only 54% of Americans aged 18 to 29 identify as Christian, compared to 75% of those aged 65 and older.
Ryan Burge, a professor of practice at Washington University in St. Louis, also notes that while religiosity has held steady since 2020, it's not a sign of a revival. He believes the increase in attendance and participation among young people could simply be due to a lack of traditional religious background in prior generations.
Experts suggest that the media's focus on outlier stories that run counter to the typical narrative could explain the discrepancy between anecdotal evidence and nationwide data.
Written by urgent.news from Time's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — it may contain errors, so check the original before relying on it.
