Elijah Ramjattan

Comin Ritivoiu
English 102
May 7, 2015
The Millennial Exodus
The Christian church is losing a very viable part of its congregation. Young people are
beginning to disappear from the pews of the church. Churches must begin to realize that the
millennial are the ones that will keep the church going in the future. This exodus of youth from
the church will have serious implications on the foundation of the world church and Christianity
itself. Ministers must understand that young people are the pillars of the church, and they are the
future of the churches success; The future of society [or the church] is indexed by the youth of
today. In them we see the future teachers and lawmakers and judges, the leaders and the people
that determine the character and destiny of the nation [and our church] (Temperance, White).
Some leaders of our church today do not see the great danger of losing the youth. The Exodus of
youth is not only a problem in the Seventh-day Adventist church, but it is a problem amongst all
denominations and religions. Researchers have found that Christians across the United States
have the attrition rate of 70%. The loss of youth from the church, not only effects religion but
also effects society, because without having religion the societal stability could be infringed. This
issue of young people must be rectified and taken seriously. The cause of the millennial leaving
the church are caused by, humanism, political issues, religious persecution, having a shallow
faith and hypocrisy in the church.
The government and society today are a main cause of the depletion of youth from the
church because of the overwhelming push on humanism. Humanism is a system of thought that

puts extreme importance on humans rather than a divine or supernatural power. Society has put
doubts in the minds of young people by shoving these humanist questions down their throats;
such as Where did we come from?, What is wrong with homosexuality?, Is there a God?
and If there is a God why is the world suffering?. Christian young people are unfortunately
not equipped to answer such questions and therefore cause them to have doubts about what they
believe. Many youth today are trading in their dogma belief in God for a credo belief in science.
Joyce T. Henderson said in his book, Youth Leaving the Church? ,
I have seen young people buckle under the weight or unanswered questions. I
have seen young people abandon their blind faith for a seeing science. I
have seen

young people convert from irrational dogmatism to a reasoned world

view; I have

seen young people torn between choosing impractical religion or a

humanistic
people discard

philosophy that offers relevant explanation. I have seen young

tradition for practicality and reason.

The unnerving fact is that young people do not have the means to defend their faith and religion;
Henderson later says in his book that, Youth are challenged to give answers to criticisms of the
Bible, they are at a loss for words, and shamed and intimidated. This shame is further reinforced
by humanistic portrayals of babbling preachers and blind faith examples (Henderson 7). PostChristians of America have become hostage to humanism; the ideology of humanism is one of
the devils greatest tactics for deterring youth from staying within the church. The only way to
keep young people from falling into the snarls of humanistic ideology is to teach them proper
biblical apologetics. This will help them understand a fuller idea of what they believe in and why
their religion is true. Apologetics will help them to be able to defend their faith and to stand
strong amongst criticism. Understanding the problem reveals the solution. Youth need to

become educated in biblical apologetics and shown how as well as why humanistic beliefs fail
(Henderson 7). The apostle Paul warns of hollow and deceptive philosophy and human
tradition and the elemental spiritual forces of this world rather than on Christ (Colossians 2:8),
which are strong parts of our society today. Young people must not be taken into captivity by
these deceptive philosophies and must be properly equipped to stand firm in their faith.
An interesting factor as to why young people are leaving the church is because they do
not fully agree with the church on political issues such as abortion or Homosexuality. In a recent
study conducted by the Seventh- Day Adventist church, they found that the youth had a more
favorable view to homosexuality than premarital sex. Which does not make sense, because the
bible clearly treats all sins the same. The researchers found that young people did not necessarily
want the church to except homosexuality, but wanted it to be more accepting to homosexual
individuals. Young people want the church to except the love the sinner, hate the sin
expression. This brings up another issue, young people hate being judged. Micah J. Murray, a
writer, photographer, and film maker created a blog with testimonies of young people that have
left the church. Here is one of the comment; I left because the pressure to be perfect created an
atmosphere of judgment. I dont know if or when Ill be able to go back. I miss the familiarity
but not the nauseating atmosphere of lies. Young people do not like to be put in atmospheres
that make them feel uncomfortable and a lot churches do not provide a comfortable environment,
which is causing them to want to leave. Another study was done by Dr. Roger Dudley, he
outlines youth frustration in his book, Why Our teenagers leave the church. Dudley gives
numerous testimonies from Seventh-Day Adventist youth, I am frustrated with the church . . . I
have lost my faith in the Adventist organization. The members in my church were so cold . . . I
had stopped attending for two years. The Adventist church tends to be the opposite of Christ. I

feel that the church is a Farce!(Dudley 60). What church members and ministers must
understand is that their attitude plays a serious role in the attendance of young people at their
church. A testimony from a young person gives a sadden description of his or hers experience
with judgmental and unwelcoming members:
The Bible and God were twisted into something ugly and frightening. Most of the
time, people just wanted to step on us, to grind their Christian truth into us
with

their heel. I was so disgusted by the hate radiating from Christians, from

churches.

It made me sick. And if thats what being a Christian was, what God was, I
wanted nothing, absolutely nothing, to do with it (michajmurray.com).

The first step to keeping young people in a church is making them feel like they are accepted,
regardless of who they are, what they believe or how they act.
Young people in America are being persecuted for their religion. They might not be
persecuted physically, but they are persecuted mentally and emotionally in government
institutions such as public high-school and public college. Public schools have removed
Christianity from their class rooms and have replaced it with evolution and humanism. These
kinds of ideology are forcing Christian young people to believe something else. These
educational institutions hold the standards and values of the future generation in its hands.
Ninety percent of youth attend public school in America, and are influenced by what these
institutions teach and believe. In 1962 the supreme court removed prayer from its schools and in
1963 reciting scriptures was also removed. These public organizations have poisoned the minds
of young people with the lies of humanism and evolution. Sixty-two percent, over half, of the
youth that enter college with a faith leave without a faith. The government also portrays that you

have to believe in what it deems right. A senator named Rick Santorum, discusses the issue of
religious persecution coming back to America; The government wants to tell you how to live
your life, Santorum said, citing abortion and same-sex marriage issues. You either conform to
what the government says you have to believe in, or you're going to lose certain privileges. "
(CNN). The United States does not know that by forcing these secularist philosophies on its
youth, is a form of religious persecution and it is pushing many youth out of the church.
There are various factors that demonstrate reasons for millennials leaving the church,
majority of which have to do with other people or institutions pushing them out. However, some
blame can be given to the young people as well. Many youth in the church have a shallow
relationship with God, and are just attending church out of obedience to their parents. A Seventh
- day Adventist study done on young people found that regular personal devotions are directly
correlated with church retention. Those who spend quality time in the Word of God on a regular
basis have better chance of staying in the church. A study was conducted by the Barna group on
young peoples experience in the church. According to their research, thirty-one percent said,
church is boring, Twenty-four percent said faith is not relevant to my career or interests,
twenty-three percent said the bible is not taught clearly or often enough and twenty percent
said God seems missing from my experience of church. Youth in the church have a very
superficial and disconnected relationship with God and this is causing many of them to leave. In
the Seventh - day Adventist church, belief in doctrines declined significantly: belief in Ellen G.
White and her role in the church went from Fifty-one percent to forty-two percent, belief that the
Adventist church is the remnant church went from forty-five to twenty-seven percent, belief in
the sanctuary message of 1844 went from sixty-one to forty-seven percent. The percentage of
those who read the bible once or more a week fell from thirty-nine to twenty- nine percent and

those who read Ellen G. Whites writings also went from thirteen percent to six percent. Though
this issue is mainly the fault of the youth, ministers must take these statistic into consideration.
Pastors must rectify this situation by helping young people in their personal walk with Christ.
Young people are becoming less and less committed to church because they are not completely
committed to Christ.
Another reason why young people are leaving the church is because they feel that the
atmosphere is very hypocritical. According to Senator Rick Santorum, . . . the exodus is about
hypocrisy (CNN). Young people are tired of hearing church members do one thing and then see
them do another. The youth of the church look up to its older generations, they look to them for
guidance and to feed on their spiritual wisdom. However, church members practice lives that are
not Christ like, and church members play these double lives that young people do not appreciate.
Stale. Rows of vacant eyes and people half-asleep, half-dead maybe looking up at
me like zombies. My mind turns to the random thought that Jesus was
kind of a

zombie, too, raised from the dead but thats neither here nor there

as my fingers

turn the pages of the hymnal looking for the song that marches on

like a funeral

dirge. I cant help but wonder why that Something felt like it was

constantly

missing. Left church because I wanted to find a place where people

want to be

alive and not hide behind an idolatry of doctrine or poorly exegete

Scripture

passages (micahjmurray.com).

Church members need to realize that God does not want a half hearted Christian or unconverted
disciple. He calls for whole-hearted, fearless disciples,--men and women who are ready to do
and dare for Him, ready to follow wherever He leads the way. . . Half-converted men make half-

hearted Christians. They are fruitless trees. On them Christ looks in vain for fruit: He finds
nothing but leaves. (Signs of the Times, White). Youth want leaders of the church to be fully for
Christ, and not be hypocritical.
One reason that is not found in research as to why young people are leaving the church is
that there is a spiritual war taking place in Christian lives. The three biggest enemies to
Christians are: the devil, the world and the sinful flesh. What young Christians often forget is
that the devil is hard at work, seeking to destroy the followers of Christ and to disrupt His
church. Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about,
seeking whom he may devour: (1 Peter 5:8). The devil knows that the greatest way to destroy
the church is to take captive the young people. A vile man, named Adolf Hitler said, He alone,
who owns the youth, gains the future. The church must realize that as they reach out to minister
to the world and to bring people to Christ, the world is reaching back to take captive its youth. In
every corner of the earth there is evil and ungodliness. Society continuously promotes things
that are an abomination to God, and things that destroy the spirituality of a person. Societies
main target are the youth; and they seek to destroy their mind with frivolous things. Media plays
a very important role in the youth today, they are the biggest media consumers. This is
unfortunate because media portrays, Gnosticism, atheism and humanism. It is no wonder that
there are so many church drop outs, their minds are filled with nonsense. In Hendersons book,
Youth leaving the church, he states that, Humanism is so pervasive and so common that, quite
frankly it is surprising that more youth are not turned against Christ. Christianity could very
well be at stake if ministers do not realize the need for youth in their church. The future of the
church is within the hands of the youth.

There are multiple problems, yet there are still endless solutions. The only way to begin
to rectify this situation is to realize that there is a problem within the church. Church members,
ministers and parents must realize that it is their responsibility to reach out to their youth, and to
help save them from the clutches of hollow philosophy and lies. What an irony it is that we
strive to win the world to Christ and lose our children to Satan. This should not be so
(Henderson 8). Parents must realize that they have the important task of preparing their children
for Youth-hood. The Bible say in proverbs 22:6, Train up a child in the way he should and when
he is old, he will not depart from it. It is clear that God wants His children to be raised and
taught to follow him, so that when they reach their young adult years they will be able to fight
the temptation to follow the worlds ideology instead of Gods. It is by the youth and children of
today that the future of society is to be determined, and what these youth and children shall be
depends upon the home (White MH 351). Parents must begin training their kids in the home for
the future. In an interview with Carol Lytch, Assistant Executive Director of Association of
Theological Schools, she states that, Parent are terribly influential through high school, college
and beyond. If they exemplify the faith and if they practice it actively they will be noticed.
Parents must continue to influence their youth for as long as possible; so that in hope their
children will make the right decisions.
Ministers must understand that their duty is to better equip youth with tools that will help
them defend their faith. Humanism, Atheism and evolution are issues that are attacking the youth
and causing them to doubt their faith. Pastors should make the greatest effort to teach their young
people biblical apologetics that will help them defend beliefs and faith. Pastors should also
encourage youth to dig deeper into the word of God and to read spirit of prophecy. The churches
should have multiple programs catered to the spiritual growth of their young people. Youth

ministries should realize potential in their youth and treat them as young-adults not young
children. In the interview with Carol Lytch, she states that, A youth minister should purposely
cultivate leadership among youth. Youth ministers should know that there is serious need to
make meaning in the teenagers lives. Dont dumb down theology . . . it is important to recognize
the difference in maturity between young teens and high school seniors.
Church members should be careful of how they treat others, especial young people.
Their attitude should reflect Christ at all times; and they should have a spirit of love not of
judgement. Instead of fault finding in their youth, they need to be searching for opportunities that
could benefit a young person. Their main focus should be being an ideal example for the young
adult. Their relationship with God should be consistent and not hypocritical. Church members
must understand that they set the mood and the atmosphere; they have the power to turn people
away from the church and to bring them back in. Carol lytch says that, . . . churches need to
know that teenagers are not aliens, that the culture shapes them and that they have basic human
needs. Church members need to treat young people with respect and with love.
Young people are the future of the church; and a pillar of the churches success. The
Millennials will continue to disappear from the pews of the church if nothing is done to bring
them back and to keep them there. Many factors as to why young people leave the church has
been mentioned, but one of the greatest reasons seemed to be that they were not properly
equipped to battle against religious criticism or fight for their faith. Many youth seemed to have
insubstantial faith and not a serious relationship with Christ. Though these factors seem
significant and almost impossible to overcome, young people must realize that they are
accountable for their own salvation. If they choose to leave the church, it is in their own hands,
and there is no one to blame. God has promised each person who believes in him the power to

overcome the world. Though the world may throw its spears at young people they have the
ability to shield themselves from it; For whoever is born of God overcomes the world: and this
is the victory that overcomes the world, even our faith (1 John 5:4). The devils greatest mission
is to destroy the minds of young people and to make them doubt God. The churches mission
should be to save the world and to save their youth. A final testimony shows how a young person
left the church but still felt that God is still pursuing them:
I left because I could no longer hear the voice of the True Shepherd among all the
bleating sheep. They were quick to remind me that walking away from
relationship with them equated walking away from the Shepherd
for good. In

leaving, I was labeled rebellious, a heretic, discordant, immature

and emotional. I

thought I would never hear the Shepherds voice again.

What would He want to

wandered from the ninety-nine.

do with me? I became the wounded lamb who

Much to my surprise, the Shepherd has

pursued me. Im far from returning to the

fold, but in the meantime Im getting

to know the heart of the true Shepherd.

(micahjmurray.com)

God will never leave his children and though many youth leave the church, He never stops
pursing them and wanting them to come home. Just like the prodigal sons father, God will
always be ready to except them back.

Work Cited
"Six Reasons Young Christians Leave Church - Barna Group." Six Reasons Young
Christians Leave Church - Barna Group. Barna Group, 2011. Web. 06 May

2015.

Fischer, Sara. "Santorum: Religious Persecution in U.S. Could Escalate CNNPolitics.com."CNN. Cable News Network, 2 Nov. 2014. Web. 06 May
King, Tim. "My Take: Don't Blame College for Young People Leaving
Belief Blog RSS. CNN, 28 Feb. 2012. Web. 06 May

2015.

Christianity." CNN

2015.

Dudley, Roger L. Why Our Teenagers Leave the Church: Personal Stories from a 10-year Study.
Hagerstown, MD: Review and Herald Pub. Association, 2000. Print.
Henderson, Joyce T. Youth Leaving the Church?: How to Reverse This Trend. Fairfax, VA:
Xulon, 2001. Print.
Azar, Beth. "A Reason to Believe." American Psychological Association. N.p., Dec. 2012. Web.
07 May 2015.
Jacobs, Douglas, Douglas Tilstra, Finbar Benjamin, Cheryl Des Jarlais, Mia Lindsey, Hollis
James, Alan Parker, Sharon Pittman, and Ovtavio Ramirez. "Twenty-First Century Seventh-day
Adventist Connection Study Research Report Robert H. Pierson Institute of Evangelism and
World Missions." Twenty-First Century Seventh-day Adventist Connection Study Research
Report Robert H. Pierson Institute of Evangelism and World Missions Douglas Jacobs Douglas
Tilstra Finbar Benjamin Cheryl Des Jarlais Mia Lindsey Hollis James Alan Parker Sharon
Pittman Octavio Ramirez (n.d.): n. pag. Web.