Church seeks spirituality of youth . . . and doesn't like what it finds
THE Church of England has debunked the widely held view that young people are spiritual seekers on a journey to find transcendent truths to fill the “God-shaped hole” within them.
A report published by the Church today indicates that young people are quite happy with a life without God and prefer car boot sales to church.
If they think about church at all, the images young people come up with are “cardigans”, “sandals and socks”, “corrupt”, “traditionalist” and “stagnant”.
The report has prompted an “urgent” wake-up call from the Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu, who writes of a large “mismatch” between the Church and the views of those aged 15 to 25. He says: “The research suggests young people are happy with life as it is, that they have felt no need for a transcendent something else and regard the Church as boring and irrelevant.”
The report, Making Sense of Generation Y, was funded by The Mercers’ livery company and written by academics and clergy including the Bishop of Maidstone, the Right Rev Graham Cray, who chairs the Soul Survivor Trust, a successful youth ministry. It is released today by Church House Publishing, the Church of England’s publishing arm.
As former Principal of Ridley Hall theological college, Bishop Cray commissioned interviews and group discussions with more than 120 young people.
The report comes in the context of a Britain awash with symbols of the supernatural, such as glow-in-the-dark crosses, Kabbalah bracelets and Harry Potter books.
Yet the Church continues to atrophy. The number of young people attending has been halved since 1979. Fewer than 7 per cent of those aged 15 to 19 and 5 per cent of those aged 20 to 29 attend church. The number of children in Sunday school is less than a tenth of what it was in 1930.
More in The Times
A report published by the Church today indicates that young people are quite happy with a life without God and prefer car boot sales to church.
If they think about church at all, the images young people come up with are “cardigans”, “sandals and socks”, “corrupt”, “traditionalist” and “stagnant”.
The report has prompted an “urgent” wake-up call from the Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu, who writes of a large “mismatch” between the Church and the views of those aged 15 to 25. He says: “The research suggests young people are happy with life as it is, that they have felt no need for a transcendent something else and regard the Church as boring and irrelevant.”
The report, Making Sense of Generation Y, was funded by The Mercers’ livery company and written by academics and clergy including the Bishop of Maidstone, the Right Rev Graham Cray, who chairs the Soul Survivor Trust, a successful youth ministry. It is released today by Church House Publishing, the Church of England’s publishing arm.
As former Principal of Ridley Hall theological college, Bishop Cray commissioned interviews and group discussions with more than 120 young people.
The report comes in the context of a Britain awash with symbols of the supernatural, such as glow-in-the-dark crosses, Kabbalah bracelets and Harry Potter books.
Yet the Church continues to atrophy. The number of young people attending has been halved since 1979. Fewer than 7 per cent of those aged 15 to 19 and 5 per cent of those aged 20 to 29 attend church. The number of children in Sunday school is less than a tenth of what it was in 1930.
More in The Times
posted by WESLEY at 18:07
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