new from Barna

Pause on the CKN Conference notes for the latest release from Barna: A New Generation Expresses its Skepticism and Frustration with Christianity. The generals are nothing most of us didn't already know: teenagers and young adults don't like Christians. Some of the actual numbers, though, are worse than I thought.

(These are 16 to 29 year-olds)
- 16% have a "good impression" of Christianity.
- 3% express favorable views of evangelicals.
- 87% believe present-day Christianity is judgmental.
- 85% believe present-day Christianity is hypocritical.
- Half of young church-goers agree with the previous two.

The most frequent, unprompted impressions of Christianity reflected the themes, "Christianity is changed from what it used to be," and "Christianity in today's society no longer looks like Jesus." That's from Christian and non-Christian young people.

Researcher David Kinnaman commented,

Going into this three-year project, I assumed that people's perceptions were generally soft, based on misinformation, and would gradually morph into more traditional views. But then, as we probed why young people had come to such conclusions, I was surprised how much their perceptions were rooted in specific stories and personal interactions with Christians and in churches.

Of course, your ministry needs to teach Biblical truth, no matter how much it conflicts with a young person's worldview. Teaching, though, requires communication, and in the digital age communication is at least two-way. In the emerging worldview, there is no such thing as the "gospel truth," accepted without question. Relationship is more important than position, and authenticity speaks louder than a white collar or robe. You will preach a better post-modern sermon with one to three young people around a café table than you will from the front of your worship space.

Wait, does your building have a café table?