We’ve all heard the statistics: younger adults are less likely to attend and join congregations than the generations before them. Churches often want to see more young people in the pews, but it’s difficult to know where to start. Should we scrap traditional music to reach Gen Z? What programs are attracting people to the multi-site megachurch that just opened a new location in our town?
While we ponder these questions, here’s another one: what if the starting point isn’t finding the right program? What if the starting point is making room for more questions?
In our young adult years, we begin wrestling with big questions. We long for clarity as it relates to our identity, vocation, relationships and spirituality. Teachings we have inherited feel inadequate. Some people begin traveling the world and experiencing other cultures and other religious perspectives. We may not fully appreciate the profound ways that young adults are longing for a safe space to ask meaningful questions like these:
- How do I make sense of God in a world filled with oppression, violence and suffering?
- How should I think about other religious worldviews considering the claims Christians make about Jesus?
- If I am a Christian, am I allowed to have doubts?
Congregations might feel the impulse to respond with doctrinal bootcamps to equip people with the “right answers.” But making room is less about doubling down on certainty and more about walking alongside our friends as they search for wisdom and a deeper connection with God.
It’s been said that we cannot argue people into the truth. Instead, we love them into it. We make room for young adults by loving them and their questions. When they feel safe enough to ask big, courageous questions, and we love them for it, they will see that Christianity — at its core — is not a set of metaphysical principles. At the center of Christian faith is a person, Jesus Christ. He makes room for them — and so do we.
