Interesting article on "Why Kids Leave Church."
  • amindthatsuits
    Posts: 860
    I used to be Evangelical. Calvinists are always waiting for the day when the vast majority of Evangelicals realize that they need a Pope from Geneva, and I don't think that day is ever coming. But there is a renewed interest in doctrine, a way to add depth to a movement that the late Fr. Neuhaus described as "miles wide and often much less than an inch deep."

    Anyway, it is interesting.

    http://marc5solas.wordpress.com/2013/02/08/top-10-reasons-our-kids-leave-church/
  • Ruth Lapeyre
    Posts: 341
    A very interesting article indeed. I've seen these very attitudes in the Roman Catholic Church as well. The "let's be relevant to the young" scheme doesn't work. To be honest though, many young people whether they are raised in a "happy clappy" church or a parish/church with good catechises and homilies will still wonder away. It is the nature of youth to wonder away from their faith and why the prodigal son is such a powerful parable.
    Thanked by 2ryand amindthatsuits
  • noel jones, aagonoel jones, aago
    Posts: 6,611
    A friend explains that this is the product of low IQ adults trying to make the church attractive to high IQ youth.

    The lack of understanding is very basic. Children and youth want to be adults. Adults who treat them like children and youth are missing the boat.
    Thanked by 6Adam Wood chonak CHGiffen Patricia Cecilia ryand amindthatsuits
  • francis
    Posts: 10,817
    VERY interesting.

    Unfortunately, the problem isn't just in the protestant mega churches. Too often I see this mentality in the Catholic Church, sad to say, "protestant-youth-model-wannabes". The plastickness of the whole thing is truly repulsive. When my kids ran into this attitude, they expressed that they 'did not want to have anything to do with it, to be part of it, and told us it was a joke. It all revolved around "social justice" as the flag, and 'doing projects' together, had nothing to do with feeding their minds and souls ABOUT the faith." Their conjectures, not mine.

    We had a great youth leader here not too long ago, and ALL of the teens were into the program they had going, I think it was called, Dead Theologians Society. They met and prayed the rosary, and reflected back on solid truth, dogma, theology, (Aquinas, Saints writings, etc.). They loved it and ate it up!
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  • noel jones, aagonoel jones, aago
    Posts: 6,611
    I also sincerely question, though it worked at Francis' parish, the use of Youth Leaders. No one but a priest should be interacting with the youth - people getting to know priests = more priests.

    If your priest is not capable of this work, get a different priest.
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  • francis
    Posts: 10,817
    a GOOD youth leader leads the youth to the sacraments and the beauty of the liturgy and the meat of the faith. a GOOD youth leader is VERY hard to find, and in general I agree with you Noel. That is what the priest is SUPPOSED to be doing. What has happened to the priesthood? One vocations director was in here a couple of years ago and was bragging (during his homily, mind you) about having an iPhone and holding it up for all of them to see! That was his bait for attracting youth?!?!?! How sad is that!
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  • Jani
    Posts: 441
    francis hit the nail and frogman pounded it home. I don't know what happens in big churches around the state, but rural churches have 1) next to nothing for kids, and 2) when they do hit on something, like TOB for teens, the priest doesn't have time to do the program so he asks the absolute wrong - but willing - person to do it. What starts out as 10 kids gets whittled down to two or three because the rest can't stand to sit the class. In my parish, the result of that was...my kids (some of the quitters) at least still go to Mass - and the two kids who finished the program, don't.
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  • hartleymartin
    Posts: 1,447
    It is quite simple - if you make church a kid's thing or a teen's thing, then as soon as people stop being kids or teens they no longer have a place at church.
    Thanked by 6Adam Wood Mike R JacobFlaherty ryand CindyCecilia amindthatsuits
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