After the Baby Boomers: How Twenty- and Thirty-Somethings Are Shaping the Future of American Religion

Title......Page 5
Copyright......Page 6
Contents......Page 7
List of Figures and Tables......Page 11
Preface......Page 15
1. AMERICAN RELIGION: An Uncertain Future......Page 22
How to Think about Younger Adults......Page 24
The Population of Young Adults......Page 28
Coming of Age at Forty......Page 30
The Religious Significance of Young Adults......Page 33
A Generation of Tinkerers......Page 34
An Uncertain Future......Page 38
2. THE CHANGING LIFE WORLDS OF YOUNG ADULTS: Seven Key Trends......Page 41
Delayed Marriage......Page 42
Children—Fewer and Later......Page 45
Uncertainties of Work and Money......Page 49
Higher Education (for Some)......Page 57
Loosening Relationships......Page 58
Globalization......Page 63
Culture—An Information Explosion......Page 65
Summing Up......Page 70
3. GOING TO CHURCH—OR NOT: Who Participates in Congregations?......Page 72
Attendance in Two Time Periods......Page 73
The Reasons for Declining Participation......Page 75
A Closer Look at Marriage and Children......Page 83
Communities......Page 86
Is the United States Becoming Like Europe?......Page 87
The Profile of Regular Church Goers......Page 89
Religious Attendance in Perspective......Page 90
4. THE MAJOR FAITH COMMUNITIES: Thinking Beyond Winners and Losers......Page 92
The Significance of Young Adults......Page 93
The Major Faith Traditions......Page 96
Evangelicals and Mainline Protestants......Page 98
Black Protestants, Catholics, and Jews......Page 105
Other Faiths and the Nonaffiliated......Page 107
Beyond Winners and Losers......Page 108
5. THE BIBLE TELLS ME SO (I THINK): Recent Trends in Religious Beliefs......Page 110
Some Possible Scenarios......Page 111
Decline in Orthodox Beliefs......Page 117
Orthodoxy, with Rising Secularity......Page 119
Countervailing Effects of Diversity......Page 122
Orthodoxy Mixed with Heterodoxy......Page 124
Different Trends among Educational Categories......Page 128
Changing Relationships with Education......Page 129
Different Trends among Faith Communities......Page 131
6. SPIRITUALITY AND SPIRITUAL PRACTICES: The Role of Faith in Personal Life......Page 133
Church Shopping and Hopping......Page 135
Social Networks......Page 138
Civility......Page 141
Are Converts Different?......Page 144
Seeking Answers......Page 145
Spiritual Practices......Page 148
Music and Art......Page 150
Spiritual but Not Religious?......Page 152
The Nature of Spiritual Tinkering......Page 155
Considering Marriage......Page 157
Having Sex......Page 159
Weddings......Page 160
Marital Happiness......Page 162
Parenting......Page 163
Right and Wrong......Page 166
Empathy......Page 169
Threats to Today\'s Families......Page 170
Seeking Support......Page 172
Religious and Ethnic Diversity......Page 173
Faith Matters......Page 176
8. THE DIVIDED GENERATION: Religion and Public Life......Page 178
The Split between Conservatives and Liberals......Page 181
Civil Religion......Page 184
Voting in Presidential Elections......Page 188
Mixing Religion and Politics......Page 192
Hot-Button Issues: Abortion......Page 194
Hot-Button Issues: Homosexuality......Page 195
The Religious Right......Page 198
War and Peace......Page 200
Why It Matters......Page 201
Hispanic Catholics......Page 204
A Note on Hispanic Protestants......Page 208
Asian Americans......Page 209
Hospitality or Hostility......Page 214
A Closer Look at Church Involvement......Page 218
Religion Websites......Page 222
Social Issues......Page 224
The Internet and Religious Music......Page 227
Staying in Touch by E-mail......Page 228
The Internet and Spiritual Seeking......Page 230
Congregations and the Internet......Page 233
11. VITAL CONGREGATIONS: Youthful and Diverse......Page 235
The Pro.le of Youthful Congregations......Page 240
Minichurch or Megachurch......Page 242
Alternative Styles of Worship......Page 244
Meeting the Changing Needs of Families......Page 246
Interreligious Programs......Page 247
Opportunities for International Ministry......Page 248
Opportunities for Service......Page 249
A Future for Congregations......Page 251
The National Young Adults and Religion Study......Page 254
Methodology......Page 255
The Surveys and Other Data......Page 259
Qualitative Interviews......Page 268
Supplementary Tables......Page 272
Notes......Page 276
Selected Bibliography......Page 300
C......Page 314
E......Page 315
M......Page 316
R......Page 317
U......Page 318
Z......Page 319