As millions gather in churches across the country for the services of the Holy Week, a quiet revolution is unfolding: more Americans are leaving Pews – not because they have lost faith, but to find it with their conditions.
A large new study shows that faith is not disappearing, but is changing. A decadelong research project revealed that while fewer people are following services or being identified with a religion, many are still praying, meditating and keeping their faith, only with their conditions.
The national -based study and the probability -based study, published in “Socius: Research Sociological for a dynamic world”, traced more than 1,300 teenagers from 2003 to 2013, following them at adulthood.
Researchers used survey data, interviews and education data to understand how religious beliefs and practices evolved over time.
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People come together with their hands in prayer during a biblical study. Researchers report a significant generative shift, with young Americans showing reduced engagement in public and private religious practices. (Istock)
What they found indicates a big difference: people are leaving religious institutions, not spiritual.
Church weekly participation fell from 26% to 8%. The number of young people who said they did not participate in the services was dropped from 17% to nearly 58%.
Religious affiliation – whether identified as Christian, Catholic, or else – fell from almost 89% to 60%.
But faith in God did not fall so fierce. U diver from 83% to 66%.
And while fewer people pray every day, the decline was not as steep as participating in the church, the study found. Meanwhile, the number of people practicing meditation or other spiritual routines almost doubled.
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A recent study finds a generation of private prayer, especially among young Americans who are less likely to be involved in religious practices outside the official spaces of worship. (Istock)
Researchers call this “individualization”. Instead of belonging to a church or following a religious group, more people are forming their spiritual paths – keeping what resonates and leaving the rest.
One of the biggest reasons people left organized religion? Conflict with political values, especially about issues such as the same sex marriage and traditional gender roles.
Many participants described by walking away from the churches they saw as judgment or out of step with their beliefs.
One former Catholic said he stopped going to the mass after hearing sermons against the marriage of the same sex.
“I loved to come to church,” he said. “I don’t do it anymore.”
Another participant said she believed in God, but “not in the way churches say to you.”
Despite the decline in church attendance, the study shows that many elderly continue private prayer, a not -so -common habit among younger age groups. (Istock)
The study also found that political views made a difference.
The liberals were more likely than the conservatives to leave religion, and the support for the same sex marriage and abortion was linked to a greater decline in church participation and religious affiliation. But the trend was not limited to a political group; Participation fell across the board only at different rates.
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Instead of describing this as secularization or becoming fewer religious, researchers argue that this is a change in the way people practice faith.
Faith is leaving official institutions and more personal, often private expressions. Many people who left the organized religion still pray, meditate or say they believe in something greater.
