America’s Youth Cutting Ties with Traditional Christian Views and Biblical Teachings

TUPELO, Miss. —The American Family Association (AFA, www.afa.net) recognizes that while the faith of a generation may be waning, knowing ‘what to believe,’ and ‘why’ better equips people to combat the false philosophies they embrace and know how to reach this generation with the eternal truth of the Gospel.

The American Worldview Inventory 2021, conducted by Arizona Christian University, assessed the worldviews of four generations: Millennials (born 1984-2002), Gen X (1965-1983), Baby Boomers (1946–1964) and Builders (1927-1945), also known as Boomers. The notable findings of the survey were deeply revealing and deeply concerning:
 

• Researchers found that among other recent generations, Millennials have gone farther in cutting ties with traditional Christian views and normative biblical teaching.
• Nearly half of all Boomers believe that when they die, they will go to Heaven only because they confessed their sins and accepted Jesus as their Savior, compared to only 26% of Gen X and 16% of Millennials.
• 43% of Millennials stated they either don’t know, don’t care, or don’t believe God exists compared to 28% of Boomers, and 44% of Millennials believe Satan is real and influential, compared to 64% of Boomers. 
• On spiritual matters, Americans younger than 55 are far more likely to distrust the Bible and to believe God is uninvolved in people’s lives.
• However, a majority of Americans call themselves Christian, ranging from 57% of Millennials to 83% of Builders. 
• Researchers warn that the beliefs and behaviors of younger Americans, especially Millennials, “threaten to reshape the nation’s religious parameters beyond recognition.”

Ed Vitagliano, Executive Vice President of American Family Association, commented on the survey, “One generation cannot inherit from another a relationship with God. Christianity is a personal religion, meaning that each individual must make peace with God through a biblical response to the Gospel. Part of the problem in America is that, as the nation becomes more secular—including public schools, higher education, media and entertainment, even corporate America—the message of the Gospel can become obscured to the point where it loses its power to influence the next generation.”

AFA’s Vitagliano noted, “This means the church must make the Great Commission even more of a priority, even in its own backyard. Otherwise, the faith of one generation won’t be passed to the next. From these survey results, that appears to be what is happening. As we can clearly see from the book of Judges and elsewhere in Scripture, the results of a return to paganism for any people—even here in America—are devastating. God does not take it lightly.”

For over 40 years, AFA has operated within the mission to inform, equip and activate individuals to strengthen the moral foundations of American culture and give aid to the church here and abroad in its task of fulfilling the Great Commission. Find AFA Action Alerts here. 

AFA—founded in 1977—has long been on the front lines of America’s culture war. Today, AFA is one of the largest and most effective pro-family organizations in the country, with nearly a million online supporters and approximately 160,000 subscribers to the AFA Journal, the ministry’s monthly magazine. In addition, AFA owns and operates nearly 180 radio stations across the country under the American Family Radio banner. 

View the media page for AFA here. For more information on American Family Association, visit afa.net or follow AFA on Facebook or Twitter @AmericanFamAssc. 

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 To interview Ed Vitagliano or another representative of the American Family Association, contact Media@HamiltonStrategies.com, Beth Harrison, 610.584.1096, ext. 105, or Deborah Hamilton, ext. 102.