That’s me in the corner
That’s me in the spotlight
Losing my religion
--R.E.M., 1991
It’s not hard to correlate Generation X’s rampant distrust of institutions with a palpable longing for authenticity. I could drone on about this, but chances are if you’re reading this you’re a member of Generation X and you know exactly what I’m talking about because you've lived it.
The bottom line is religion remains a hard sell for Generation X. Just look at the numbers. Generation X attendance at churches, synagogues and parishes has declined nationwide. According to a generational fact sheet by Zondervan, 60 percent of adults who attended religious services as a child do not attend as adults.
It’s no surprise to any of us that Generation X does not regard itself as a unified generation, but rather “millions of diverse individuals.” I was once annoyed by this. I longed for the sorority or fraternity that comes with strong generational identification; however, after a lot of thought and research, I actually think Generation X’s pride in individuality is a strength that will ultimately benefit churches and synagogues. After all, we serve a highly individual God who magnificently figured out how to make each of us unique.
***
Surprisingly, there is quite a body of work available about Generation X and religion including a number of books. I found more than 150 titles on Amazon. I’ve read a few of these. There are quite a few that will be of interest to Gen X Catholics, and even a few titles that explore Generation X and Judaism including one about how Gen X can transform the American Synagogue.
(As a sidebar, there are some very exciting things happening in the Jewish community in Oklahoma City, and much of it has been influenced by Generation X. I believe the day will eventually come when Gen X Jews in Oklahoma City realize their dream of having a Jewish Day School.)
There is even a book available about Generation X and the Church of the Nazarene.
Finally, for all of you observing Lent, I encourage you to read Andrew Thompson’s Ash Wednesday meditation at Gen-X Rising. He writes:
Let us remember that the way of the Christian is not health, wealth, and worldly success. It is being made to be like Christ, who laid down his life to save us. And his command to us is to "love one another as I have loved you" (John 13:34). When we think about how far that love goes, it should humble us indeed. It is the greatest power the world has ever known.
I've been listening to REM since 1987. Guys who wear eyeliner kind of freak me out. I've always thought this song had dual meaning for Gen X. This won a couple of Emmys in 1991. It's interesting to note that sometimes in the middle of the intersection where desperate people lose their religion it is there that they often find God.
10 comments:
And yet "Losing My Religion" really isn't about losing one's religion; if you grew up in the Deep South, as I did and as R.E.M. did, you might recognize the phrase as an idiom meaning more or less the same thing as "at the end of my rope."
So it's a very dark love song with overtones of stalking, much like Sting's "Every Breath You Take."
"...sometimes in the middle of the intersection where desperate people lose their religion it is there that they often find God."
That's certainly true, in both senses of the phrase.
Keep the comments.
They are not PC-equipped.
If you run into a couple of loony old folks in Church, YOU DON'T KNOW ME!
Once again you've managed to draw me in with your thoughtful commentary on the Generation X identity.
Yes, I'm stil wrapping my mind around this concept. Maybe I was so stuck in my individualism to realize I even belonged to a generation. Maybe I was too overwhelmed with the lower rungs of the hierarchy of needs. Maybe I was just surviving.
And yet as you describe the pattern of Gen X folks, it seems I may fit the bill. You know, from a sociological perspective, your questions are quite compelling.
I'm sure I'll be checking in again.
@CGHill - Oh, yes. We use that idiom in Oklahoma, but more as a parody of the Deep South, which uses it more often. (Big hat tip for capping Deep South by the way. You must be a grammar hammer. I love grammar, even my posts are generally typed so fast they're full of typos!) I read some interesting takes on the song here - http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=1256 - I agree with you. This is a love song and the protagonist is a stalker. Great comment. Thank you for stopping by.
@Barry - I think the greatest indication that someone is technically an Xer is not thinking they have a generation to which they belong or lay claim. Somehow, I think this lack of awareness correlates to landing upon planet earth during the biggest anti-child phase in the history of mankind. What a great irony that we have millions of people that think they are completely isolated in their life experiences. I have always thought this had special implications for the church - when you consider the value of corporate worship and prayer. Blessings, jen
@Nadine - If you visit sometime -look for me! I'd love to meet you.
I think some churches are finally starting to respond to the Generation X'ers rather than moan that they were the same as my fellow Baby Boomers.
My church now has an incredible variety of services available for almost anybody. 8 am and 11 am traditional, 9:15 "living room" services for Boomers, and a contemporary service at the same time for the X'ers (that's where we go even though we are not Xers) and a modern service for the "Kids".
Change and adaption is good! Especially when it leads to survival.
I've got those books on reserve through the library consortium here in MI...thanks for the reading tips! I swear I drop by just to hear the music. :) GenX are such spiritual seekers...our congregation is only starting to realize they must appeal to us or there will be no leadership in the near future.
Jen,
Wow, your first sentence really sums it up:
"It’s not hard to correlate Generation X’s rampant distrust of institutions with a palpable longing for authenticity."
It is such a challenging combination, that lack of trust and longing. I really do think it is the "higher purpose" of our generation to figure that one out.
Thanks for the great post!
Dave
http://www.thegenxfiles.com
As a Catholic Gen Xer who went to church as a kid but then didn't attend regularly until about three years ago, I can tell you the two things that brought me back:
#1. My kids. I didn't want them to grow up without a religious education, even if they chose to reject it as an adult. So I started taking them.
#2. What keeps me going is that I found a Catholic church that's being run by a liberal feminist nun. And since I'm a liberal feminist, I like that. She's our pastor. She works really hard to bring spirituality into the lives of our parishioners - from forming an "Environmental Christianity" group to hosting movie nights (and although movies are discussed in terms Catholicism, they are regular mainstream films people want to see. Not everyone is interested in watching Willie Ames as a Christian superhero.)
A few years ago, I was really surprised that a friend of mine didn't attend church. I was surprised, because his dad is a minister. Why didn't he go to church? Because it's boring. I think that breaks it down for a lot of Xers. We need to see why and how things are relevant or we get bored and walk away. I think a lot of churches (in my case, Catholic churches) don't get this. Older generations have a sense of loyalty and will keep coming back no matter how dull & irrelevant things become. Xers would rather stay home and read about sprituality.
Therefore, my hunch is that churches that stay relevant are overflowing with Xers. Mine is.
@Naomi, Dave, GenXpert and Yogi - I've been working on a post about Generation X and the Emergent Church movement. (Naomi - the Jewish counter to this I would consider to be the growth of Chabad. (?)). An awful lot of traditional brick and mortar churches have closed in the inner loop of OKC...YOGI: What about Tulsa?
@GenXpert - That is fascinating about the liberal nun leading the church. There is a liberal parish in OKC - Corpus Christi Catholic Church that I *think* is much more liberal than other parishes. I know they had a big project a few years back to bring Catholics back - they ran ads in our local alternative newspaper that were very egdy.
What you said about church being boring remind me of a book by Neil Postman. I'm sure you've heard of it - "Amusing Ourselves to Death." There is a chapter in this book called "Shuffle Off to Bethelehem, which supports this notion that church must be entertaining. The premise of the book is the opposite of Huxley - that what love (vs. what we fear) will be our end.
I wish churches were more open about their numbers. The Pew Charitable Trust released that report several months or a few years ago - about Gen Xers being the most generous. I wonder how this bodes for churches.
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