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Why are millennials and Gen Z shying away from religion? Twin Cities faith leaders weigh in

It's now almost as likely for millennials to be religious “nones” than it is to be Christian, the Pew Research Center reported.

Connor O'Neal

Adobe Stock

Published: 2:42 PM CDT July 28, 2022
Updated: 4:14 PM CDT July 28, 2022

The way religion is practiced is constantly evolving, but maybe not the way most people would expect.

According to the Pew Research Center, younger generations, namely millennials and those from Generation Z, are less religious and spiritual than their Generation X and Baby Boomer counterparts.

Pew defines Baby Boomers as individuals born between 1946 and 1964, Gen Xers between 1965 and 1980, millennials between 1981 and 1996, and Gen Z as those who touched the Earth for the first time between 1997 and 2012.

Data from Pew between 2020 and 2021 reported that nearly half of millennials surveyed (49%) described themselves as Christians, the most of all religions, another 10% identify with non-Christian faiths and four in 10 now identify as religious “nones." These individuals are not religiously observant, and include atheists, agnostics, those who are spiritual but not religious, and people who are “nothing in particular.”

Overall religious participation is falling, and the numbers show many millennials and “zoomers," or members of Gen Z, are behind this shift in America's dynamics.

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