Evangelical Epidemic

At Parchment and Pen — "Leaving (Christ)ianity — An Evangelical Epidemic," recounting a conversation between a minister and a young lady who lost her faith:

She was a very interesting and bright lady—inquisitive, well-read, and suspicious. She began by telling me that she was a Christian (past tense) and had since left the faith. Christ was once a part of her confession, but, as she recounted to me, after a long voyage of not finding sufficient answers for her doubts, she believes that she had no choice but to follow her own integrity and renounce Christ all together.

This sounds oh-so-familiar to Mormon readers, suggesting this is a broad generational or cultural trend rather than something troubling Mormonism in particular. I don't know if that's good news or bad news.

Comments

[elitist]

It raises the question of whether it is a bad thing for people to renounce a belief system that while it may have some truth is fundamentally wrong about some of the most important facts of human existence, such as our relationship to our Heavenly Father.

[Tim]

Elitist your comments are ironic as Evangelicals have the same thoughts about Mormonism.
http://ldstalk.wordpress.com/2007/09/26/we-push-them-out-into-what/

Dave, It's no secret in Evangelical circles that the younger generations are being lost. Libraries could be filled by the books written about it.

[Jettboy]

I keep wondering if this is an American and European trend. Perhaps, even, if it is a middle to upper-class white trend. The reasons are two fold:

1. We Americans and Europeans are proud of our education and have fully accepted the atheistic rationalism of Thomas Paine, while rejecting the deist positions. No longer is study seen as inspirational, but purely analytical. I believe this is the case because the newest generation has been taught to reject all authority figures and replaced them with celebrities.

2. This has been supplimented by the radical departure from self-sensorship or social graces. Instead, total freedom and self-expression are considered the hallmark of happiness. This is coupled with the irony that society should pay for indulgences rather than the individual.

The end product is rejection of the two cornerstones of religion; authority and community. Everything is to be questioned, except your own presuppositions. Those are what make you who you are and should be respected. Another irony is that questioning authority and the elevation of individuality is very Protestant.

[Dave]

Jettboy, interesting you would make community one of your two religious cornerstones.

[elitist]

Point noted and foreseen. It seems like there is a line of reasoning in which "Faith" is a good thing regardless of the reality of the object of faith. As if it's good for people to just be generally gullible.