Just a few weeks ago, evangelist Jefferson Bethke wrote a provocative essay for The Washington Post, arguing that church-going millennials were in crisis. Their desire to break free from the rigidness of their parents\u2019 religion, he argued, has led them to an overemphasis on individual freedom. \u201cIf you care more about flaunting your Christian freedom than promoting Christian unity,\u201d he wrote, \u201cyou\u2019re probably not free. You are actually a slave to your so-called freedom.\u201d\u00a0<\/span> Just a few weeks ago, evangelist Jefferson Bethke wrote a provocative essay for The Washington Post, arguing that church-going millennials were in crisis. Their desire to break free from the rigidness of their parents\u2019 religion, he argued, has led them to an overemphasis on individual freedom. \u201cIf you care more about flaunting your Christian freedom […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2251,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1237","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n
<\/span>I was reminded of Bethke\u2019s essay recently after reading about several high profile events that sparked intense debate on social media. First, news broke that a 26-year-old pastor was fired for attending a Rick Ross concert; then there were reports that a 16-year-old girl was removed from the church choir after her third pregnancy; and a pastor instructed women in his church to not wear weaves.\u00a0<\/span>
<\/span>Each of these incidents got me thinking about the never-ending discussion about millennials leaving the church. This is reflected in data from a 2012 Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life\u2019s Religious Landscape Survey, which states, \u201cOne-fifth of the U.S. public \u2013 and a third of adults under 30 \u2013 are religiously unaffiliated today, the highest percentages ever in Pew Research Center polling.\u201d But this also led me to wonder if the same goes for black millennials. Are they fleeing the black church in the same ways that we see happening in mainline Protestant churches?<\/span>
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