According to the new set of data, 28% of Americans classify themselves as “nones” (atheists, agnostics or “nothing in particular”) when asked about their religion. So that is 3 out of every 10 Americans classify themselves as “nones” in religion. I always blame the millennials, but they are a big part of the “nones”.
According to pewforum.com, only 50 percent of Millennial ages 18-29 are certain they believe in God. Then there is Gen Z:  Eighteen percent of Gen Z affirmatively identify as either atheist (9 percent) or agnostic (9 percent). In contrast, fewer than one in 10 (9 percent) baby boomers and 4 percent of the silent generation identifies as atheist or agnostic.”

Breaking the “nones” (which includes all Americans) down further:

Our survey (pewresearch.org) data shows:

• Most “nones” believe in God or another higher power. But very few go to religious services regularly.
• Most say religion does some harm, but many also think it does some good. They are not uniformly anti-religious.
• Most “nones” reject the idea that science can explain everything. But they express more positive views of science than religiously affiliated Americans do.

So, according to pew, “most” still believe in God or a higher power, so that is good. Most likely they accept that higher power could be the god of many different world religions like Buddhism, Hindusim, Islam, etc., so they might not believe in Yahweh of the Bible as the one true God. They are not necessarily “anti-religous”, but they certainly have little interest in “going to church” and being a member of a certain religion. They might be more likely to not believe the Biblical account of creation. They might not believe that the Bible is the actual word of God, our authority for all matters today. They might reject the apostle Paul’s denouncing of homosexuality, saying that is just his homophobic opinion not binding of Christians today. So even the “nones” who stlll believe in God don’t necessarily believe that the Bible is the authoritative word of God for us today. Many feel that they can determine what sin is without going by the Bible, which is why so many are following the LGBQT movement, even among Christians.

One comment said that there is little evidence that the “none” will ever start going back to church attendees. That is probably true. But we can rejoice that many of the Gen Z (maybe not the “nones” among the Gen Z) are turning to God and a belief in the word of God. My granddaughter goes to Auburn (to my dismay, “Roll Tide), and she and many of her friends attend ACC (Auburn Community Church). I looked up their website to read their beliefs. ACC believes the bible is the “verbally inspired word of God, the final authority for faith and life, inerrant in the original writings, infallible and God–breathed.” ACC “believes God is the Creator and Ruler of the universe, the one true Holy God”. ACC “believes Jesus Christ is completely human but, at the same time, completely God. He is the only plan for bringing people who are far from God back into a right relationship with God. He lived a perfect life, so that He could be a substitution for us in satisfying God’s demands for perfection. He defeated death in His resurrection so that we could have life.” ACC “believes that the church, which is the body and bride of Christ, is a spiritual organism made up of all born–again persons. We believe that the establishment and continuance of local churches is clearly taught and defined in the New Testament Scriptures. We believe in the autonomy of the local churches, free of any external authority and control. We recognize believer’s baptism and the Lord’s supper as scriptural means of testimony for the church.” ACC ” believes that salvation is the gift of God brought to man by grace and received through personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, whose precious blood was shed on Calvary for the forgiveness of our sins.” They believe that people “will exist either eternally separated from God by sin or in union with God through forgiveness and salvation.” ACC “believes the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of God, fully divine. He inspired holy men of old to write the Scriptures. Through illumination He enables men to understand truth. He exalts Christ. He convicts men of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment. He calls men to the Savior, and effects regeneration.” ACC “believes marriage as a simple yet profound covenant: one man and one woman, committing to each other for a lifetime. It’s a unique, God-ordained covenant that grows and sustains, reflecting the deep, enduring love Christ has for his Church. The husband and wife are of equal worth before God, since both are created in God’s image. In God’s wisdom, men and women are not simply interchangeable, but rather they complement each other in mutually enriching ways.”

I’m pretty sure they don’t mind me quoting from their statement of faith on their website! ACC is what we call a “fundamentalist” church. From AI: “A fundamentalist church is a church that adheres to the beliefs of Christian fundamentalism, a conservative Protestant movement that emphasizes the literal truth of the Bible. The Bible is literal and inerrant. They believe in the Virgin Birth, Resurrection, and Atonement of Jesus Christ. Christian fundamentalism began in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a reaction to theological liberalism and cultural modernism . The movement was fueled by opposition to the teaching of evolution and biblical criticism. Fundamentalists are almost always described as upholding beliefs in biblical infallibility and biblical inerrancy, in keeping with traditional Christian doctrines concerning biblical interpretation, the role of Jesus in the Bible, and the role of the church in society.”

I am so thankful that ACC is helping ground Auburn students in their faith in Biblical truth. I probably would not agree with their beliefs on a lot of issues, but I totally agree with their statement of faith in the basics. So then I go to school where I teach and one of our teachers is struggling over her church going with the LGBQT split in the Methodist church. She feels betrayed by her church’s liberal views. Many others are caught in that same drama. I am thankful that the ACC pastor came to Auburn to establish this church 10 years ago. He would truly be like the apostle Paul who did not want to build on the foundation others had laid, but instead establish churches where needed. This is alarming: “Barna Research estimates that 70% of high school students who identify as Christian will lose their faith or have little to no faith after entering college. They also project that 80% of people raised in the church will be “disengaged” from their faith by age 29.” “When a young adult goes to college for the first time they are saying goodbye to friends, family and their faith. According to the Barna Group, roughly 70% of high school students who enter college as professing Christians, will leave with little to no faith.” That makes you really think about where to send your child to college. Maybe you should seriously look at conservative Christian colleges so that your child will be mentored by sincere Christian teachers and wll be taught that the Bible is the word of God. That doesn’t guarantee that they will not lose their faith even while attending a Christian college, but it surely increases the odds of them not losing their faith.

So, a big thank you and praise God for ACC! I am so thankful that my granddaughter has ACC to attend and be an active part of. It is the closest thing you can get to having a “Christian college culture” in a public college. It is taking that culture to a public college instead of isolating that culture in a private Christian college. No doubt ACC will convert and ground students who might never have become Christians and who certainly would never attend a Christian college.