Recommended Reading
Articles
Life as a Young Adult
Letter to My 26-Year-Old Self, Suzanne Hadley Gosselin, Boundless
Not Quite Adults: The Uncertain Period of Emerging Adulthood, Danielle Moskow
Panicking with Grace: a Spirituality for Whatever’s Next, Teresa Donellan, America: the Jesuit Review
What Every Millennial Needs to Know About Life After Graduating College, Clayton Ganziano, Relevant
Why is Life After College So Hard?, Rebecca Oswell, Relevant
Young Adult Ministry
Church and Millennials Don’t Mix? Yes, They Can, and They Do, Michelle Ioannou, Not Another Millennial Blog
Designing Worship Spaces with Millennials in Mind, Barna Group
Five Reasons Millennials Stay Connected to Church, Barna Group
Five Ways to Connect with Millennials, Barna Group
‘How Do We Get Millennials to Attend Church?’: Why That is the Wrong Question, Ed Cyzewski, Christianity Today
How Does the Church Reach Millennials? Hint: It’s Not Flashing Lights or Rock Band Worship, Nancy Flory, Stream
Reaching the Next Generation: This is a Generation Starving for Community, Christianity Today
So You Want to Start a Young Adult Ministry, John Greco, Boundless
What the Latest Bible Research Reveals About Millennials, Sarah Eekhoff Zylstra, Christianity Today
Why Your Parish Website is Important, Seraphim Danckaert, Orthodoxy Today
Research on Millennials and Emerging Adulthood
Emerging Adults: the In-Between Age, Christopher Munsey, American Psychological Association
Getting Some ‘Me Time’: Why Millennials are So Individualistic, Samantha Raphaelson, NPR
It’s Becoming More Common for Young Adults to Live at Home – and for Longer Stretches, Richard Fry, Pew Research Center
Millennials’ Views of News Organizations, Religious Organizations Grow More Negative, Hannah Fingerhut, Pew Research Center
The Millennials’ God, Nicolette Manglos-Weber, Oxford University Press blog
The Millennial Obsession with Self-Care, Christianna Silva, NPR
Snapchat? No thanks: I’m an Old Millennial, Jesse Singal, CNN
When Did You Become an Adult?, MarketWatch
Millennials and Debt
63 Percent of Millennials Have More than $10,000 in Student Debt, Minda Zetlin, Inc.
Millennials and Philanthropy
Figuring Out the Millennial Christian Giver, Sarah Eekhoff Zylstra, Christianity Today
How Millennials Are Reshaping Charity and Online Giving, Elise Hu, All Things Considered
Millennials and Work
When Millennials Go to Work, Barna Group
Millennials: How They Live and Work, Jim Clifton, Gallup Research
Millennials and Stereotypes
Most Millennials Resist the ‘Millennial’ Label, Pew Research Center
Millennials Ruining Everything? It’s an Age-Old Accusation, Dugan Arnett, Boston Globe
Think You Know what Millennials Are Like? Think Again!, Gabrielle Frank, TODAY
The Problem With Shaming Millennials for Living With Their Parents, Brandon W. Peach, Relevant
Why the Millennial Stereotype is Wrong, Jessica Holland, BBC
Why You Should Start Taking Millennials Seriously, Selena Simmons-Duffin, NPR
Videos
Fuel the Fire to Lead, Forum on Theological Education
How Millennials Are Reinventing the Priesthood, TIME
The Importance of Mentors, Christian Gonzalez, The Trench
What Young People Need from the Church, Be the Bee #132
Podcasts
Why Young People Are Leaving the Church and What to Do About It, Seraphim Danckaert
TED Talks
Why 30 is Not the New 20, Meg Jay
Books
“Emerging Adulthood and Faith Formation,” volume 4.2 of Lifelong Faith: the Theory and Practice of Faith Formation
Emerging Adulthood and Faith, Jonathan P. Hill (2015): This brief gem of a book describes clearly the state of young adult engagement in the Church – and the numbers may surprise you.
You Lost Me: Why Young Christians are Leaving Church…and Rethinking Faith, David Kinnaman (2016): President of the Barna Group, a Christian research firm in California, Kinnaman explores young adults’ levels of disengagement from the church, what caused it, and how to bridge the gap.
Souls in Transition: The Religious and Spiritual Lives of Emerging Adults, Christian Smith (2005): Drawing from a massive multi-year study, sociologist Christian Smith describes young adults’ involvement in and relationship to spirituality.
The Juvenilization of American Christianity, Thomas E. Bergler (2012): Bergler presents a synopsis of previous generations’ attempts to integrate youth into the church, why they failed (or succeeded), and how they affected the church at large.
From Here to Maturity: Overcoming the Juvenilization of American Christianity, Thomas E. Bergler (2014): Bergler’s optimistic sequel presents solutions for today.
The Volunteer Revolution, Bill Hybels (2004) Willow Creek, Hybels’ church in Illinois, is a paradigm of excellent volunteer engagement. In this book, he shares effective ways to recruit and utilize volunteers. (We envision that this work with young adults will necessitate our ability to engage volunteers well.)
Want to recommend a book or an article? Or be on our list of people to review books for our e-newsletter? Contact us at telos@hchc.edu!