How the Values Promoted by 18th Century Transcendentalist Philosophy Have Affected the American Neo-Evangelical Church
Abstract
Following an analysis of the current religious demographics trend in America, The Pew Research Center suggests that the percentage of individuals who identify as Christian could decline to half of the current population in the next few decades. However, this claim is surprising since Christianity has seen a slight and steady increase around the globe. The recent trend in newer generations disaffiliating from Christianity at rapid rates is a change that is unique to the United States. The distribution of self-identified Christians in the U.S. can be broken down into two major groups: Catholic and Evangelical Protestant. Even though Evangelical Protestants make up the largest percentage of American Christians at 25.4%, the percentage of young adults who identify with no religious affiliation is now 22.8%, trailing behind by only 2.6%. The data also shows that the majority of Mainline Protestant Denominations, which means any Christian group with a uniform structure and set of doctrine, have seen a steady decline in membership since 2007. However, non-denominational churches in the U.S. have seen a dramatic growth in membership, especially in young adults. Young adults from various denominational backgrounds have been flocking towards these churches, yet their age group is consistently decreasing in Christian affiliation. Thus, the American Evangelical non-denominational church is not slowing the pace of disaffiliation. Instead, the data highlights a phenomenon where American Evangelical churches are increasingly becoming conduits through which more and more young adults are disaffiliating from Christianity. Unfortunately, the same values that encouraged the creation of the non-denominational church are now serving as a catalyst for disaffiliation, deconstruction, and abandonment of the Christian faith. In this thesis, I wish to argue that these values include self-reliance and individualism. Furthermore, some of the major religious and philosophical movements in America, specifically the Transcendentalist philosophy of Ralph Waldo Emerson, can help explain how the legacy of these values in the modern neo-evangelical church might be leading many young adults to disaffiliate from the Christian Church.
Subject
Ralph Waldo Emersonneo-evangelical
evangelical
disaffiliation
christianity
non-denominational
self-reliance
individualism
United States
young adult
religion
Citation
Breig, Chloe Jane (2023). How the Values Promoted by 18th Century Transcendentalist Philosophy Have Affected the American Neo-Evangelical Church. Undergraduate Research Scholars Program. Available electronically from https : / /hdl .handle .net /1969 .1 /199669.