Leaders gather to learn how to pass on the faith

STEINBACH BIBLE COLLEGE was pleased to host Dr. Joel Thiessen on March 15–16, 2024, at the annual SBC Leadership Conference. The topic was “Passing the baton: How faith gets passed to the next generation … or not.” Thiessen, who is Professor of Sociology and Social Sciences Department Chair at Ambrose University in Calgary, as well as Director of the Flourishing Congregations Institute, brought a unique perspective and passion for the process of discipleship in Canada.

With 100 on-site attendees, five online church groups, and multiple online viewers gathered for the SBC Leadership Conference, Thiessen tackled the topic of how an increasing number of people are claiming the identity of “nones” (those who say they have no religion).

With the growth of this trend in Canada, church leaders may be asking the question “How do we see growth in the church today?” or “Why are so many young people leaving the church?” Luckily, Thiessen’s love for numbers, statistics, and diagrams gave a clearer picture of what we may be seeing in Canada both today and in the future and how we can be equipped for the culture at hand.

Session one, “Why do more people say they have no religion?” served as a preamble for what was to come. Thiessen urged church leaders to not be data-reliant or data-reluctant, but to be appropriately “data-informed.”

Thiessen provided statistics on religion in Canada, Manitoba, and Steinbach, with data from the 2021 Canadian Census. Steinbach has a considerably higher percentage of people who identify as Christian (76 percent) while, in contrast, the averages in Winnipeg, Manitoba and Canada sit at roughly 50 percent Christian. In the past 20 years, there has been a “significant decline” in Christianity, Thiessen said, noting that “76 percent of Canadians identified as Christian in 2001; [in] 2021 that number is 53 percent.”

Dr. Joel Thiessen (Hannah Dyck)

Thiessen urged church leaders to not be data-reliant or data-reluctant, but to be appropriately “data-informed.”

Thiessen explained why the drop of Christianity is occurring and how it is a concern for the modern church. The first factor, according to Thiessen, is social acceptance, as the stigma around being non-religious dissipates. The second factor he described as a “reaction to the Christian right,” a movement in our modern-day culture that mixes religion and politics. Thirdly, parents are increasingly giving choices to their children—allowing children to choose whether they want to go to church or not. Fourthly, people walk away from religion because of intellectual disagreements (for example, on the afterlife, miracles, gender and sexuality, science). Fifth, Thiessen described social influences as a factor. While parents have the greatest influence (as Thiessen spoke on in a later session), social groups, friends, and outside influences still affect whether or not a person pursues religion. Lastly, Thiessen referred to the factor of life transitions. A large event or change in one’s life such as moving away from family, dealing with a death, or going to university can play a role in someone choosing whether to remain within the church or not.

Session two asked “How do next gen Canadians view and experience the world and their faith?” Having established a better understanding on the trends of religion in Canada in the first session, Thiessen led us into further understanding the worldview of Canada’s youth and young adults. Millennials (whom Thiessen categorized as those born from 1986 to 2005) are now the largest demographic in Canada, and this is shaping the culture.

Thiessen described the “social location” that shapes the millennial generation: living in a digital age, extreme individualism, advanced urbanism (heightened city dwelling), and overwhelming choices, among others. For millennials, choices make up every aspect of life, whether it be where to live, where to get an education, what career to get in to, and choices regarding who or even whether to marry.

Historically, Thiessen said, religion has played a “master status role” for those who attend religious services, explaining that “a master status is something that impacts all aspects of your life.” An emerging shift among younger generations is that “religion no longer plays a master status,” he said.

In session three, Thiessen explored “What is needed to pass on the faith well from one generation to the next?” Building on the previous session, Thiessen noted that, if distance is growing between young people and their understanding of God, something is needed to close the gap and equip the next generation.

“Parents,” Thiessen said, “are the most influential over the faith transmission process.” While other influences matter, “the home base … create[s] the strongest predictive possibility for Christian belief and practice to continue on into the adult years.”

It’s vitally important to have “parents who model, instruct, dialogue,” Thiessen said. This means that, for the parents, religion is personally important, they are active in church community, and they talk about Christian faith within the home. Thiessen gave the caveat: “You may have done all of these things. It doesn’t guarantee that this will be a successful transmission [but that] when transmission is successfully in play, these are the kinds of variables that we see time and again.”

“Here’s what we know,” Thiessen said, “Faith transmission does not happen via osmosis. Unless you intentionally do it, it will not happen accidentally within the home.” Thiessen also stressed the importance of being surrounded by others who are “modelling and demonstrating … so that, as a child, you can learn to observe, you can imitate, and you can practice.”

Thiessen encouraged churches to incorporate youth into programs and leadership experiences, making allowance for mistakes and providing opportunities to grow with the congregation.

In the final session, Thiessen addressed the question, “How can congregations flourish and support faith transmission in Canada?” The church, as suggested in the previous session, must be involved in some capacity. Beyond parental desires for congregations to provide youth and children’s programming, a positive social environment and moral training, Thiessen urged churches to also prioritize multigenerational worship, spiritual practices (worship, prayer), and service opportunities rather than just entertainment opportunities. Most importantly, Thiessen said, direct mentorship is vital to a church’s goal in making disciples. “Young people, contrary to our perceptions, actually desire for older adult influences in their life who are not their parents,” Thiessen said.

Thiessen encouraged churches to incorporate youth into programs and leadership experiences, making allowance for mistakes and providing opportunities to grow with the congregation. “Different surveys [tell us] that young people…get involved or remain involved in ministry activities or in church-based contexts when their voices are heard and when they’re included,” Thiessen said. When we allow young people to take the lead “do sometimes things fall through the cracks? Absolutely,” Thiessen said, but if we insist on perfection, we miss out on faith transmission.