# LCMS Convention Proceedings_St. Louis Missouri_2010_S175
# Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

LATE OVERTURE
L1-17

To Make a Concerted Effort to Reach Generation X
and the Millennials in the U.S. with the Gospel of Jesus
Whereas, The Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life reports
that “fully one in four Millennials are unaffiliated with any faith and
describe their religion as ‘atheist,’ ‘agnostic,’ or ‘nothing in particular’”; and
Whereas, The percentage of young adults who regard themselves as unaffiliated to any religion has grown from 12 percent in
the 1980s to 23 percent in the 2000s; and
Whereas, The decline in church membership nationwide is
largely due to the failure to incorporate young people into the life of
the church, rather than to the loss of older people; and
Whereas, Abiding Savior Lutheran Church has recognized the
importance of these trends and is striving to find effective ways to
work with people of these age groups; and
Whereas, These national trends are also reflected in the life of
The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS) where the median
age of members in our church body is in excess of 54 years (14 years
older than the median age of the population of the USA) and where
35 percent of our pastors are older than age 55 while only 6 .2 percent are younger than age 35; and
Whereas, It is reported that only one-half of Lutherans who are
baptized are confirmed and only one-half of those who are confirmed
continue on to become active congregation members; and
Whereas, We know from the example of Jesus Himself that He
was concerned about people of every age, preaching to all the Good
News of the Kingdom and calling them into the kingdom of God,
and we know that it is the will of God that all be saved; therefore be it
Resolved, That the 2010 LCMS convention urge congregations
and their members to be aware of the needs of Generation X (those
born in the late 1960s through the late 1970s) and the Millennials
(those born after 1980 who are coming of age around and following the year 2000) living in their midst, including also the children
of their own members, and urge them to be active in seeking ways to
serve these special people; and be it further
Resolved, That the convention urge the districts and congregations, the National Mission Office of LCMS World Mission, and
District and Congregational Services to work together to find ways
to strengthen the commitment to and increase the effectiveness of the
work of LCMS congregations, schools, and their members in reaching out to the Millennials and Gen X in our midst .

Abiding Savior Lutheran Church
St . Louis, MO

175

2010 Convention Proceedings