Date of Award
February 2018
Access Restriction
Campus Access only Research Projects
Degree Name
Master of Arts
Department
Theology
School or College
Bellarmine College of Liberal Arts
First Advisor
Karen Enriquez
Abstract
We need young people, because without them the Catholic Church will have no future. Increases in disaffiliation are seen in different races, genders, generations and countries. Using the Pew Research Center and Forum data, and Richard Osmer’s four tasks of practical theology, this paper will study first who are the disaffiliates, nones, and deconverts and then why they left the church. The Christian Church is based on a community of faith and worship, with evangelization at its heart. Christians need to participate, and evangelize to fully live as Christians. We will review several solutions on how to attract people back into church life. In becoming ‘cultural missionaries’ we can connect with modern culture, and use contemporary approaches to make the voice of the Lord accessible and comprehensible to all people. Unless we truly welcome modern culture, the young, divorced and transgendered into all parts of the Church, we are doomed to become just an anachronistic cultural curiosity.
Recommended Citation
Truong, Huyen, "How to Bring Young Adults into the Life of the Church" (2018). LMU/LLS Theses and Dissertations. 333.
https://digitalcommons.lmu.edu/etd/333