Why young adults leave the Church Part 4 of 5 - Mark Sayers

Reason 4 -Consumerist Spirituality

Today young adults worldview is deeply shaped by consumerism; it shapes how we purchase, how we relate, and howwe shape our identities. In my research into why young adults leave church,I found consumerism to be one of the most dominant themes to emerge again and again. Many people had written excellent books on how Christians should be responding to theeconomic and justice issuesraised byconsumerism. But very fewChristiansseemed to be examining how consumerism wasaffecting out spirituality.
The worldview of consumerism deeplyinfluences our spirituality. It creates an exchange were we expect instant returns for our investments. I constantly hear from youngleaders who have left church after spending years volunteering their time. They tell me that they feel ripped off, that they have given and gotten nothing back, they view discipleship not as self-sacrificing service but rather a consumer exchange, in which instant gratification is sought. I kept finding youngadults who when pressed were happy to follow Christ as long as he delivered a kind of consumerist heaven on earth. When this kind of heaven did not arrive, people became very disillusioned. Of course theadvertising industry did not get the blame, God did, and active faith was ditched. In my book The Trouble With Paris I write,

"In a scene in Kevin Smith’s irreverent religious satire Dogma, the Roman Catholic Church decides that the crucifix is an irrelevant symbol for today. They believe that the image of a half-naked man dying on a cross is not an appealing brand logo. Instead, they come up with what they call "Buddy Jesus." Buddy Jesus looks like a cross between a Sunday school picture book image of Jesus and an action hero. He is cartoonlike, winking and giving a thumbs-up sign.… My friend Darryl Gardiner says this is Jesus as something like a "cool waiter" in some hip café. He doesn’t get too caught up in rules and simply wants
you to have a good time. Research done in both the United States and Australia is backing up this view, revealing that young adults view God something akin to a "cosmic butler" to be called on in times of strife or need, but who then quietly exits so as not to cramp our style. Such a Jesus ultimately becomes subservient to us and our agenda. We rob him of his divinity, instead placing it upon ourselves. Jesus thus becomes the herald of lifestyle improvement; we follow him because he might be able to deliver us the consumer dream."

When we follow God because we are expecting a kind of consumer pay off; we have invested in a faith that cannot last, you can only church shop for so long. When we worship a God who we believe will make our dreams come true we are not following the God of the bible. Believers who live out their faith through the matrix of consumerism will end up almost definitely outside of the church and very disappointed.