One in 4 US Mormons has thought about leaving the LDS Church, study shows

[jkwilliams]

Quote

The second possible sign of declining fervor was that 24% of American Mormons surveyed answered yes to the question, “Has there ever been a time when you thought about leaving your current religious tradition or denomination?

This was the highest of any religious group, a major surprise. The next-highest were “other Protestants of color” and White Catholics, at 20% each. Only 10% of Jews and members of non-Christian religions (e.g., Hinduism, Islam, Buddhism) said they had considered defecting.

https://religionnews.com/2023/05/19/one-in-four-us-mormons-has-thought-about-leaving-the-lds-church-study-shows/

[MustardSeed]

Not surprising,  being that we all know and love people who have recently left.  It naturally invites us to consider our choices.  I chose to stay. 

[Hamilton Porter]

Key line:

In addition to widespread secularization being an underlying reason, another possible explanation is demographic. Mormons, said Deckman, tend to be younger than other religious groups, “and disaffiliation among GenZ is much higher than among the general population. So I would not be at all surprised if age is a factor.”

[Hamilton Porter]

3 minutes ago, MustardSeed said:

Not surprising,  being that we all know and love people who have recently left.  It naturally invites us to consider our choices.  I chose to stay. 

Not me. My three siblings are all active.

[jkwilliams]

1 minute ago, Hamilton Porter said:

Not me. My three siblings are all active.

Only one of my siblings is still in the church. My kids have left in the last year or so. Of my parents' 18 grandchildren, only one is in the church, as far as I can tell. 

[CV75]

36 minutes ago, jkwilliams said:

https://religionnews.com/2023/05/19/one-in-four-us-mormons-has-thought-about-leaving-the-lds-church-study-shows/

I think that thinking “about leaving your current religious tradition or denomination” – not on an ongoing basis, but as the question is posed, “ever” -- indicates an open mind, and one that faces and evaluates opposition forthrightly. As always individual milage varies. I’ve observed over the course of my membership (converted in 1970s) that more than half the members don’t come to Church in eh first place – that’s 50+% who at some point thought about leaving.

Some other, more interesting findings that didn’t make it into the topic title:

“they ranked or tied for first in having the highest percentage of any religion of people who pray, attend church at least a few times a year and visit with their religious leader.” The graph shows that religious attendance is highest (2022): “Latter-day Saints stand apart on that measure.”

“we still see a picture of Latter-day Saints who are more religious than the U.S. population”

RE: “religion as the “most important” thing in their lives,” while spirituality was not measured, religion and spirituality are two different things, and given the demographic, it seems reasonable that spirituality is the more important of the two; I think most members in general would say that as well. Yet this sample also ranked "Religion is one among many important things in my life” highly.

“a religion that does not require the sacrifice of all things never has power sufficient to produce the faith necessary unto life and salvation” -- Joseph Smith

Edited May 26, 2023 by CV75

[Hamilton Porter]

6 minutes ago, CV75 said:

RE: “religion as the “most important” thing in their lives,” while spirituality was not measured, religion and spirituality are two different things, and given the demographic, it seems reasonable that spirituality is the more important of the two;

I'm religious not spiritual.

[jkwilliams]

2 minutes ago, Hamilton Porter said:

I'm religious not spiritual.

I'm neither. 

[Pyreaux]

I presume Inactive Phases could be common. Generally, half seem to comeback at some point in their lives. Thats just based on a host of reactivated members I know. Half of the inactives I know aren't against the church, they had just turned 18, got busy or lazy or don't feel they measure up because they like Mochaccinos.

[Tacenda]

7 minutes ago, Hamilton Porter said:

I'm religious not spiritual.

I'm spiritual not religious..

[Duncan]

I wonder how much has changed since  the EOM came out 30 years ago

"About 75 percent of lifelong Latter-day Saints experience a period of inactivity lasting a year or more. The process of disengagement most commonly begins sometime between the ages of fourteen and twenty. Of those who leave, 60 percent return to active participation between their mid-twenties and late thirties, when they marry and begin a family. Some Latter-day Saints who had stopped attending church were asked to list the reasons why they had left. Lifestyle issues and problems of social integration were mentioned most frequently. More than half said they had found other interests that led them to spend less and less time in Church-related activities; 42 percent reported that they felt their lifestyle was no longer compatible with participation in the Church; 40 percent said they did not feel as if they belonged or fit in; and 25 percent said they felt it did not matter to anyone whether they attended or not. Less frequently mentioned reasons included moving to a new community, work-schedule conflicts, poor health, marriage to an inactive member or marriage outside the Church, and conflicts with Church members, programs, or doctrines."

https://eom.byu.edu/index.php/Activity_in_the_Church

[jkwilliams]

Just now, Duncan said:

I wonder how much has changed since  the EOM came out 30 years ago

"About 75 percent of lifelong Latter-day Saints experience a period of inactivity lasting a year or more. The process of disengagement most commonly begins sometime between the ages of fourteen and twenty. Of those who leave, 60 percent return to active participation between their mid-twenties and late thirties, when they marry and begin a family. Some Latter-day Saints who had stopped attending church were asked to list the reasons why they had left. Lifestyle issues and problems of social integration were mentioned most frequently. More than half said they had found other interests that led them to spend less and less time in Church-related activities; 42 percent reported that they felt their lifestyle was no longer compatible with participation in the Church; 40 percent said they did not feel as if they belonged or fit in; and 25 percent said they felt it did not matter to anyone whether they attended or not. Less frequently mentioned reasons included moving to a new community, work-schedule conflicts, poor health, marriage to an inactive member or marriage outside the Church, and conflicts with Church members, programs, or doctrines."

https://eom.byu.edu/index.php/Activity_in_the_Church

Good point. What's interesting to me is that, anecdotally speaking, the church is losing more of those who already are married and have families. My daughter mentioned that their ward had about a dozen young married families when they moved in, and those families have all stopped attending and/or resigned. 

[Hamilton Porter]

7 minutes ago, Tacenda said:

I'm spiritual not religious..

You complete me.

[Kenngo1969]

Proverbs 22:6 comes to mind.  To me, that scripture doesn't preclude a youthful detour for such a person.  I realize, acutely, this is not likely, in some quarters, to be a popular opinion hereabouts, but, on the other hand, I think of the many who who say that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints needs to change this or that in order to hold onto young people whom it is "hemorrhaging."  However, if enough such changes occur, later on, those who "take detours" won't recognize the "changed church" as being worthwhile to return to.  See also John 15:17-19.  (My words and phrases, all, in quotation marks.)  There must be a lodestar somewhere in the world, and one wonders, if it is not to be found in the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ, then just where, exactly, is it to be found?

Edited May 26, 2023 by Kenngo1969

[CV75]

22 minutes ago, Hamilton Porter said:

I'm religious not spiritual.

Not that there's anything wrong with that...

[Hamilton Porter]

On one hand it's sad to see young people leave the church, even if they're just following national trends. On the other hand, God is sovereign so we don't need to worry.

[Tacenda]

10 minutes ago, Hamilton Porter said:

You complete me.

Haha, good one!

[jkwilliams]

Just now, Tacenda said:

Haha, good one!

I do my best to cancel you both out. 😉

[Tacenda]

1 minute ago, jkwilliams said:

I do my best to cancel you both out. 😉

As if we cease to exist, wouldn't this board love that?  

[InCognitus]

6 minutes ago, Tacenda said:

As if we cease to exist, wouldn't this board love that?  

Nah, we need you.  I would miss you anyway.

[jkwilliams]

13 minutes ago, Tacenda said:

As if we cease to exist, wouldn't this board love that?  

I dunno. They'd have to find someone else to be continually outraged at.

[rodheadlee]

What is EOM?

[Stargazer]

24 minutes ago, jkwilliams said:

I dunno. They'd have to find someone else to be continually outraged at.

I don't find you to be particularly outrageous.  

[Duncan]

17 minutes ago, rodheadlee said:

What is EOM?

Encyclopedia of Mormonism, came out '92 or '93

[jkwilliams]

3 minutes ago, Duncan said:

Encyclopedia of Mormonism, came out '92 or '93

I wouldn’t put too much stock in it. I was one of the copy editors.