Boomer Christianity Ages Out

James LaGrand observes a conservative turn in Protestantism (“A Surprising Generational Rift in the Christian Reformed Church,” Public Discourse, November 13, 2024). The Christian Reformed Church (CRC), a Calvinist denomination that sponsors Calvin University in Grand Rapids, Michigan, recently formalized its commitment to a biblical sexual ethic. At its national synod last June, representatives voted to make official the teaching that sexual activity is morally proper only within the marriage of a man and a woman, and it put congregations that publicly celebrated its LGBTQ members on “limited suspension.”

At the synod, debate exposed a generational divide. Baby Boomer church leaders opposed the actions. LaGrand notes that they spoke of “gentleness, grace, and understanding toward those desiring a same-sex partner.” A group of young pastors argued the opposite. They spoke of the need to clarify biblical teaching and impose appropriate church discipline.

“At first blush,” LaGrand observes, “this episode might seem surprising and counterintuitive. Is it not the young who are to lead their foot-dragging elders toward the right side of history, toward progressive views on social and cultural issues, including human sexuality?” But closer examination suggests otherwise. Although young people in general often support the Rainbow agenda, those who attend church adopt counter-cultural attitudes. And in 2024, being countercultural means standing against the sexual revolution.

Boomer Christians grew up in the 1960s and 1970s, a time of remarkable homogeneity, against which they often rebelled. The civil rights and feminist movements “were formative in their development as young adults,” LaGrand remarks. They cheered the open-society consensus, in which the cause of gay rights was deemed a fitting extension of the battles against racism and sexism. Retired CRC minister Al Mulder lamented after last summer’s synod, “It puzzles me when CRC congregations firmly committed to racial and ethnic diversity, equity and inclusion at the same time officially embrace discrimination and oppression of sexual minority populations.”

A pastor in his thirties has had very different experiences. He came of age as pro-gay propaganda was gaining momentum and Pride Month became a sacred celebration. Instead of experiencing church as a legalistic culture, quick to condemn, Millennial and Gen X Christians grew up with pastors anxious not to seem judgmental. Rather than being subject to overbearing authority, they’ve suffered from the authority vacuum created by a therapeutic culture.

Baby Boomer church leaders are increasingly frustrated with the young. They are not used to being challenged. LaGrand reports: “In the months following this meeting, some long-time [read: Boomer] church members in the moderate-to-progressive camp expressed indignation about the role that both young people and denominational newcomers had played in passing the traditionalist statement.” How dare they resist the arc of history!

We are living in a time of transition. Young people have little interest in theologized versions of the open-society consensus. They are not coming to church to hear a DEI gospel, the same gospel that is being preached relentlessly by secular institutions. Nor are they coming to faith to be “affirmed.” Rather than relevance, they want truth. Rather than human-focused diversity, they want God-focused worship. Rather than be “included,” they want to experience the transformative power of God’s love. They want a church that is a counterculture, not a subculture.

May their tribe increase.