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Hannah Oxendine
Instructor: Malcolm Campbell
UWRT 1103
12 November 2015
The Rise of the Nones and the Decline of Christianity in the Post-Modern Age
When I was in middle school, I was very religiously curious. I had been raised Christian
but like many middle school aged children, I was trying to be an adult and carve my own path.
At lunch one day, the topic of religion came up. Most of my friends said they were Christians, I
said I was still trying to figure it all out. However, one of my friends said they were simply not
religious. I assumed he meant he was atheist but he said no, I just really do not follow any
religion. I had no idea that not having a religion was even an option. I was even more surprised
to find out that the lack of religion was a rapidly growing trend in the United States and the
world.
The rise of the religious Nones is a quickly growing trend. In 2014, studies showed that
the Nones were the second largest religious group in America- second only to Catholics (White,
Rise). Now, the most recent data shows that Nones are the largest religious group in America,
averaging at about 25 percent of adults. That is one in every four American adults classifying
themselves as a Nones (White, Continued). As large as this population of people is getting to be,
it seems most Americans have little to no idea about what a None is, or better yet, who they are.
According to NPR, this religiously unaffiliated group is comprised of atheists, agnostics, and a
large group of others who ally themselves with nothing in particular. This group seems to have
an overwhelming consensual view that involves complete disinterest in finding a religious
organization that would be right for them (Glenn).

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What is a None?
If you were to hand someone a piece of paper with every known religion and
denomination on it and asked them to circle any or all that they associate with, a none would
hand you back the sheet without making a mark. In the book Rise of the Nones, Dr. James Emery
White highlights some key points about the demographic of Nones. In summary, Nones are:
1. Male: 56% of nones are males despite the fact that less than half of the global population is
male.
2. Young: One third of Americans under the age of 30 are Nones, while only about nine percent
of Americans over 65 are Nones.

3. White: 71 percent of Nones are white. The next largest group is Hispanics at 11 percent

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4. Not necessarily an atheist. Figure 1.13 from Trinity Colleges report upon the non-religious
population shows us that, that 24 percent of nones believe that a higher power exists and 27
percent are thiests, meaning that they believe there is a personal god.
5. Not very religious. 72% are not engaged in religious activities of any kind, even apart from
religious institutions.
6. Democrats. About 75 percent of Nones voted for Barack Obama in the 2008 election while
only 23 percent voted for John McCain.
7. In favor of abortion and same-sex marriage. A large gap is shown between Americans and
Nones. Generally speaking, 53 percent of Americans think abortion should be legal while 72
percent of Nones do. In addition, 48 percent of Americans think same-sex marriage should be
legalized, while 48 percent of
Americans do.
8. Liberal or moderate; 75 percent
of Nones describe themselves as
liberal or moderate.
9. Not hostile to religious
institutions.
10. Westerners. The greatest
number of Nones is in the West
and the least are in the South.

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Furthermore, White goes on to define the Nones as spiritual but not religious. He says, They
have gone from I believe, to maybe, to who knows?
Some of the numbers that stick out to me are the age statistics and the race statistics.
because The Rise of the Nones is mostly coming from the younger population it means that it is
more likely to continue to grow. The majority of nones will not die off and are in a stage of their
life where they will be having children and then raising their children in a None household which
greatly increases the chance of that child becoming a none. The Race Statistic intrigues me
because the motives seem less clear. It would make sense that nones are for gay rights and are
more liberal because the church is usually against gay rights and more conservative. The race is
simply interesting because the reason is extremely unclear.
Rise of the Nones
In Dr. Whites book, there is mention of something called the ARIS or the American
Religious Identification Survey. It is one of the largest religious studies in american history with
over 150,000 participants in 1990 and over 50,000 in 2008. The study showed that the none
population almost doubled from 1990 to 2008. the american population that claimed no religious
affiliation rose from 8.0% to 15.1%. Cathy Lynn Grossman Discusses a more recent study by the
Pew Research Center that states that from 2007- 2015 nones rose from about 16% in 2007 to
about 23% in 2015. (Grossman).
Researchers are attempting to discover why the rise of the Nones is occurring. Grossman
quotes Mike Hout who says, Traditionally, we thought religion was the mover and politics
were the consequence, he said, Today, its the opposite. He says many who become Nones
want to avoid being associated with the conservative political agenda.

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Robert Putnam, a Harvard Professor who writes about religion also believes it is
political. It (the None population) begins to jump at around 1990," he says. "These were the
kids who were coming of age in the America of the culture wars, in the America in which
religion publicly became associated with a particular brand of politics, and so I think the single
most important reason for the
rise of the unknowns is that
combination of the younger
people moving to the left on
social issues and the most visible
religious leaders moving to the
right on that same issue."
Richard Linker suggests that
America as a whole may just be
catching up to the ideas of Plato.
Socrates suggests that death is
one of two things: It's either a
dreamless sleep that never ends
(annihilation) or a journey to a place that's pretty much exactly like life, with no divine rewards
or punishments of any kind.
While I believe Socrates was one of the smartest men of his time, I do not believe that his
ideas on after life are anywhere close to being widely accepted. However, when one looks at the
current presidential race It is pretty incredible how politics continue to create nones. Donald
Trump is a very polarizing character. His support comes from a group of people made up of

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mostly Christians. Most young people, even those who are politically moderate despise the idea
of Donald Trump becoming president. The fact that Christians support Donald Trump is driving
people away from the faith and towards a political candidate that could possibly be the first ever
none president, Bernie Sanders because Sanders seems to have the younger and poorer people
in mind. Without involving personal political bias, I simply just find it fascinating that politics
control religion and that religion is simply a minor weapon in a candidate's arsenal.
Churchs Solutions to the Nones
Most of the Christian community, as was I until rather recently, is unaware of the growth
of the None population and are doing little to reach it. However, Dr. James Emery White, a
pastor of a church focused on churching the unchurched shares his insight upon the subject. He
says that churches need to get past an if we build it they will come mentality. Churches often
believe the urban myth that if you allow casual dress, contemporary music and high quality
coffee, that the unchurched population will come piling into their churches. This is not the case,
as Dr White points out, because the un-churched already has these things. if they want
Starbucks, they can go to Starbucks, if they want contemporary music they have iTunes and an
iPod. The way to attract Nones is through a cause. Nones might enjoy coffee, but they respond
to a cause like poverty reduction (100), and they are far more likely to come into a community
that invites them to one. For Nones its Cause > Community > Christ in order of interest
says White. This paints a very simple picture of how to bring Nones to church. Nones tend to get
behind causes. So, if a church get behind a cause, Nones are more likely to show up and show
support. Then comes the time to show the Nones what kind of a community church can give
them. Nones, like the rest of the world, want to interact with people who like them, and have
similar interests. While their similar interest might not be church, it could just as easily be golf,

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music, jobs, football, literature, etc. Lastly, as Nones keep attending church to take care of the
cause and interact with community, they are faced with the realization of who Christ is and what
His presence in their life could mean. Its a process, but it is one that many new-age churches are
beginning to use. Why? Because it works.
Ministry Today Magazine editor Ron Luce believes that targeting teenagers is the way to
reduce the problem. Church leaders need to focus on shaping the head as well as the heart so that
their religious experiences are backed by an understanding of their faith. Also, those in the
church community need to seek to understand the beliefs and views of the adolescents in their
church. Luces final suggestion is that Churches must go beyond because the bible says so
because that does not matter to the unchurched. IF churches desire Nones, they must be willing
to show them other reasons as to why Christianity is worth their time. Dr. White closes his book
with a quote from Bill Hybels. He says There is nothing like the local church when its working
right. Its Beauty is indescribable. Its power is breathtaking. Its potential is unlimited. It comforts
the grieving and heals the broken in the context of community. It builds bridges to seekers and
offers truth to the confused. It provides resources for those in need and opens its arms to the
forgotten, the downtrodden, the disillusioned. It breaks the chains of addictions, frees the
oppressed, and offers belonging to the marginalized of this world. Whatever the capacity for
human suffering, the church has a greater capacity for healing and wholeness. This is what Dr.
White believes the solution is. To church the unchurched, to bring religion back to the Nones, the
local church must be functioning in the way it was created to function.
I think this quote truly shows the rise of the nones. The fact the the Christians and
Church are becoming so different from Their Christ turns people away. If the church as a whole
(meaning all Christians) could begin to see that their role is love fast and anger slow than church

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wouldnt be nearly as intimidating. If Church could truly bring about positivity in the community
and be a place where a person can feel accepted regardless of their past, their appearance or of
their race. The Problem is With The Church and If the Church continues to be seen as a place of
discord, judgment and hate the rise of the Nones will not stop.

ConclusionThis rise of the Nones in America can be seen differently depending on who you are.
Christians (who are declining at almost the same rate that the Nones are increasing) see the
Nones as a severe problem that must be dealt with. Politicians and researchers see the movement
as a natural shift in culture that comes with a modern democratic world. This Rise would also be
viewed by Nones in different ways. The actively unreligious Nones would see it as an
advancement in society and a removal of outdated values from the past while the apatheists
would generally be apathetic. While the implications of this rise may vary from person to person,
It is undeniable that it exists. Nones are one of the most relevant religious groups in society today
and very little research has been done upon them. As their voice continues to become more
present within the American society, we will able to better understand their motives, their beliefs
and their purpose. As a Christian I am not excited by the current growth of Nones and the decline
of Christianity (Christianity dropped from 78% to 70.6% within the last 7 years) (Grossman) but
I plan to continue to research and try to understand the Nones as they can be a great insight into
the past, the future and the present culture and general views of the population. This, however,
does not mean I will sit down and Watch the None Population grow and watch America become
a post-Christian nation. Using what I have researched, I plan to work tirelessly to bring the
Nones back to church and to make the local church into the absolutely beautiful place it was
made to be.

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Works Cited
Glenn, Heidi. "Losing Our Religion: The Growth Of The 'Nones'" NPR. NPR, 13 Jan. 2013.
Web. 30 Oct. 2015.
Grossman, Cathy Lynn. "Christians in Decline, Nones on the Rise." Christiancentury.org. The
Christian Century, 13 May 2015. Web. 20 Oct. 2015.
Kosmin, Barry A., Ariela Keysar, Ryan Cragun, and Juhem Navarro-Rivera. American
Nones: The Profile of the No Religion Population, A Report Based on the American
Religious Identification Survey 2008. Rep. Trinity College, 1 Sept. 2009. Web. 21 Oct.
2015.
Linker, Damon. "Do Secular Americans Secretly Pine for Religion?" The Week The Week
Publications, Inc, 14 Oct. 2015. Web. 16 Oct. 2015.
White, James Emery. "The Continued Rise of the Nones." Crosswalk.com. Salem Web Network,
13 May 2015. Web. 2 Nov. 2015.
White, James Emery. The Rise of the Nones: Understanding and Reaching the Religiously
Unaffiliated. Baker Books, 1 Jan. 2014. Print.
http://ministrytodaymag.com/life/youth/20316-how-will-we-reach-the-nones