{"id":28061,"date":"2014-11-06T09:42:43","date_gmt":"2014-11-06T15:42:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/praytellblog.com\/?p=28061"},"modified":"2014-11-06T09:42:43","modified_gmt":"2014-11-06T15:42:43","slug":"what-do-the-millennials-want","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/praytellblog.com\/index.php\/2014\/11\/06\/what-do-the-millennials-want\/","title":{"rendered":"What do the Millennials Want?"},"content":{"rendered":"

A few mornings ago, I read in my local paper how the \u201cMillennials,\u201d that new powerhouse generation born between the early 1980\u2019s and early 2000\u2019s (depending on whom you ask), is the most sought-after market. We want them to vote, to buy things, to watch media, and to revitalize our failing urban cores (Tim Swarens, \u201cSticking Millennials with the Bill, Indianapolis Star <\/em>[October 30, 2014], A17).<\/p>\n

But these so-called \u201cMillennials\u201d have been called many things; as Time Magazine <\/em>journalist Joel Stein<\/a> described, in a May 9, 2013 article, Millennials are \u201clazy, entitled, selfish, and shallow.\u201d Whether or not this is true in any way is one point to argue, but the extent of difference <\/em>across this wide swath of time also perplexes. In my perspective, as one born dangerously close to this undesirable age group, I see immense difference between the attitude and outlook of myself and the undergraduate students whom I teach (born in the mid-1990\u2019s). They didn\u2019t suffer through the New Kids on the Block, they didn\u2019t watch the collapse of the Soviet Union, and many of them don\u2019t remember the fall of the twin Towers.<\/p>\n

But, what can we say about Millennials, new or old, and the Liturgy? First, pinpointing common denominators across these twenty years\u2019 worth of children between 1980 and 2000 (let alone 2014) is challenging. My Millennial Roman Catholic students\u2019 experience of memory begins after <\/em>the 1990\u2019s \u201cLiturgy Wars,\u201d and coincides with shifting preferences for worship practices and aesthetics. While practice at my Catholic grade school in the 1980\u2019s suggested that felt, burlap, and pottery were normative materials for worship, my college students confidingly tell me that they are on the opposite apex of the aesthetic \u201cpendulum swing.\u201d While my exposure to Christian hymnody began with the paperback Glory and Praise <\/em>(you know, the one with eagle flying into the sunset on the cover?), these younger Millennials can sing a full-throated Sanctus <\/em>in the original language. While I have no youthful memory of prayer in front of the Blessed Sacrament outside the context of Holy Thursday, I frequently observe later Millennials routinely remaining, en masse<\/em>, after Mass, to spend additional time in prayer.<\/p>\n

Despite our differences in formation and in how we may evaluate our different contexts, I know that my Millennials and I can wholeheartedly agree that not everything that happened following the liturgical reforms which occurred after the Second Vatican Council was \u201cwrong\u201d or \u201cbad.\u201d We know that we are the beneficiaries of ready familiarity with the text of the Mass, with the lectionary, with involvement as lay ministers, and with church sanctuaries well-appointed for the appropriate liturgical season by a dedicated arts and environment committee.<\/p>\n

But, I don\u2019t think that I or my students have shaped our experiences of worship, either. Thus far, the experience of worship has been designed for<\/em> Millennials, not by<\/em> them. So, what do<\/em> Millennials want when we come to worship? A lazy, self-focused, entitled and shallow experience of spirituality and prayer? Or something else?<\/p>\n

Thom S. Rainer<\/a>, Southern Baptist and co-author of the 2010 book, The Millennials,<\/em> reports that Millennials \u201cdon\u2019t think in the old worship war paradigm.\u201d Rather, Millennials seek three main characteristics: they want music with \u201crich content,\u201d seek \u201cauthenticity\u201d in worship leaders and participants, and desire a \u201cquality worship service.\u201d Rainer also notes that Millennials are attracted to churches which \u201cfocus on teaching and preaching\u201d and on outreach to the \u201ccommunity and the world.\u201d<\/p>\n

I could be wrong, but these attributes seem pretty universally attractive for worship\u2014across generations and denominations. But, perhaps the heart of Rainer\u2019s observation is that it is challenging and perhaps inaccurate to identify Millennials in neat black and white terms such as \u201ctraditionalist\u201d or \u201cprogressive.\u201d Embracing postmodernism (even if inadvertently), it seems that Millennials may want or desire to connect their faith experiences to culture and society, and are receptive to multiple strains of worship aesthetics\u2014if these various aesthetics still yield rich content, quality, and authenticity. To that end, contemporary Christian praise music and Gregorian chant both could be good choices. Likewise, fervent full, conscious, and active participants at Mass could likewise deeply appreciate Eucharistic adoration following the celebration of the Sacrament. For those of us raised in stark \u201ceither-or\u201d situations (where amount of appreciation of one aesthetic or another proves to be a sure litmus test for liberal or conservative identity), how could any Millennial\u2014possibly\u2014happily \u201cwalk the line\u201d in this way?<\/p>\n

In short, I don\u2019t think we know yet what the Millennials want when we come to worship. In the meantime, though, it may be the duty, especially for teachers and practitioners of liturgy and worship, to expose Millennials to the breadth of variety of aesthetics and multiplicity of devotions inspired by Christian worship.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Thus far, the experience of worship has been designed for Millennials, not by them. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":55,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"_wpas_customize_per_network":false},"categories":[357,1137,379],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-28061","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-demographics-and-sociology","category-teaching-liturgy","category-young-adults"],"yoast_head":"\nWhat do the Millennials Want? - Home<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/praytellblog.com\/index.php\/2014\/11\/06\/what-do-the-millennials-want\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"What do the Millennials Want? - Home\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Thus far, the experience of worship has been designed for Millennials, not by them.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/praytellblog.com\/index.php\/2014\/11\/06\/what-do-the-millennials-want\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Home\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2014-11-06T15:42:43+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/praytellblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/pt.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"411\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"90\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Katharine E. Harmon\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Katharine E. Harmon\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/praytellblog.com\\\/index.php\\\/2014\\\/11\\\/06\\\/what-do-the-millennials-want\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/praytellblog.com\\\/index.php\\\/2014\\\/11\\\/06\\\/what-do-the-millennials-want\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Katharine E. 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