Oxendine 1

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
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).
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.

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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.
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 theists, 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.

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9. Not hostile to religious institutions.

10. Westerners. The greatest number of Nones is in the West and the least are in the South.
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?
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. 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

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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.
Churchs Solutions to the Nones
Most of the Christian community is unaware
of the growth of the None population and are doing
little to reach it. However, Dr. James Emery White,
the senior 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 have 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. That response is the key. Nones can be open to the idea of stepping foot in a church,
but until they take the action, this openness is irrelevant. For Nones its Cause > Community
> Christ in order of interest. 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

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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 (Luce).
Dr. White closes his book with a quote from Bill Hybels about the church saying that when the
local church is functioning properly, whatever capacity for human suffering there may be, the
local church has a greater capacity for healing and wholeness. This is what Dr. White believes
the solution is. To church the unchurched and to religion back to the Nones, the local church
must function in the way it was created to function, to seek and save the lost.
ConclusionThis rise of the Nones in America can be seen differently depending on who you are.
Christians (whose numbers 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, secularized 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 to the matter. 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 on 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

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culture and general views of the population. However, this 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 help make
the local church into the place it was created 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.
Luce, Ron. "How Will We Reach the 'Nones'?" Ministry Today Magazine. Charisma Media, 19
Sept. 2013. Web. 7 Nov. 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.