Lizzie Hutchison takes an affectionate look at the current Gen Z revival in church life, drawing on her own front-row seat among a sea of twenty-somethings. With humour and honesty, she explores what this youthful surge means, not just for Gen Z, but for the slightly more battle-worn millennials finding their place alongside them.
Everyone’s seen the headlines around the Gen Z Jesus rush. And as someone who’s at church with what feels like 90% of them, I can tell you - despite reports to the contrary - the stats ain’t lying.
Ah Gen Z, born between 1997 and 2012, they are like baby birds, fresh out the shell - blinking at the sun. You can’t help but love ‘em, even when they show palpable horror at how long ago you went to uni.
Very healthy, Gen Z. The first time I went to my church I sat next to someone in that age category and they offered me mange tout. As a snack. Mange tout. MANGE TOUT. Gone are the days when someone would slide you a cheeky bag ‘o Walkers. Very healthy, Gen Z, very trendy.
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I used to say that I’m a creative in a Shoreditch advertising agency, but I had to buy a new wardrobe to fit in… at church. Props to them for doing the unthinkable and making Christianity cool. Turns out all we needed was baggier clothes. Might be why they can concentrate in the sermons - they’ve not got waistbands cutting off their circulation.
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But if you’ll excuse the laboured bird simile, whilst I love Gen Z, It’s also important to have people in your own ‘flock’.
But if you’ll excuse the laboured bird simile, whilst I love Gen Z, It’s also important to have people in your own ‘flock’. A slightly more dilapidated flock, perhaps, one raised on WKD’s, skinny jeans, chunky highlights and sexual harassment in the workplace. The millennial. Millennials (born between 1981 – 1996) need a revival, and not just in the wardrobe department. We need a bit of love. A bit of sparkle. We’ve lost the naivety of youth, we’ve seen leaders from formative Christian festivals be disgraced, we’ve fought our way up through the ranks at work, and we’ve been on more dates than there are days to have them (just me?). We need to band together and pray.
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It’s why at my church in London, I’ve co-launched The Gold. It started out as a way to find the millennials who worship there, and has somehow become a WhatsApp group with 180 people. We’ve had a cracking launch party, and will be continuing to bring people together over a smorgasbord of socials in the next few months.
This way, when we’ve connected people of a similar life stage, we’ll have the foundations to then learn from and lean on each other. Each generation has things to offer their opponent. Millennials could do with that all-in enthusiasm that the younger ones have in spades. Gen Z could hear how to cope in situations when life throws a few spanners. We’ve got strategies to reduce anxiety. They’ve got mange tout. It’s the perfect pot-luck picnic.
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