With attendance declining, the church needs 'authenticity'

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'Ainsley's Bible Study' investigates the decline in church attendance

Fox News religion contributor Jonathan Morris says the church needs authenticity

Church attendance is declining, especially among young people, but members of "Ainsley’s Bible Study" on Fox Nation said this didn’t mean a decline in American’s desire for God. 

"I don’t think the next generation wants to come to church," said lead pastor of Saints Church in Queens Chris Durso. "Not because they don’t want God, but because of some of the politics that come with church, and the way they’re being spoken to."

Host Ainsley Earhardt noted the importance of an online community, particularly during the pandemic when "so many people weren’t going to church," but were watching it online. 

Christian social media influencers Gabe Poirot and Kaci Nicole Piccillo have used their platforms to build this online community and agreed that it was important to reach people where they were at, which for many young Americans, is online. 

Durso noted that these online communities were important and allowed people to find God without entering a church, "as long as it leads to a church, a body, to be a part of." 

"I think it’s important that we find community, for the simple fact of being around like-minded individuals," he continued. 

Fox News religion contributor Jonathan Morris noted that physically being in a church was not necessary for God to reach someone. 

"I don’t think it’s so much that we need to come up with some new gimmick to get people in," he said. 

The rest of the Bible study participants agreed, noting that church members often think they need to dress, or act, like millennials in order to draw them to church, but young people are really looking for "authenticity."

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