Survey shows why young people leave church

A five-year long Barna Group study lifts the lid on why three out of every five young Christians disconnect from their churches after the age of 15. The study points out six different reasons for this disconnection.

First, nearly one-fourth of the 18- to 29-year-olds interviewed felt that the church ignores real-world problems while 18 per cent said that their church was too concerned about the negative impact of culture on faith.

Second, many of the survey participants saw their experience of Christianity through the church as shallow. One-third felt that “church is boring,” while twenty per cent said that God appeared to be missing from their experience of church.

Third, the Barna study found that over one-third of young adults resented the church for appearing to be against science, saying that “Christians are too confident they know all the answers.”

Fourth, almost a fifth of young adults feel judged by the church when it comes to issues of sexuality, while two out of five young adult Catholics insisted the church's teachings on birth control and sex are “out of date”.

Fifth, a large proportion (twenty-nine percent) struggle with the exclusivity of Christianity saying that “churches are afraid of the beliefs of other faiths.”

The sixth and final reason the study gives for young people leaving the church is they have experienced it as “unfriendly to those who doubt”. Over a third of respondents felt that could not ask life's most pressing questions in church, while 23 per cent had “significant intellectual doubts” about their faith.

David Kinnaman, who serves as they Barna Group president and is also the author of the book on these findings, “You Lost Me: Why Young Christians are Leaving Church and Rethinking Church,” believes that the church does not understand young adults any more and focuses only on a limited and “traditional” understanding of them. But young adults have changed drastically as they are influenced by the major social, spiritual and technological changes that have occurred in the last quarter century.

“Most young adults no longer follow the typical path of leaving home, getting and education, finding a job, getting married and having kids – all before the age of 30,” he said. “These life events are being delayed, reordered, and sometimes pushed completely off the radar among today's young adults.”

Kinnaman believes churches should cultivate “intergenerational relationships” within their congregations rather than overreacting by creating ‘youth only’ churches.

“In many churches, this means changing the metaphor from simply passing the baton to the next generation to a more functional, biblical picture of a body – that is, the entire community of faith, across the entire lifespan, working together to fulfil God's purposes.”

The top ten worst air-polluted cities in the world

A recent report released by the World Health Organisation shows that the most air-polluted cities in the world are all found in developing countries. This is because poorer countries do not (or cannot) enforce the environmental regulations that developed countries have to keep corporations in check.

Interestingly enough, mega-cities like Beijing, Chongqing, Bangkok, Mexico City are not on the list. Instead, the worst air-polluted cities are smaller cities, most of them found in Iran or South Asia and not one of them is economically influential. Only one African city makes the list in Gabarone, Botswana.

Air pollution is a terrible health hazard with WHO estimating that well over 2 million people a year die prematurely from polluted air. That figure is greater than the annual death toll from HIV/AIDS.

The full list is as follows:
1. Ahwaz, Iran
2. Ulan Bator, Mongolia
3. Sanadaj, Iran
4. Ludhiana, India
5. Quetta, Pakistan
6. Kermanshah, Iran
7. Peshawar, Pakistan
8. Gaberone, Botswana
9. Yasouj, Iran
10. Kanpor, India

UK announces initiatives to assist developing world’s women

The British government has announced two multi-million pound initiatives to improve the lives of women in the developing world.

British Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg said that a massive £350 million would be invested into the Girls Education Challenge, which could assist up to a million girls in the poorest parts of Africa and Asia.

The investment is enough to give either 650,000 girls six years of primary education or a million older girls a junior secondary education, for three years.

“Women and girls continue to bear the brunt of poverty,” said Clegg.

“Investing in them early on and giving them an education not only radically alters their lives but has a massive knock on effect, benefiting their families and communities.

“Girls who have been to school are likely to do significantly better financially, socially and be far healthier.”

In addition, further funding would be poured into a separate project in the hope of preventing the deaths of more than 7,000 pregnant women in South Africa and Uganda.

Christian Aid Director Loretta Minghella welcomed this news.

“Continued gender discrimination is the most prevalent inequality of our time. More than 70 per cent of today’s poor are women and girls. Strong measures to combat such an iniquitous situation are hugely welcome,” she said.

“Access to education is essential to give girls more opportunities for their future, and access to family planning is crucial in helping women take control of their bodies.

“Christian Aid’s experience in many countries, however, shows that in order for societies to reap the benefits of gender equality, investment must also be made in civil society organisations that will hold governments accountable to everyone affected by their decisions.

“We hope sufficient funds are also targeted towards making that a reality.”

Tearfund helping out after Himalaya earthquake

The worldwide Christian aid organisation, Tearfund, has mobilised to assist in north east India, which was struck with a strong earthquake over the weekend.

Tearfund is working alongside partner agencies in the region, after a 6.9 magnitude earthquake in the state of Sikkim flattened thousands of homes and tore apart roads and buildings. Thousands have been left homeless by the earthquake, while dozens have been reported dead.

Tearfund are in a process of assessing the immediate needs but have already released emergency funding to partner relief teams working in the area.

“Our partner teams in the region will be doing all they can to help the communities affected,” said Robert Schofield, Tearfund Disaster Management Director.

“Temporary shelter, warm clothing, food, water and other essentials are vital, as exposure at altitude in the remote terrain is their biggest concern.”

Heavy rain has compounded problems causing landslides, and hampering emergency aid work. The Indian government is distributing emergency food packages and medical aid, but the stock of these government supplies will soon run out.

The destruction of the infrastructure, particularly in transport and communication, makes some areas incredibly hard to reach. It is also feared that damage to building may cause further deaths in the days to come.

“The quality of buildings in the areas affected will be a critical factor,” Schofield added.

“Whilst we hope for the best, relief teams and local communities are likely to see the consequences of poor building design. It is preparedness that makes the difference in any disaster and so often it is bad and hasty construction that claims lives. After the rescue and relief response we will need to work alongside village communities - learn the lessons that enable families to build better homes.

“This Himalayan region has been expecting a major quake. The one that hit on Sunday may serve as a rehearsal for emergency services, as well as a warning for local construction engineers and planners."

(Image show epicentre of the earthquake in Sikkim).

Rob Bell leaves Mars Hills church

Rob Bell, the popular speaker and author has announced to his 7,000-member Mars Hill Bible Church in Michigan, that he will be leaving them to start a new ministry at the end of the year.

Bell founded Mars Hill 12 years ago and has pastored the congregation through its rapid growth but told members they would “be fine” without him.

The author of the controversial book on heaven and hell called “Love Wins” spent much of his sermon on Sunday sharing with the congregation the vision he feels for his new ministry. The new calling on his life will see Bell and his family moving to Los Angeles to undertake several different projects, including writing projects and public speaking engagements. Bell also said he would not be starting a new church.

Congregants posted some of Bell’s remarks on Twitter.

"To be honest with you, I thought I would die here, but that's not really the right way to say it... Change is a form of loss," Bell said, according to Heidi Fenton.

"We service a big God and none of this is shocking to him. All we can do is embrace a future that is going to be brilliant," Bell insisted, as posted by Chris Zoladz.

Bell comforted worried congregants by telling them, "You are going to be fine."

Mars Hill Bible church released the following official statement:

“The infamous quote "change is the only constant" certainly holds true at Mars Hill. We have experienced ongoing changes that have improved and transformed – as well as at times unintentionally created tension or heartache within our community. And now, we have another significant change to hold together.

Feeling the call from God to pursue a growing number of strategic opportunities, our founding pastor Rob Bell, has decided to leave Mars Hill in order to devote his full energy to sharing the message of God’s love with a broader audience.

It is with deeply mixed emotions that we announce this transition to you. We have always understood, encouraged, and appreciated the variety of avenues in which Rob’s voice and the message of God’s tremendous love has traveled over the past 12 years. And we are happy and hopeful that as Rob and Kristen venture ahead, they will find increasing opportunity to extend the heartbeat of that message to our world in new and creative ways."

The news attracted so much attention that Mars Hill Bible Church's website suffered a crash on the day of the announcement.

'58: The Film' urges Christians to battle poverty

A new movie called “58: The Film” urges Christians to fight against global poverty and injustice. Based on God's call in Isaiah 58 to “loose the chains of injustice” it focuses on the problem of global poverty and oppression, and challenges Christians to act on their faith.

Filmed over the course of two years in 15 different countries, ’58’ features powerful stories of the impoverished and of those working alongside them. The film takes its audience from the drought-ridden Ethiopian plains to the slums of Kenya. It includes stories of people struggling to survive amidst gang violence, chemical addictions, the sex trafficking trade and more.

Stories of those seeking to serve alongside the poor include an American business owner selling Fair Trade coffee, a Brazilian man who assists those struggling with addiction, and a group of youth people in New York who fast and pray for those living in poverty.

"The purpose of the film is really to stimulate and to motivate and really to challenge Christians to respond to the biblical mandate for social concern and action,” said co-director Tony Neeves to the CP.

Neeves is a former vice president of Compassion International, a Christian organization that assists children around the globe who live in poverty.

"The Bible is really clear that God loves the poor and the oppressed, and has a very special concern for them, and really calls his children, his followers, to have that same heart,” added Neeves.

’58’ will premier in October in selected theaters, on iTunes, on television and in major church screenings.

Troy Davis executed while supporters mourn

Troy Davis was given a lethal injection on Wednesday in Jackson, Georgia, despite last minute attempts at a reprieve and despite protests from all around the world.

Troy Davis supporters gathered in front of the White House in Washington, and outside the prison where Davis was due to be executed to protest and mourn together. International supporters even gathered as far afield as a public square in France.

David was killed by lethal injection for killing an off-duty Georgia policeman in Savannah -- a crime he and others have insisted for years that he did not commit.

Davis' supporters included celebrities and other well-known figures, including past US President Jimmy Carter, the Pope, Rev. Jesse Jackson, Rev. Al Sharpton and rapper Big Boi.

"I feel a mixture of outrage and sadness, sadness because we may lose a life of someone who's not been proven to be guilty," Sharpton said shortly before Davis was given the lethal injection at 11:08 p.m. on Wednesday.

Davis insisted he was innocent from the very beginning. His case saw numerous legal twists and turns, with Davis's lawyers and thousands of supporters around the world protesting his innocence.

There was no physical evidence tying him to the 1989 killing of Mark Allen MacPhail, an off-duty police officer. Since the trial, seven of the nine witnesses who testified against Davis have recanted their testimonies, saying they were pressured into making their original testimonies.

"When there's doubtful evidence about whether someone's guilty, they certainly shouldn't be executed," said Jimmy Carter.

"Everyone who looks a little bit at the case knows that there is too much doubt to execute him," added Nicolas Krameyer from Amnesty International.

Davis also received a lot of support on social networks, with twitter users employed the trending topic "God Loves You" as a chance to show support for him.

"Since god love you is trending I'm gonna tweet about Troy Davis on it. Lol," Kevin BeatDown Brown said.

Lila Lewis offered encouragement for Davis by tweeting, "God loves you Troy Davis!"

(Image shows protestors holding up the photo of Troy Davis)