A Vital Invitation

In 2024, social psychologist and self-proclaimed atheist Jonathan Haidt set the internet ablaze when he proposed that the smartphone is the root cause behind the mental health epidemic plaguing Generation Z (those born between 1997 and 2012) and Generation Alpha (those born between 2013 and 2025). His bestselling book The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness gained praise from both Christians and nonbelievers.

Haidt argues there has been a “great rewiring of childhood” since the 2010s. Gen Z and Gen Alpha have fewer in-person interactions, leading to a decrease in empathy and resilience and resulting in an increase in mental illness and even self-harm. Haidt’s solution to this hopeless future for the younger generations is simply to restrict technology: Remove the phones; remove the problem.

According to National Public Radio (NPR), school districts and administrators reacted quickly, with over 31 states and the District of Columbia banning or limiting smartphone use in schools by September 2025.

But is the absence of technology and unrestricted internet access really enough to reach the hearts of Gen Z and Gen Alpha? Should Haidt’s worldview as an atheist impact how the local church should intervene and support the Anxious Generation?

According to Dr. Thom Rainer, author and former CEO of Lifeway Christian Resources, the answer to helping the Anxious Generation find healing is not simply about restriction. It’s about hope – a hope that begins with a simple invitation to church.

A call to commitment

In his 2025 book The Anxious Generation Goes to Church: What the Research Says about What Younger Generations Need (and Want) from Your Church, Rainer reframes Haidt’s theory through a Christian worldview and church-based research perspective to argue that, while smartphones are indeed contributing to troubles plaguing Gen Z and Gen Alpha, the solution is involvement in the local church. Sadly, church attendance is in decline – a vicious cycle Rainer said usually worsens over time.

“Frankly, if church members cannot get past the issue of basic attendance, we should not expect an unchurched generation to join us,” Rainer writes.

According to Church Answers (churchanswers.com), a research resource founded by Rainer for church leaders, the median worship attendance of churches in the U.S. fell 63.5% – from 137 in 2000 to 50 in 2025. Many Christians seem confused about the difference between church attendance and church membership.

“[Church membership] is covenantal, meaning there is a promise made,” Rainer told The Stand.

“When declaring church membership, you are saying that not merely are you going to be part of the participatory activity, but you’re going to be committed to do the work of ministry through the church.”

An in-person experience

Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, many believers have opted for the comfort of online, streamed church services. While such resources are beneficial when confined to home or struggling with sickness, online services cannot fully replace the benefit of in-person gatherings.

“When you are in a worship service and you are singing together, that is not the same dynamic as listening to people sing online,” Rainer explained.

“I do not want to be anti-digital,” he added, “but I want to make certain that we understand that the church was designed to be in the flesh.”

The greatest example of in-person relationship is the very incarnation of Jesus Christ Himself, who left the throne of Heaven to walk among His creation. And while Gen Z and Gen Alpha are so often engrossed in the immersive, endless expanse of the digital world, research conducted by Church Answers shows they’re craving face-to-face interaction.

“The Anxious Generation is coming to church because of the in-person element,” Rainer said. “They’re not coming to church because of digital connections. They’ve got more than enough of those, and much of what has happened to Gen Z and now Gen Alpha has been because of the negative influence of the digital world. So, the churches who are reaching Gen Z are the churches that have people who are connecting with them in person.”

As the church seeks to reach and teach this generation, Rainer encourages Christians to reframe the opportunity as a chance to learn from younger individuals. Other than the often-detrimental impact of the smartphone, the Anxious Generation demonstrates that being physically present and gathering with other believers is part of God’s design.

“Just from a purely human physiological and psychological point of view, children and youth do so much better when they are in church on a regular basis. … The Holy Spirit is working in the church because there are people gathered in His name in the church, worshiping and praising together,” Rainer explained. “It is not merely being in a group of good people. It’s [being] with a group of people who are forgiven sinners who are then empowered by the Holy Spirit.”

A personal invitation

According to Church Answers, 78% of Gen Zers will attend church if they are (1) personally invited and (2) joined by that person as they enter the church building. Rainer explained that there is an 8-out-of-10 chance that a Gen Zer will say yes to an invitation.

“Gen Zers are one of the most receptive groups to attending church that I have seen in my long lifetime,” Rainer added, “[so] don’t be afraid of inviting them, whether they’re a grandchild, child, or just a friend in the neighborhood.”

Rainer urges friends, parents, grandparents, mentors, and teachers of the Anxious Generation to go to church. Abandon the notion that consistent church attendance is a construct of legalism. Instead, realize that belonging to a local church is a source of life modeled and mandated in the Bible.

“If a mom and dad go and bring their kids with them, that is the best modeling,” he said. “One of the things that I would encourage parents to do is not to look at church as yet another activity to put on the list. … We do not see the church gathering together, worshiping together, and listening to the Word together as one more activity. We see that as crucial to who we are and who we are to become.”

In addition to encouraging church attendance, Rainer compels parents and youth alike to join a small group or form a Bible study, giving church members the opportunity to get to know each other, share life together, serve together, and give together.

While church attendance in itself does not equate to having a saving faith, attending a church where the gospel is preached and the Holy Spirit is present can lead lost people to find salvation in Jesus.

“Show [church] as a priority in your life,” Rainer encouraged. “Be bold and invite them, and most will say yes. And those who say no – well, that’s OK too. Just be obedient and everything will fall in place.”