Page 13 - Digital Church in a Lonely World

ONLINE, T OGETHER AND L ONEL Y

Do you want to know a secret that Millennials and Gen Z know about the online world? We know
something is wrong. We actually know we are missing something. We have a nagging feeling that
maybe being a part of a congregation needs to be more than exclusively online. Why do we feel that
way? Aren’t our lives getting better because of the digital revolution?

Despite having more social interaction online than ever before, we have a loneliness epidemic. This
loneliness sits on our culture like a heavy blanket. It is a social sickness, and it is harming our souls. It is
one of the major contributing factors to our decline in mental health.

One study found that a “lack of social relationships was equivalent to smoking up to 15 cigarettes a
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day.” This 75-year study of adult development reveals that when we have an abundance of friendships,
we live longer, are happier and even physically healthier.

Consider these statistics regarding Gen Z.

Teens 13 to 17 years old report spending an estimated 5.15 hours on screens per day, a number that
3
increases to 6.7 hours per day among young adults ages 18 to 21. Three in five Gen Z (60%) agree their
generation spends too much time on screens. 4

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Seventy-nine percent of this same generation say they are lonely. Forty-four percent of Gen Z say they
feel lonely at least “some of the time,” which includes 20 percent who feel lonely “a lot of the time.” 6

GEN Z’S PERCEPTIONS OF THEIR GENERATION’S SCREEN TIME
% who agree

My generation spends too 13%
much time on screens 3%

My generation spends just the
right amount of time on
screens
25% 60%
My generation spends too
little time on screens

I don’t think it matters

n=1,503 U.S. teens and young adults ages 13–21; June 15–July 17, 2020.

DIGITAL CHURCH IN A LONELY WORLD 13