[fwdude]

This contention cannot be either supported or refuted. But I tend to believe him. You don't have to blatantly announce that you have "lost your faith" to, practically, lose your faith. It happens all too often.

I grew up in, and still find myself among, the Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary culture, and am in touch with many current and former students and faculty through church and lifelong affiliations (my father was a graduate.) I find that the majority of them are now agnostic at best, and atheistic at worst. The number of them who consider the Biblical accounts of the Old, and many of the New, Testaments to be "merely stories to teach us lessons" is absolutely astounding. You'd think that they were pickled in a lifetime of attending a UU "church" from listening to them.

Many are ardent supporters of a purely evolutionist world view, completely discounting that a God of the Bible could have anything directly to do with how creation came into being.

[LS]

Meh, seems dubious to me. I teach at a Catholic university, and judging form Ash Wednesday, I'd say 3/4 still "have their faith." Moreover, Barna's research shows that many people "leave church" because it is NOT giving them "enough God" and a deep enough spiritual relationship with Jesus. In short, churches aren't losing them to the secular world, but to a deeper quest for Christianity.

Finally, I think there is a natural questioning and searching that goes on at that age---having taught that age group for 30 years---and many return to the faith (which they really didn't "leave") within 10 years. About the time reality hits them.