The Spire
Noroton Presbyterian Church
n
2011 Post Road, Darien, CT 06820
n
203-655-1451
T
here is
a whole
new genera-
tion of Americans
growing up outside of
any organized faith. Researchers from
Pew and Gallup have identified this
group of drop outs as the “Nones.”
When asked what religious tradition
they belong to, a growing number of
people are saying, “none” - hence their
designation. Pastor James E. White has
written a book about this group which
he cleverly entitled,
The Rise of the
Nones
. Today there are more “Nones”
in America than Southern Baptists. A
third of those under age 35 claim to be
“Nones.” 44% of those under age 35
say that, “they spend no time seeking
eternal wisdom.” If you are thinking
that, “most young adults have always
had doubts about faith,” think again.
That statement is true, but this group
with no faith whatsoever is 4 times as
likely as previous generations to be
labeled, "agnostics or atheists."
Okay, if they don’t believe in God, what
do they believe in? They believe in the
Internet. Young adults born after 1980
were the first to enter a world with the
personal computer in the classroom
and the reality of the world wide web
and they can barely remember a world
without the cell phone. They are the
first “digital natives” and since there
are 92 million of them, this age group
is larger than the Baby Boomers and
affecting everything they bless or ignore.
They have little use for cars because
they can summon a ride through Uber.
They don’t read newspapers because
their Twitter feeds and Facebook pages
keep them informed. They don’t trust
the church because they grew up in the
age of the clergy sex abuse scandals of
the Catholic church. They do believe
in protecting the environment, stopping
human trafficking, black lives matter and
gay rights. They would like more wage
equality, many are saddled with large
college debt, they aren’t sure about
marriage but they are quite willing to
have children before having a spouse.
So how do we reach this wonderful
and perplexing generation, who make
up my children and many of yours,
with the grace and truth of the gospel
of Jesus Christ? In the words of one
young person in a bar who learned of
a friend's faith, “I’m not interested in
your
creed
, I’m interested in who you
care
about.” This is a justice-oriented,
compassion-oriented age group. We
need to do what God wants us to do,
Leaving the Light On
continued on page 2...
April 2016
Worship Schedule
Chapel - 8:00 am
Sanctuary - 9:00 & 10:30 am
Open Doors - 5:00 pm
Upcoming Preaching Schedule:
Continuing Together in the Story
4/3 - NPC Service Day
8 am and 5 pm service only
Pastor Sam Schreiner
Nursery Care: 3 mos -3yrs at
5pm only
4/10 -
Pastor Brandi Drake
4/17 -
Pastor Jimmy McPherson
4/24 -
Pastor John Seiders
Upcoming Baptism Dates
4/17 & 5/15 at the
10:30 am Sanctuary service.
To schedule a Baptism please call
Leslie Ezzo
at 203-309-5618.
Table of Contents
Mission Ministry..................................2-3
Adult Spiritual Formation.....................4
Caring &Women’s Ministries...........5-8
Children’s Ministry.................................9
Youth Ministries................................... 10
Congregational Life Ministry............ 11
Welcoming...................................... 12-13
Half-year Anniversary................... 14-15
NPC Event Calendar.................... Insert
NPC News & Staff............................... 16
