Mental Health & Gen Z Leads Active Evangelism

September is National Suicide Prevention Month…and it’s no surprise that the closer a person is to someone who has been impacted by suicide greatly affects the way they view need to address suicide.

According to a Lifeway Research study, those who have been impacted by the loss of a friend or family member by suicide (86%) are more likely than those who have not been as closely affected (70%) to see suicide as an epidemic in the United States.

Females are more likely than males to say they have a friend or relative who has committed suicide (43% v. 34%), and they are also more likely to say suicide is an epidemic (85% v. 70%).

Similarly, those in the South are among the most likely to say they have a friend or family member who has committed suicide (43%) and to say suicide is an epidemic (81%).

And white Americans are among the most likely to have a friend or family member who has committed suicide (42%) and to identify suicide as an epidemic (79%).

If you or someone you know is suicidal, you can Contact the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline if you are experiencing mental health-related distress or are worried about a loved one who may need crisis support.

* Call or text 988
* Chat at 988lifeline.org
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Gen Z adults, those 25 and under, match elders in a desire to share their faith, and lead all ages in their openness to spiritual conversations, the American Bible Society (ABS) said Sept. 8 in releasing its latest chapter of the 2022 State of the Bible.

More than half, 54 percent, of Gen Z and elders expressed a desire to share their faith with others, and 58 percent of Gen Z engaged in individual spiritual conversations with three or more persons in the past year, more than any other age group studied. The ABS defines elders as age 76 and older.

Factors that likely influence Gen Z’s Gospel sharing, ABS said, are changes in American culture that have made the Gospel “genuinely new” to Gen Z. American culture is “less overtly Christianized,” and methods of evangelism have adjusted to include Christian music, films, novels, streaming television and internet memes.

Among other generations, 45 percent of millennials and Gen X, and 50 percent of boomers said they wanted to share their faith. When it came to actually sharing their faith with others, 54 percent of boomers said they shared their faith with at least three people in the past year, the age category ranking closest to Gen Z. Among others, 52 percent millennials, 51 percent of Gen X and 45 percent of elders shared their faith with at least three others.

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