Religiosity Surges Among Young People, David French Says "You're Welcome"

Wait I don't think this has anything to do with cuckchair model David French.

Last September, Pastor Jason Howard of the Sanctuary Church in Pittsburgh saw a surge of young people flocking to his Christian congregation, the week after Charlie Kirk was murdered.

Howard knew that something had shifted. Yes, their congregation had always been predominantly youth-driven, but this was different. Lines began to form for their services. Public transportation was dropping off children by the busload from campuses across the city, and he knew that he had an obligation to expand. Howard teamed up with local college students at the University of Pittsburgh, and a revival called Pitt Purposes was held on campus, attracting about 600 students and led by members of the university's football team.

But the youth movement didn't pause. In fact, it grew, leading to last week's revival at the University of Pittsburgh's Peterson Center that attracted thousands and included hundreds of baptisms, most in pickup trucks.

Howard said that after Pitt for Jesus happened in the fall, they really wanted to do a follow-up. "Our hope was that we could do something big like at the Petersen Event Center," he said.

Jake Overman, the captain of the Pitt football team, reached out to Unite Us, a ministry that has partnered with university students to organize big arena events at college campuses. Overman, who might get drafted or picked up as a free agent in next month's draft in Pittsburgh, led the Pitt for Jesus movement last fall.

There is one catch: Unite Us almost exclusively does events below the Mason-Dixon line. Nonetheless, they secured the Petersen Event Center, located in the middle of the Oakland Campus, and Overman and an army of students began canvassing the local campuses here for turnout.

There are several universities and colleges in the Pittsburgh area: Carnegie Mellon, Duquesne, Robert Morris, LaRoche, Point Park, Carlow, Chatham, and Allegheny Community College.

By the time the event happened last week, over 5,000 young people were in attendance, with several hundred of them choosing to be baptized that evening.

They are not alone. For the first time in decades, faith in this country is growing, not retreating -- particularly among our young people, something that I've been reporting for the past year. In my rural parish, a Roman Catholic Church in the Diocese of Greensburg, our attendance has nearly doubled since last fall. Unless you get to Mass at least 15 minutes before services begin, you are left standing for the entire service -- and that is with added folding chairs in the back, along the side, and with the choir pews above us filled.

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On Sunday, the Mother of Sorrows parish, which is also part of the Diocese of Greensburg, also had standing-room-only services on Palm Sunday. This has become the norm every Sunday. All three parking lots were packed, with cars straddling the grass leading down to the highway. Nearby Dick's Diner was also filled with parishioners.

The surge in Roman Catholic Church converts is being felt across the United States. Dioceses in the Rust Belt, Midwest, and Bible Belt are seeing record numbers of people received into the Catholic Church. Last fall, the New York Times reported that the Archdioceses of Detroit, Galveston-Houston, and Des Moines are also seeing significant increases.

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"What we're witnessing right now is an answer to many years of prayers," he said. "Seeing this many college students turn to Jesus, and not just in a casual way but in a passionate way; willing to follow him wholeheartedly."

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"I think overall young people are really looking for something real, and I think that this generation has really gotten to the point where the world seems out of control, and the world seems to be so subjective," Howard said.

He added that people are desperately looking for something absolute to anchor their lives in. "And, of course, God is the absolute that can anchor our lives."

Haz
@Michael_Haz

The TLM order that has been entrusted with my parish cannot ordain new priests fast enough to keep up with the requests from bishops to take over closed churches for parishoners who have asked for a Latin Mass. Wherever they are sent, the once-closed churches have filled pews several times, every Sunday. It's a beautiful thing to see and hear, especially all the newly initiated young singles, couples and families.

posted by Disinformation Expert Ace at 02:30 PM

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