The Rise of the Chaplains
Their grandparents may have gone to church. But today, many Americans turn elsewhere to meet their spiritual needs.
Updated at 4:48 p.m. ET on September 24, 2020.
The pandemic has thrown into sharp relief a shift in American religious life. Growing numbers of Americans, especially under the age of 30, are not religiously affiliated or involved with spiritual or religious organizations. They do not have local religious leaders to call in a crisis like their grandparents did. Instead, in moments of great need, many are turning to chaplains and spiritual-care providers.
Religious congregations have been slowly yet steadily declining over the past 20 years as the
