A new study has found British teenagers have more positive than negative perceptions of Jesus.
The Barna Group poll revealed a significant number of teens aged 13 to 17 are interested in learning more about Christianity.
A third of them said Jesus offers hope and cares about people.
Just under a quarter thought He was trustworthy and generous.
But only 13% believed He is still active in the world today .
Barna CEO David Kinnaman said the data showed British teens are in “a formative and precarious season of life.”
“It is encouraging to see they are open to Jesus, show interest in learning more about the Bible, and are motivated toward addressing injustice in the world,” he noted.
“But we also noticed challenges, including British teens’ lack of confidence in their ability to make an impact in society, and their uncertainty about the Christian church’s role in addressing injustice.”
“Our goal for this study is to help churches and Christian leaders in the UK engage, disciple, and support this rising generation entering adulthood.”
The study was conducted in partnership with World Vision, Alpha UK and Biblica.
Phil Simpson, Youth Development Lead at Alpha UK, said that the challenge for UK churches and those engaging with young people “is that these perspectives are mostly in the past tense”.
“Nearly half of UK teens believe Jesus was a person who was crucified. However, there is a significantly small percentage who believe Jesus is active in the world today, and the perception of this for the average UK teen is lower than the global perspectives of teenagers,” he observed.
“The church needs to help them begin to see Jesus as someone who is alive, someone who can be encountered and someone who is active in the world in 2023.”
