Standing for something: LDS teens buck trends, say faith is vital to them

"I think baby boomers decided the only good and true thing in life was that which was personally authentic," so many tossed out things they learned in church as children because "if you were simply taught to say it (without believing), it's not worth it."

As a result, their own children "haven't even learned the canned answer to give" when asked about who God or Jesus is or why it matters. "When I ask, 'Tell me what you believe,' they would say something like, 'Well, I don't believe in vampires.' "

Yet Smith said he has great respect for teens and is not out to denigrate or belittle them. "Everything I'm talking about here grows out of the larger adult world around them. They are barometers of where things are more broadly in society.

"They are not 'the other,' but are very much 'us.' "

Whether kids are "aware of it or not," religion clearly makes a "significant, positive difference in the quality of teens' lives," he said, including their attitudes about the future, how much guilt they feel, how much TV they watch. "It's a whole range of outcomes that parents would like to see."

Such teens are doing "much better in life than those not involved" directly in religious activities or beliefs. The non-religious "are doing very badly."

"They're not just disconnected from religion, but from everything."

And as many believers have long suspected, "the faith lives of teens are powerfully shaped by the faith lives of their parents. . . . Teen problems are an immediate reflection of adult problems," Smith said.

Bartkowski told the audience that much of what Smith had presented "does not apply to a lot of LDS teens we interviewed." In addition to the strict proscriptions for behavior and active religious participation, LDS teens are well-served by their "extensive scriptural repertoire," including the Book of Mormon.

The book provides unique role models for "enduring persecution, condemning worldliness and teaches that righteousness is rewarded."

The faith's focus on eternal family connections and the belief that today's actions affect an eternal outcome for not only themselves but other family members are strong motivators, as is the church's lay ministry, which is pointedly devoted to the teaching and nurturing of children and teens.

"I call it youth ministry on steroids," with a seminary program on weekdays, activities on weeknights and focusing teaching during Sunday youth meetings. The church's New Era magazine for teens is "hip but holy, directing a focus on remembering who you are and an emphasis on being different" from the crowd.

Children and teens are well-schooled in the history of the faith, the legacy of early persecution and endurance and the notion of passing such a legacy forward to future generations. Such stories also contribute to the devotion LDS teens have to their faith, Bartkowski said.

Yet because the faith is comparatively strict, there are potential downsides, he said, including a tendency to ostracize those who don't remain faithful and family conflict as a result of high expectations or fanaticism.

One young man told Bartkowski his mother was so involved in church service that, were she to be given the choice between attending his high school graduation or a Relief Society meeting, "she would probably choose Relief Society."

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E-mail: carrie@desnews.com