A major finding from Barna’s existing research on evangelism is that even Christian Millennials are conflicted about—if not opposed to—sharing their faith. Are today’s teens following their lead? A new Barna Group study among Gen Z seeks to find out. In an effort to better inform leaders about the emerging generation’s perceptions of evangelism, Alpha USA and Alpha Canada partnered with Barna to create two country-specific reports on Reviving Evangelism in the Next Generation.

When compared to older generations, Gen Z teens—ages 13–18—in both the U.S. and Canada think about and approach spiritual conversations in their own unique way. Today’s article offers research on how this group defines evangelism and feels while sharing their faith, offering necessary context for church leaders who are pondering how to activate this next generation in their faith-sharing endeavors.

Half of Teens Lean on Actions Rather than Words When Sharing Their Faith How do U.S. Christian Gen Z define acts of evangelism? Half believe “letting your actions speak rather than using words to explain your faith” and “inviting someone to attend a church service with you” (50% each) are acts of evangelism. Other actions they largely view as evangelism include “telling your personal story about how you came to be a Christian” (48%), “telling someone about benefits / changes experienced when following Jesus” (48%) and “praying with someone” (47%). Despite being the most digital-savvy generation, just under three in 10 Christian Gen Z (28%) say sharing digital / online content with someone is a form of evangelism.

When faithful Gen Z think about the preferences of recipients of evangelism, the theme is similar. Over four in five U.S. Christian Gen Z teens (83%) note “letting your actions speak rather than using words to explain your faith to someone” is most likely to create a positive response among non-believers.

Unlike Millennials, Gen Z Rarely Associates Negative Emotions with Faith-Sharing What does it feel like to talk about faith identity with someone who does not share your point of view? According to half of all U.S. Gen Z (52% Christian Gen Z, 47% non-Christian Gen Z), talking about faith makes them feel calm. Roughly one in three (37%, 30%) agrees they feel peaceful when talking about their faith with someone of a different religious identity. Even so, one-quarter of Christian teens (27%) and over one in three non-Christian teens (37%) admit they feel awkward during this experience.