Faith that has never been questioned may look peaceful.

Sometimes it is simply unopened.

Young adulthood rearranges nearly everything: identity, relationships, authority, suffering and the assumptions inherited from home. It makes sense that faith would enter the conversation.

Pew found no clear nationwide religious revival among young adults in its 2025 data. It also found no dramatic recent collapse: religious measures have been broadly stable since 2020. The quieter story is that young adults remain less religious than older generations and many reconsider the tradition in which they were raised.

Wrestling can include doubt, anger, disappointment with church, questions about Scripture or discomfort with people who speak for God rather confidently. None automatically proves a person has rejected God.

Jacob wrestled. Job protested. The Psalms ask questions polite religious conversation occasionally tries to edit out.

Look for movement, not perfect language

Is the young adult still asking? Reading? Praying honestly, even if the prayer is angry? Seeking trustworthy people? Trying to reconcile belief with reality?

Those may be signs of engagement, not abandonment.

Parents can help by refusing panic. Do not demand instant certainty or interpret every question as disrespect. Offer resources when invited. Model a faith capable of repentance when Christians cause harm.

Walking away and wrestling can look similar from a distance. Up close, one may still be holding on with both hands.

Do not mistake discomfort for absence.

Some faith becomes deeper only after it stops pretending the questions are easy.

Research source: Pew Research Center, recent trends in young-adult religion