Faith appears to be growing among young people in the US
Fox News religion correspondent Lauren Green has the latest on why young people are seeking God on 'Special Report.'
Young people are using a combination of 21st century technology and old school storytelling to learn about the Bible and spread the good word.
Young Americans, who often spend up to 10 hours a day behind computer and smartphone screens, are finding solace in Christian prayer apps and comic books, which have garnered millions of views and reads, to help them learn about the Gospel.
Fox News Digital spoke with Hallow CEO and co-founder Alex Jones, Franciscan University of Steubenville President Father Dave Pivonka, Pray.com founder and CEO Steve Gatena and Kingstone Comics CEO Art Ayris on why young people are turning to God and how digital media can be used as a tool to help spark interest in faith.
Reading the bible, the book of Job. (Godong/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
Gatena said he remembers a time when a "single act of sharing faith through technology" changed the trajectory of his life.
In 2016, he lost his business partner in a plane crash, and in a search for meaning, he was sent a Christian podcast that inspired him to share the Gospel with others. Now, he sees how digital media can be a powerful tool in bringing people to God.
"Younger audiences under 30 are engaging with biblical stories like never before," Gatena said. "When Scripture is presented in formats that meet them where they already are, whether cinematic retellings, short-form video or audio devotionals, curiosity turns into genuine engagement... The Gospel has always traveled through the language of its time, from papyrus to the printing press to podcasts. We’re simply the next chapter."
Pivonka, who ministers to thousands of teenagers and young adults through the university’s Steubenville Conferences, said the search for meaning leads young people to find God.
"They find in the church a relationship with God, and I would say also with the Scriptures, a sense of meaning, purpose, boundaries, something worth it that they can invest themselves in," he said. "The world is so loud, it's so mechanical, it's so digital. When they can go and be quiet, be still, encounter God — that's really satisfying."
Storytelling plays a major role in reaching young people because the Bible is the "greatest story" ever told, Jones said. Hallow uses social media to invite young people to encounter God by inviting them to stop scrolling to hear a verse of Scripture.
"The only thing that gives you real peace is God, and He does that in Scripture," Jones said. "What we see is just trying to break through that noise of letting God give you that peace and then share with you in that peace, how much He loves you. It’s this pretty transformational thing, especially for young people, both men and women."
Jones told Fox News Digital that storytelling is "incredibly important" and the company tries to bring Scripture to life in a new way for viewers.
Kingstone Comics shares the faith with youth through illustrations. (Courtesy of Kingstone CEO Art Ayris) (Courtesy of Kingstone CEO Art Ayris)
Comic books are also proving to be a powerful tool in introducing the Gospel to younger audiences in a way they can understand. Ayris told Fox News Digital that in his work with kids and teenagers, he struggled to find engaging material until finding comics.
"The comic medium is near universal and communication is most effective when delivered in medium familiar to that culture… Over 41% of teens have never read the Bible, so we created a Bible that could be read and understood in a matter of months," he said.
The Kingstone Bible has been a "perennial seller" for the company. Calling to mind a quote from Walt Disney, Ayris explained it best: "Of all of our inventions for mass communication, pictures still speak the most universally understood language."
Pivonka said that while media can be used as a tool to help young people make that "initial connection," ultimately, people are searching for authentic connections in the church.
"The digital world can only satisfy so much," he said. "So, they're starting to pray, they're starting to read the Scriptures, they're starting to go to church. I think the initial connection can be through social media, and, in fact, I think that's a wonderful way to use it."
St Mark's Basilica resurrection fresco, Venice. ((Photo by: Godong/Universal Images Group via Getty Images))
Gatena said the purpose of Pray.com is not to get people to "scroll more," but instead to encourage them to "pray more."
"Technology isn’t the enemy of faith — distraction is. We’re building tools that bring people back to what matters most: time with God," he said.
Catholic leaders across the United States are reporting an increase in the number of adult converts, according to a previous report. For example, the Archdiocese of Newark in New Jersey reported that 1,701 people were preparing to join the Church, which is up 30% since 2025.
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Pivonka, who served in NET Ministries, explained how encounters with God have the power to touch people in difficult moments.
"Some of the kids that I talked with were just in profoundly difficult family situations and structures that the love of God really — it was their anchor," Pivonka said. "It was their lifesaver that there was some sense of hope, and I think that's really, for a lot of kids, that's what they're really hoping, looking for."
