The Unaffiliated Are Not the Unreachable: Understanding and Reaching the Nones

The religiously unaffiliated are the fastest growing group in the U.S.—How do we reach them?

The group known as the "nones" have fairly quickly become the predominant religious story in America. Nones—not to be confused with nuns—are the fastest growing religious group in America. The term refers to people who select "none of the above" when they're asking a question on a religious questionnaire, they're not necessarily atheists; in fact, most aren't. They're not necessarily anti-religious; some of them believe in God.

A more precise term would be the "religiously unaffiliated." Depending upon which study you look at, as many as one-third of the nones plan to go back to church one day. They're generally not all anti-God, though some are. Read More