Faith rebound: Signs of spiritual awakening continue as Gen Z turns to God, Gallup finds

There may not yet be a widely accepted term for the current spiritual movement among young people in the United States, but a new Gallup poll lends weight to the idea that a revival – or whatever it’s called – is gaining momentum among Gen Z, especially among men.

The poll, released Thursday, found that the share of young men ages 18-29 who say religion is “very important” in their lives is nearing a historic high, rising sharply from 28% in 2022–23 to 42% in 2024–25 – the latest data in the survey. The all-time high, 43%, was recorded between 2000 and 2001, when the terrorist attacks of 9/11 sparked a renewed spiritual interest across the nation.

At the same time, the share of young men attending religious services at least monthly climbed seven percentage points from 2022–23 to 2024–25, reaching 40% – the highest level recorded since 2012–13. That increase follows several years, from 2016–17 through 2022–23, when attendance among this demographic hovered around 33%.

The same upward trend, however, is not as evident among young women – though the data still offers reasons for encouragement. Gallup found the share of women ages 18–29 who say religion is “very important” in their lives dipped to 29% in 2024–25, down from 32% in 2022–23 but unchanged from 2020–21.

Even so, there is encouraging news within the female demographic: Monthly religious service attendance among young women has risen from 33% in 2020–21 to 39% in 2024–25, nearly mirroring the growth among young men.

It marks the first time in Gallup’s history that young men have led young women by a wide margin on the question of religion’s importance. As recently as 2018–19, young women held a nine-point lead, 41% to 32%.

Other age groups have not experienced a similar reversal – and in fact, women continue to lead in those groups.

Political scientist Ryan Burge of Washington University in St. Louis told the Associated Press that the gender gap among young people “represents a seismic change in society and the future of the church.”

Of course, the Gallup data on faith and attendance includes all religions – Christian and non-Christian. Even so, other data in recent months suggests that young people are embracing Christianity at a notable rate – and also are optimistic about the future of faith in America.

For example, a February survey by Barna Group found that Gen Z is more likely than any other generation to believe a revival will take place in America in the coming months (38%) – significantly higher than the national average of 29%.

Younger people are reading God’s Word, too. A November Barna survey found that weekly Bible reading was booming among Gen Z, jumping from 30% in 2024 to 49% in 2025 – several points higher than the average among all adults (42%). Young men (54%) are more likely than young women (46%) to read Scripture weekly, but both figures signal a meaningful surge in engagement.

There is plenty of evidence on the ground that something is stirring, too.

For example, this spring 4,500 college students gathered inside Florida State University’s basketball arena for a night of gospel proclamation, musical worship and testimonies as part of the Unite Us movement. Afterward, hundreds made decisions for Christ – and many of them were baptized.

“God continues to move,” Unite Us said in a social media post.