International Survey Finds Half of Teens Say Jesus Offers Hope, Fourth Claim Personal Relationship With Him

A survey of nearly 25,000 teenagers 13-17 in 26 countries and speaking 17 different languages turned up some surprising responses concerning their opinions about Jesus Christ and their views about His relevance, or lack thereof.

Forty-six percent of those interviewed by the Barna Group said Jesus “offers hope” to the world and more.

“Most teenagers around the world have a positive perception of Him. About half of all teens, across faith groups, describe Jesus as “loving” (49 percent) and believe He offers hope to (46 percent) and cares about people (43 percent). The global impression of Jesus is that He is trustworthy, generous, wise, peaceful … and the glowing list goes on,” according to Barna.

When they were asked their perceptions of the Bible, the numbers went down but perhaps not as much as might be expected from a large group representing a wide variety of secular and religious perspectives.

Thirty-eight percent of those surveyed agreed the Bible teaches how to live “a meaningful life,” 36 percent said it provides guidance on understanding “my purpose in life,” and 34 percent said the Bible offers helpful information on “living wisely in today’s society.”

Among those teens who are “Biblically engaged,” 84 percent said the Bible teaches them how to live “a meaningful life,” 84 percent also agreed it provides guidance on understanding “my purpose in life” and 80 percent concurred that the Bible has helpful information on “living wisely in today’s society.”

Readers interested in learning more about the results of the survey can go here. 

Barna said the survey was conducted in conjunction with “Alpha, Biblica and World Vision, with additional support from Christian Vision, Bible Study Fellowship, Christ In Youth and the Association of Christian Schools International.” The survey interviews were conducted between July 21 and August 24, 2021.

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