According to reverend Franklin Graham, one of America’s best-known evangelists, the failed attempted assassination of Donald Trump was an intervention by God. “I believe that God turned his head and saved his life,” he says. The likening of Trump to a biblical figure has been conjured up by the President himself, who once suggested that his life was spared for a reason: to “save our country and to restore America to greatness”. So far, white Christian voters have shown out for the MAGA movement in overwhelming numbers – Trump once again won some 80 per cent of white evangelicals in the 2024 election. Even recently, as Trump’s approval rating plummets, white Christian groups are still the most likely to approve of the job he’s doing as president. With Gen Z generally considered far more liberal than previous generations, the question then becomes how Trump’s particular style of Christian nationalism is landing for young American Christians. What does it mean to be a young evangelical in the US today?
Blue-Waverly, a 27-year-old in New York, has witnessed “many peers” become interested in Christianity in recent years, not because of Trump but in spite of him and his administration. “I think that there is a direct correlation between the state of the world and the current administration and people wanting something good to believe in,” she says. “People don’t trust the government, realise they can’t trust the security that their jobs once gave them and don’t have any trustworthy place for validation – I think that’s why a lot of young people are starting to realise they can find that in Jesus.” It’s a shift we’re seeing beyond America: since 2018, the number of young men attending church has increased from four per cent to 21 per cent in the UK. According to Blue-Waverly, churches have once again become a hub for young people to find “meaningful community” amidst the ongoing disappearance of IRL third places. “People can be real, raw and have problems, not just be Instagram-worthy,” she says.
The communal desire that Blue-Waverly has witnessed in youth-focused churches comes after years of studies calling Gen Z “the loneliest generation”. She says services often bleed over into cafés and brunch spots, where young people search for peace “in the midst of a storm of chaos and evil” (the current administration). In church, Blue-Waverly says she’s having conversations about the “humanity component” of current policies and ensuring the safety of other people. “Being a Christian in America means dividing yourself from the ways of the world, especially in the political climate now, and cutting out the noise to sit with everything that’s happening and still have trust in God,” she says. These political conversations, of course, differ from church to church, demographic to demographic. Only nine per cent of Black protestants backed Trump in the 2024 election, and there’s a clear generational divide when it comes to Palestine. Gen Z tend to sympathise with Palestinians, but white evangelical Christians are some of Israel’s biggest supporters.
On the topic of immigration, young people (evangelical or otherwise) are largely unified in opposing Trump’s hard-line immigration policies across college campuses. Lyle “Elle” Bulado, who lives in New York, says many of his peers have become “increasingly critical” of policies that exclude or marginalise. “Whether it’s the war on Gaza or other issues, there’s a growing sense of disillusionment,” she says. “For me, it’s clear that many young evangelicals are distancing themselves from a political narrative that doesn’t align with their personal experiences or values.” Born and raised in the Philippines, Bulado says his family is “deeply rooted in Christianity”. She attended an evangelical kindergarten, Catholic high school and private Catholic university run by priests and nuns. After coming to New York in 2016, Bulado says he doesn’t attend church services regularly anymore. “In the Philippines, church and community were intertwined and constant, whereas in NYC, finding a community that resonates with my evolving beliefs has been both challenging and enlightening,” she says.
Whether it’s the war on Gaza or other issues, there’s a growing sense of disillusionment. For me, it’s clear that many young evangelicals are distancing themselves from a political narrative that doesn’t align with their personal experiences or values
Bulado’s experience as a Christian in America has consisted largely of connecting through online platforms, volunteer groups, grassroots organisations and attending in-person gatherings with “like-minded” believers. “These spaces allow me to share my journey as a Christian, immigrant and member of the LGBTQ community, even though they may not be traditional church environments,” he says. “The cultural and political landscapes are pushing us to reimagine what it means to live out our faith authentically in today’s America.” This, however, does not mean that all youth-focused Christian spaces online are as left-leaning. Alexa, a 26-year-old Californian, says she started seeing snippets of sermons and testimonies on TikTok after watching New Age content creators bring God into content about the universe. Before finding Christianity online, she says she was on “the full liberal side” and believed in New Age spirituality. Now, six months later, she’s a Trump supporter.
For Bulado, the increasing ties between Christianity and right-wing nationalism have made her question if those in power in America truly represent Christian values. “I see a disconnect between genuine faith and political opportunism,” he says. Alexa’s embrace of Trump through her newfound faith has permeated throughout the entirety of her political beliefs. “All of my views have changed politically and have flipped,” she says. “I believed everything that was said in the media, was fully against Trump and believed in the things we were being told about feminism and that women need to be hustling.” A dramatic shift happened within the first two months of Alexa going to a church in Orange County. She has since switched her entire friend group and now believes the “most important thing a woman can do is be a wife and mother”. According to Alexa, the young Christians she surrounds herself with now tend to support Trump. “We are happy to have someone in office who is led by God because it’s going to lead to a spiritual revolution and US revival,” she says.
Seeing leaders of a congregation welcome Trump with open arms has been enough reason for some young Christians to leave their church entirely. Katie, a queer Christian based in North Carolina, left her church after being rejected from evangelical organisations after coming out and seeing how they responded to COVID 19 and Black Lives Matter protests. “I started to realise my values did not align with the faith that I grew up in,” she says. “Being Christian has almost become its own political class now, but I’m so disenchanted with Trump and the way that the larger American church has gotten into bed with the Trump administration.” Katie now attends an Episcopal church. In January 2025, Episcoal bishop Mariann Budde urged Trump to show mercy to immigrants and queer Americans. “Whether it’s about faith or politics, I would love to see people seeking to understand more than they seek to be understood,” says Katie.
Trump may call American evangelicals his “beautiful Christians”, but young evangelicals are not a monolith, each with their own hopes for the future spiritual state of the country. As the war over spiritual authority in America continues, newly conservative Christians like Alexa are hoping that Trump will steer America back to “biblical times”. Bulado, on the other end, believes America is currently in a state of spiritual “shambles”. “There’s a dire need to set aside divisive ideologies in favour of empathy, communal unity, and cooperation,” he says. America is, in fact, extremely political polarised, but Blue-Waverly isn‘t placing her hopes on any one person, politician or administration. “I pray that more people get to see that there's a lot of fruitfulness and this administration is not the be-all of humanity,” she says. “My hope is for people to find love, trust and security in the unknown and allow themselves to release control – there’s somebody much bigger who has the final say.”