That means when young evangelicals talk about "life issues," they don't just mean abortion, says Merritt — "They're talking about an ethic of life from the womb to the tomb. They care about issues like war, poverty, the global water crisis, environmental degradation."

Ken Wilson, senior pastor of the Vineyard Church in Ann Arbor, Michigan, argues, "The culture war stuff just does not appeal to younger generations." Many are children of divorce, he says, and they've tired of conflict: "They're not interested in a spirituality that helps them become culture warriors. They want to repair the culture."

Jay Bakker, pastor of the Revolution Church in New York City (which meets in a Williamsburg bar) and son of televangelists Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker, says he now hears less talk abortion than he used to among young Christians: "People feel like no one wants to see more abortions but to make it illegal would make it dangerous." He agrees with Wilson that the divorce rate among older generations has had an effect, making young evangelicals less likely to jump into marriage early in life. "Christian couples used to get married because they wanted to have sex, and I think now they realize that's not a reason to get married," Bakker says. "I don't know if they're staying celibate, but it's not the biggest issue."

Gay rights, he says, remain divisive, with some young Christians arguing for legal equality for gay people while still regarding homosexuality as a sin. But Bakker maintains that young evangelicals' top concerns are poverty, social justice, and the environment — not sexual politics.

This doesn't necessarily mean young evangelicals are all becoming liberal, or that they're becoming indistinguishable from other young Americans. Joe Carter, a senior editor for the Acton Institute who has written an argument against "the myth of the liberal young evangelical," thinks the narrative of liberalization comes from students at already-liberal colleges like Wheaton: "If go out to the University of Texas, or North Dakota, and talk to evangelicals, they're just as conservative as their parents."

But he does see some changes. Young evangelicals are still anti-abortion, but they want to talk about other issues too, like sex trafficking. He also says that on gay marriage, they're becoming more libertarian and less interested in state regulation. Keeping younger people in the fold, says Carter, will be a matter of messaging: Churches just need to show young congregants "that their concerns are aligned."

Others are less optimistic. Wilson says evangelicalism is on the decline, and according to a 2011 poll, 82% of ministers say the same. In order to turn that around, he says, "We need a major rethink of who we are and what we stand for."

For Wilson, that would mean a shift from approaching sex in terms of abstinence or purity and toward viewing it "through the lens of wisdom. What's good for a happy, healthy, blessed life? What's good for me and my community?" And it would mean a turn from an evangelical movement he thinks has defined itself as "a movement that's against things" to one that's more focused on bringing people together.

Young Christians, he says, have "a longing for community and connectedness," which churches can feed by organizing more small groups and volunteer drives, especially those that speak to young people's concerns about worldwide poverty and environmental degradation. Wilson also says churches need to get better at addressing the concerns of young people who may be single, cohabiting, or dating outside their faith. That would include not just a different approach to sexuality but different terms — Wilson notes that calling a church a "family worship center," as many evangelical establishments do, can be alienating to singles.

Merritt uses a similar metaphor: "We are going to have to begin seeing the world through the lens of biblical theology rather than through the lens of conservative politics." He says pastors need to stop endorsing political candidates, make room for more disagreement on certain issues, and "stop speaking about complicated public policy proposals as if they're qualified to do so."