Gen Z: ‘Most Religious’ Generation

By Newsmax Wires    |   Friday, 25 September 2026 08:49 AM EDT

New Harris Poll data suggest Generation Z, as the “most religious generation,” is more likely than older generations to identify as religious, even as young people organize against artificial intelligence data centers and seek more in-person community.

Thirty-three percent of Gen Z respondents identified as religious, compared with 18% of baby boomers, 22% of Generation X, and 19% of millennials, Fortune reported Thursday.

Nineteen percent of Gen Z respondents said they were neither religious nor spiritual, the lowest share among the generations surveyed.

Libby Rodney, chief strategy officer at The Harris Poll, said both religious interest and opposition to data centers may reflect a desire among young people for more control over their lives and communities.

Fifty-seven percent of Gen Z respondents said they had turned to spirituality or manifestation practices to feel more in control of their future.

Sixty percent said they belonged to more in-person communities than they did previously, and 70% said they wanted to join more.

Rodney said resistance to data centers reflects a similar concern that technological change is happening without public consent.

“This idea that the world, the narrative that’s out there from tech companies, is like this AI world is happening whether you like it or not,” she said. “And so there’s this lack of consent.”

Opposition to data centers has grown across the country.

Data Center Watch said local resistance has blocked or delayed more than $228 billion in projects since the beginning of 2025. More than 500 localities in 39 states have passed bans, moratoriums, or other restrictions, while 843 opposition groups are active in 49 states.

Opposition blocked or delayed projects worth $68 billion from April through June, following $130 billion in disruptions during the first quarter, according to Data Center Watch.

A March Gallup poll found that 7 in 10 Americans opposed building a data center near where they live.

New York imposed a moratorium on certain permits for large data centers in July, with Pennsylvania and Texas later adopting restrictions.

Rodney said data centers can prompt a stronger local response than artificial intelligence in general because communities can see and weigh in on their construction. In the Harris Poll research, 73% of Americans said they did not want AI imposed on their community, and 68% said the technology could be useful but “feels forced.”

The findings also point to economic concerns among young adults.

Seventy percent of Gen Z respondents said the future they were promised had not materialized, and 61% said they had skipped medical care because of cost.

Separate Harris Poll research with the Milken Institute found a 41-percentage-point gap between business leaders and workers on AI’s expected financial benefits: 68% of leaders expected to be better off in five years because of the technology, compared with 27% of workers.

Rodney said young people were hearing warnings about job losses and other risks without enough discussion of AI’s potential benefits.

Rodney also said 7 in 10 Gen Z respondents had sought help or leaned on others in the past year, more than any other generation surveyed.

“Religion is coming back because it’s a couple of things,” Rodney said. “It’s physical spaces, but it’s people who help, and it’s community that comes together.”

Related Stories:

• Franklin Graham’s Daughter Cissie Tapped as Religious Freedom Ambassador
• Anthony Gross to Newsmax: Gen Z Faith Revival ‘Changing Lives’

Categories: Articole de interes general