How to question your religion without losing your faith

It’s not unusual to question what you were taught as a child as you become an adult. In many ways, that’s a big part of growing up.

But when it comes to religion, leaving behind a belief system that’s shaped who you are can be challenging.

Religious doubt isn’t new. Pew Research Center estimates that 31 percent of people raised Christian leave the religion between the ages of 15 and 29. The number of Christian adults in general in the U.S. has declined by nearly 40 percent since the 1990s.

But there’s a new wave of Christianity leaning into this doubt. Its adherents call themselves “deconstrucutors.” What they do is in the name — they take apart their faith with the hope that they’ll piece it back better than before.

What does it mean to break open what we believe? And can this process actually make our beliefs stronger? We talk about how Christian deconstructors are answering these questions.