“Be nice to other people and pray if you get into trouble.” That’s what most teenagers are learning in church these days….

“Be nice to other people and pray if you get in trouble.“

That’s what most teenagers are learning in church these days, says Kenda Creasy Dean, professor of youth, church and culture at Princeton Theological Seminary.

Instead of learning the Bible, young people are drawn to a cult of niceness, Dean said. Being nice is OK, but it doesn’t have much to do with Jesus, she said.

“The problem is that it’s an incredibly selfish way to look at faith,” Dean said. “It means that God is out there to make us happy.”

A major study of religion in youth found that many young people are “almost Christian” — they believe in God, but they don’t believe Christian doctrines.

That has caused several local youth ministries to move from fun and games at youth groups to more intense Bible studies. They also want kids involved in more outreach and in volunteer work. Leaders believe this approach will make faith stick so young people will retain their faith when they go to college or into the work world.

On a recent Sunday, about 80 high school seniors gathered in groups at Beech High School in Hendersonville, Tennessee to talk about the Bible…

This class has an old-fashioned approach. Boxes of doughnuts and other treats were scattered on a table by the door. There was no video screen or microphones or band. None of the students had a cell phone or iPod out.