DENVER — As Colorado’s population grows, so do the number of people looking to connect to faith groups, but they’re finding those connections differently than they used to. No longer are people joining a certain church just because their parents belong. They’re looking for something they can truly connect in a spiritual way that’s important to them.
'Finding Faith in Our Colorado' airs Sunday, Dec. 23 at 4 p.m. on Denver7
“God wants us to encounter not just God in a spiritual way but in a tangible way,” said Father Jason Wunsch, the pastor at Denver’s St. Gianna Beretta Molla Catholic Church. “Things like community. I think young people are longing for that.”
Young and old also continue to rely on faith communities to guide them through life events like marriage, birth and death.
“People see religious institutions as places where they can come to find meaning and answers to life's ultimate questions,” said Senior Rabbi Joseph Black of Temple Emanuel. “One of the functions of religious institutions is to give people a place where they feel connected, to feel empowered, to feel that there are questions that need to be asked even if we don't have answers.”
In the Denver7 Special "Finding Faith in Our Colorado," Jaclyn Allen and Eric Lupher look at many of the challenges and opportunities facing faith communities in Colorado, including how social media and technology is helping them connect with different groups of people.
"Finding Faith in Our Colorado" airs Sunday, Dec. 23 at 4 p.m. on Denver7 with an encore presentation scheduled for 9 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 25. Portions of the program were shot at Denver’s Historic Grant Avenue, a century old church turned community center in the heart of Denver. Visit their website for information on restoration efforts at Historic Grant Avenue.