Abstract
The author essentially argues that religious life in the United States, because of rising median ages, must invite a new generation of young Catholics to enter its ranks. She confronts the major demographic argument that is used to refute the possibility of that happening, naming the large mean age difference that exists between members of most of the orders and the young-adult population. She unmasks four assertions that are typically cloaked by that argument. They are theological, psychological, structural, and ideological in nature. She presents the possibility of using generational analysis to unlock some of the cultural tensions concerning community life and spirituality, locates the discussion within the wider debate in the United States about issues of community and spirituality, and proposes that community life is a key bridge between religious orders and young adults.