[Oe List ...] Churchmanship for youth

[James Wiegel]

John Oyler, along with a bunch of folks, over the last 10 or 12 years have established the field of "Community Youth Development", combining best practices in youth development and community development (as well, the insight that they go together -- that human development happens in, and is sustained by community) -- 
   
  Youth as Facilitative Leaders is a good course that has been taught across this country and internationally and would be a good beginning point to consider in all this . . .

"W. J." <synergi at yahoo.com> wrote:
    I think that as a group we were aware forty years ago that 'churchmanship' was just gone as an institutional expectation. At best it survived among a certain age group as a reductionistic relic of the squeaky clean 1950's suburban backyard barbeque lifestyle. Like going to Mass every day. Or serving on the building committee to erect a giant cathedral evangelical mega-church.
   
  Given the assault of mass media, what's missing among youth is any latent Christian memory that can be evoked. So I think we have to skip the predigested churchy stuff and start with where their cultural sensitivities are today.
   
  Tackling that job would really push some of us old geezers, but I think we have to do it or just give up and leave the job to Spielberg, Lucas, J.K. Rowling, Tolkien, and Disney.
   
  What do you think?
   
  Marshall Jones

  LAURELCG at aol.com wrote:
  I sent the query about churchmanship materials for youth on to my D.Min. 
list, and got the following reply. Hope it helps. Jann McGuire

Jann,


I was in youth ministry a good while. A lot of stuff was a total 

embarrassment, as you say. I don't know what denomination etc your 

colleague is from, but Kenda Creasy Dean, a Princeton seminary professor 

had a marvellous book called "The God Bearing Life." It is excellent, 

and includes (I love this) the observation that the problem for youth 

today is not lawlessness, but awelessness. Something I found myself 

doing was ignoring a lot of the published crap, and just going to the 

poets like Rilke and Mary Oliver. Anne Lamotte is excellent in her 

groundedness, too. The tide may be turning on far-right theology, who 

knows, there may be some better stuff out there by now. If I think of 

any others I'll let you know.

Peace,

Matt Henry

Jann,

If you can define "Churchmanship," I'll look into that...

Sounds like something denominational.

John


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