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Catholic YM Blog
The Catholic YM Blog has been referred to as "the 411 of Catholic Youth Ministry." Your blogger is D. Scott Miller, director of the Division of Youth and Young Adult Ministry for the Archdiocese of Baltimore... Read more...
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So, I’m on the Santa Monica pier this afternoon, finishing up my vacation reading of Kenda Dean’s Almost Christian: What the Faith of Our Teenagers is Telling the American Church. Awesome read. Important. Essential.
She expands on some of the need to offer young people a generative faith that has anchors for a lifelong religious identity which include a creed to believe, a place to belong (see parts one and two), a call to live out, and a hope to hold onto.
But, it was this passage from pages 145-6, that had me remembering a logo from a Mike Patin t-shirt:
In truth, much of what passes for Christian formation in American congregations – and a great deal of what passes for youth ministry is fake peripheral participation.
We invite teenagers to set chairs for the ice cream social and call it “mission.” We assign teenagers one Youth Sunday a year and call it “worship.” We play games in youth group and call it “Christian fellowship. None of these activities is inherently misguided, of course. But they do not necessarily offer teenagers real participation in the Body of Christ, where every limb is as important as every hair follicle…
The fact that outreach, worship, and Christian fellowship in most churches can carry on very well without youth at all is a tell-tale sign that their participation in the community is … just peripheral and does nothing to usher teenagers into full membership in the Body of Christ.
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by D. Scott Miller, Sharon Ely Pearson. Sharon Ely Pearson said: What Counts as Real Participation?: http://bit.ly/cy30mg via @addthis [...]
Pingback by Tweets that mention Catholic Youth Ministry Blog » What Counts as Real Participation? -- Topsy.com — Tuesday, August 31, 2010 @ 10:15 am
Still working my way through this book. I keep having to stop and let it sink it – otherwise my head would explode. I feel both affirmed and challenged by her insights just as I was when I first read her book “The Godbearing Life: The Art of Soul Tending for Youth Ministry.” I look forward to hearing more of your thoughts, Scott!
Comment by Megan Shepherd — Tuesday, August 31, 2010 @ 10:38 am
Scott,
I noticed that you posted a blog about the CNN article Author: More teens becoming ‘fake’ Christians which covered Kenda Creasy Dean’s new book Almost Christian. I wanted to give you a heads up about some resources you may find helpful as you respond. The resources linked below are ‘Nutshell’ summaries–one which unpacks the findings of the National Study of Youth and Religion (NSYR) and one of Almost Christian, which was based on the findings from the NSYR. These Nutshells overview the research, put it into context and highlight the major findings along with the implications for ministry of those findings.
The National Study of Youth and Religion in a Nutshell – http://ymtoday.com/articles/article.php?aid=2664
Almost Christian in a Nutshell – http://www.ymtoday.com/articles/article.php?aid=2...
You might also want to link to Kenda’s response to the CNN article at http://www.kendadean.com.
Please feel free to link to and pass these resources along to those in your circle.
Comment by Deech Kirk — Wednesday, September 1, 2010 @ 5:50 pm
Sorry, I meant Scott not Lantz. New baby no sleep. Sorry
Comment by Deech Kirk — Wednesday, September 1, 2010 @ 5:51 pm
[...] This morning at 7am eastern, I will visit again on Relevant Radio’s Morning Air show with host Sean Herriott. We are planning the discuss the end of the pizza party as well as what counts as real participation. [...]
Pingback by Catholic Youth Ministry Blog » More Relevant — Tuesday, September 14, 2010 @ 5:53 am
[...] posted about promoting vocations and I still have a strong gut instinct regarding young people’s real participation in liturgy and its potential impact on [...]
Pingback by Catholic Youth Ministry Blog » Count ‘Em — Sunday, October 10, 2010 @ 2:01 am