Young people and passion ...

One of the (many) books I'm reading at the moment is Practicing Passion: Youth and the quest for a passionate church by Kenda Creasy Dean. Challenging read and I'm only a few chapters in.

In seeking to develop a theology that takes seriously the Passion of Christ and how that is to be embodied in the Church, drawing young people into it, she asks some brutal questions of the way things are. While at times it is nice to hide behind the fact that she is American and writes about American churches, it is a hiding that leads to further passion-less-ness (is that even a word!).

The key is not just reading Scripture and reading youth and culture, but developing a new or rather re-newed theology. After all, 'Theology that takes passion seriously offers a "portal" between Christianity and young people, a crucial link between the lived experience of adolescents and the historic practices of the Christian community.' (pg. 25)

Young people are passionate. Rather than discourage that or label them rebellious, problematic or whatever other title, Dean suggests that actually its a time where because they are so passionate they are most open to God and to joining in God's story. Yet if they do not see it lived out in us as youth pastors, youth workers ... or in reality any of us who claim the title Christian ... then they see that it is a passion not worth dying for, and therefore not worth living for.

Reflecting some on this it makes sense as to why so many young people responded at the youth worship event on Friday night, despite the oppertunity to respond in that manner being new for so many of them. What God had laid on my heart to speak to them appealed to their passion, precisely because God's call to radical discipleship appeals to passion, and points to the Passion of the One we seek to follow. It spoke of something, or rather Someone, beyond themselves. It spoke to their passion to make a difference. Of course they responded! In part what happens after depends on how we continue to allow them to excercise their passion, not discounting the work of the Holy Spirit in them. In part what happens after depends on what we do too. 'The theological challenge youth pose to the church is blunt: Are we who we say we are? Do we practice passion, transformed by a Love who never disappoints, and live by a faith so convincing that we stake our lives on it? Or are we just another sagging social convention, like Dracula, that needs young blood to survive?' (pg. 25)

How different would youth ministry be if we took that challenge a little more seriously? In all honesty, does it even enter our heads?

I end with the words of Dean again (pg. 25):

What of the passion of God makes a difference, not just for the way we approach Christian doctrine, but for the way we go about Christian ministry itself? What of mainline Protestantism's disappointing track record with young people (in and beyond the church) has not been primarily a failure of models, educational strategies, historical cycles, or institutional support, but a failure of theology? Is it possible that the "problem" facing youth ministry reflects all too accurately a malaise infecting mainline denominations generally: a flabby theological identity due to an absence of passion? That would be ironic. Most young people come to us brimming with passion. Could it be that, instead of fanning this youthful zeal into holy fire, we have more often doused it, or drowned it in committee meetings?

Hmmm, have we? Just how passionate are we?