{"id":387,"date":"2012-10-25T10:05:03","date_gmt":"2012-10-25T17:05:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/corbanblogs.wpengine.com\/ministry\/?p=387"},"modified":"2012-11-01T13:49:55","modified_gmt":"2012-11-01T20:49:55","slug":"the-theological-turn-in-youth-ministry","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.corban.edu\/ministry\/index.php\/2012\/10\/the-theological-turn-in-youth-ministry\/","title":{"rendered":"The Theological Turn in Youth Ministry"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Andrew Root and Kenda Creasy Dean, InterVarsity Press, 2011<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Reviewed by Dr. Sam Baker, Associate Professor of Student and Family Ministries<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Here\u2019s a simple challenge. This coming Sunday carefully and cautiously approach the youth pastor in your church and ask, \u201cWhat is your theology of ministry?\u201d If he stares at you like you\u2019re from the former planet known as Pluto, don\u2019t be surprised. Unfortunately, it\u2019s the response of most youth pastors today. If, however, you\u2019re met with a well-crafted, carefully articulated response, one which makes sense both in theological and practical terms, consider yourself lucky.<\/p>\n

As Kenda Creasy Dean, co-author of The Theological Turn in Youth Ministry<\/em> notes, the turn in youth ministry is \u201c\u2026an era in which theological reflection is becoming the norm in youth ministry instead of the exception\u2026 it [youth ministry] has not always been concerned with theological reflection. This is not to say that theology wasn’t happening, or that youth workers didn’t care about theology. But it is to say that youth workers’ actions and self-conceptions were rarely informed by significant theological reflection.\u201d Theological reflection is \u201cbecoming the norm?\u201d This undoubtedly is a positive marker in the progress of youth ministry, isn\u2019t it? It\u2019s a rhetorical question.<\/p>\n

Although The Theological Turn<\/em>\u2026 reflects a different faith tradition than Corban follows, it still offers valuable points for consideration. It is divided into two parts, with Part I, \u201cTheological Starting Points,\u201d addressing the question, \u201cWhat does theology have to do with youth ministry?\u201d This section invites the reader to envision \u201cpractical\u201d theology (over-and-against systematic or historical theology) as an integrative imperative for youth ministry practice. In this respect the authors emphasize the roles that experience<\/em>, reflection<\/em>, and action<\/em> play in the outworking of youth ministry programs. They challenge academics and practitioners alike, \u201c\u2026 that by seeing youth ministry as a theological task, theory and practice are held together. It is too often assumed that youth ministry is for doers and not for thinkers. Yet good doing demands good thinking.\u201d<\/p>\n

As the authors discuss what is required for \u201cgood thinking\u201d to take place, they exhort youth ministers to return to a reformed \u201crepresentative\u201d theological tradition, pointing students to a shared experience of suffering\u2014suffering common to all humanity\u2014ultimately redeemed through Christ\u2019s sacrifice on the cross. This representative perspective, according to the authors, provides a way to hold a correct theology of humanity\u2019s need and Christ\u2019s atoning work together, connecting Jesus’ identity as a shared representative with His work of redemption. The authors note, \u201cYouth intuit that salvation lies in finding someone who loves them enough to die for them, and the whole of adolescence is directed toward this end.\u201d \u00a0Thus, the theological starting point for the turn in youth ministry begins with practical theology, which will begin to slide the center of youth ministry thought toward a historical and deeply traditional Christian understanding of shared suffering.<\/p>\n

The second half of Part I offers suggestions as to how to initiate this kind of theological thinking. The language, however, can tend to be heavy with academic and theological jargon (e.g., historical dogmatics, kerygma<\/em>, Bultmann\u2019s existentialism, via negative<\/em> hermeneutics) unfamiliar to many youth workers. It may even be overwhelming. And while the authors \u201craise the bar\u201d by motivating youth ministers to think theologically, my concern with this section has more to do with wording which may not speak to all Christian faith traditions. The specific historical theological language advocated by the authors may detract from the importance of the message, and its implications for broad theological contexts of youth ministry.<\/p>\n

Part II, \u201cTheology Enacted,\u201d focuses on the pragmatic side of youth ministry, providing methodological examples built on theoretical concepts addressed in Part I. This is the more easily digestible section of the book, as both authors demonstrate how theological considerations can be integrated into specific ministry contexts.<\/p>\n

Topics include:<\/p>\n