Two of the speakers at the at Iowa Conference School for Ministry got me thinking today about faith formation, worship, service and the ways that they are connected.
- Taylor Burton-Edwards says that for 1500 years it was small groups – things like John Wesley’s Societies - NOT congregations where faith development most effectively occurred.
- Melissa Rudolph reminded us that acts of service are what inspires this generation to seek a higher purpose. They may most likely not come to faith through the door of worship, but through the door of service.
A recent article in USA Today (http://www.usatoday.com/news/sharing/2009-04-13-millenial_N.htm) connects with this as well. The article is about the upsurge in civic involvement among the Millennial Generation. It makes the case that the young people in the under 25 age category are the most civic minded generation in the last 80 or so years.
So, as I’m trying to put these pieces together I’m intrigued by one of the main topics of conversation on the USA Today discussion board about whether mandatory volunteerism is a good or bad thing. And I’m wondering, does it…
- force people to volunteer, and therefore may not be of lasting value past the requirement of their school years
- provide a structure to what is a deep held longing to live out their desire to make a difference in the world
- model civic participation that will create a lifestyle of service
Not sure what to do with any of this today. I’m wondering about doors of service and what it would mean for the Church if we saw this as an important avenue – maybe the most important avenue for younger generations - towards faith formation. Any thoughts?
Posts
I had a number of friends after college who did a year or two of service work through AmeriCorps. I would have loved to have taken the time before college or seminary to do this and in many ways regret that I just went straight through. My colleagues who did take that time and spent a year in homeless shelters or working with women with drug abuse had such rich experiences that then fed into both their and my own seminary educations.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure about the mandatory part. I can see benefits and drawbacks and I'm really seeing the value in point three - that it could model civic participation - it creates the standard that it is all of our responsibilities to care for one another.
The question for me is - do we even have "mandatory service" in our congregations? It would be fantastic if everyone took their turn serving at the Thanksgiving Dinner or taking Meals on Wheels to people or spending a week in Guatemala on a mission trip. We don't even have that kind of standard in our Christian churches!