“This generation is the most selfish generation – they can have anything they want at the touch of a button”. Three weeks ago a speaker to whom I was listening made that statement. It has been buzzing around in my head causing me to reflect ever since. My initial reaction was the young adults that I work with would say that the baby boomers were the most selfish generation! Of course such generalised statements need to be applied with caution – what do we mean by “the current generation”. When I say the current generation I mean the educated intelligentsia between 18 and 25 years old that I work with – they are not necessarily representative.
Yet I see a reaction against being able to have everything –coupled with a distrust of advertising and the media.
The thoughts I have been having are along a similar line to Paul Windsor’s recent post: peace corps revisited (http://www.carey.ac.nz/pauls_blog/2006/10/peace-corps-revisited.html)
Among the young adults I work with there is a new dedication to reaching out, to being involved in issues of poverty, justice and human rights. When I think back to when I was their age my friends and I had vague hopes of “wanting to help people”. But really we wanted to get great jobs and wear great suits and be yuppies (hey it was the late 80’s). Of course there are plenty of young adults who still have an essentially superficial faith, but those that are concerned with these issues have a level of commitment and passion that leads to action (yes practical application even in the educated intelligentsia). It also leads them to be vocal for their concerns and to try to influence the values of those around them.
I am concerned about what this means for the church. University students have always had a hard time with the church – yet this goes further. Now we have a strong educated dedicated subset of young adults who have different values to the mainstream church that is still primarily controlled by baby boomers. I have experienced two examples of this over the past few weeks. One is the importance of fair trade to young adults. The University of Auckland is all set to become a fair trade campus (in terms of coffee provision) - and yet our church is still not willing to supply and use fair trade coffee in spite of campaigning by the lovely young adults I know. This is a clash in values – fair trade is not seen as an important issue for the Christians who are decision makers, but by the young adults it is an important expression of their faith to care about the exploited workers in developing countries. The other issue is the realisation of young adults that as a church we should be emphasising people over programmes. They are feeling frustrated over the churches current focus on programmes to the detriment of authentic relationships both within the church community and reaching to those around us.
If these young adults have substantially different values to the current church leadership they are going to end up frustrated and disillusioned, where will they go then? I do not think that the emerging church will hold them either it is to full of disillusioned gen xrs (like myself) who are to busy trying to heal the hurts that the church has done to them (please forgive the gross generalisation) to adequately take action on the values of 18-25s year olds.
There is a challenge in this for all of us over 25 – are we still teachable enough to listen and be influenced by the young adults we know. As churches are we humble enough to put them in positions of influence – because they will change our churches and it will be for the better. I trust these young adults because I see in them a new dedication to the Bible, (perhaps that’s just after I’ve had three years with them!) coupled with an authentic desire to not just believe it but to put what they read in the bible into radical action. I’m excited about where the church will go if we place it in their hands and I’m willing to do that, are you?
Christina
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3 comments:
I totally get what you're saying here.
I feel like I'm flapping around without a home.
Here I am, I've studied theology but I feel like I don't agree with everything that my original home church raised me on. I don't feel like I can go back again into just not caring about issues, but I don't have a church family that I know I can go forward with.
When so much of being Christian seems to involve comparing yourself to 'The World', and possibly selling yourself out daily by not raising your voice regarding issues that you believe matter with friends or around the water cooler, it seems a shame that we almost have to do the same thing at Church.
I also get what you're saying about the Emergent Church, it might be the best alternative at times, but I don't know whether it really resonates with me.
Hopefully enough people who all feel the same way will eventually manage to band together and make their own supportive community.
So yes, life is complex. It's like wanting to go back to your roots but then finding out that you were a graft.
Hi Iain
Actually we are a graft: Romans 11:17-21. (we just looked at that in class today at BCNZ).
I like your belief in and optimism towards young people's faith mentality, regardless of whether they find support amongst elders.
One great shame that I observe is that so many young talented Christians are slowing become distant from church communities. The ideal would be instead for them to be encouraged by the older generations and to be built up as future leaders.
Like you say,the emerging churches ambience can be one of shell shock. While for myself my faith has been challenged and changed, I still want to live with conviction, fire and passion. A rabid desire for truth would be good too. So the emerging church isn't quite home for me.
The churches young people come from often have big youth groups with little connection to older generations. Parents can be too into comfort and risk aversion to support young people following their hearts and minds.
The older generation, older than the babyboomers, might be able to give more encouragement. The grey congregations of the Presbyterian church are starting to see as urgent the need to develop new leaders. But it is a tough challenge for them to attract and build then young generations.
So despite not just being able to fit smoothly into anything established, I am trying to live a life with others in mind my own way. To find a new flat, I emailed a mental health service provider. I am enjoying very much staying with a couple guys who a few decades back would have been locked up in mental hospitals.
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