Mike King

Prim in Dystopia... Hunger Games resource for your youth ministry from Immerse.

 

***Major Spoiler Alert***

This is an excellent piece and a resource for you to engage with young people about Hunger Games from your friends at Immerse.

Prim in Dystopia 

By: Clint Schnekloth

Prim dies. This is where Suzanne Collins finally and irrevocably tears to shreds whatever tattered rag of a covenant she has with readers-that at least somehow, somewhere, something truly good can survive in this twisted, dystopian world. By the time readers make their way to Mockingjay, the third volume in the series, hopes are long gone that anyone might thrive or find redemption. Cinna lives on only in clothing designs. Peeta is shattered and no longer pure. Gale is busy mimicking the murderous tactics of the Capitol. Whole districts are fire-bombed.

But, until the very last, Collins offers the (slim) possibility that Katniss' innocent and lovely sister (with the ever un-tucked shirts and braided hair) might at least survive. And then in a final moment-reminiscent as it sadly is of the Massacre of the Innocents commemorated in Christian tradition-Prim herself is blown to bits by exploding parachutes dropped in to slaughter hundreds of caged children that she as a medic attempts to assist. Her death is pointless, gross and wrong-and there is never even any clarity as to the guilty party. Everyone is at fault. Everyone kills Prim. Even her own sister.

There are many ways to discuss the books and the first movie, but if we cannot in horror and shame keep our hearts focused on this naked fact-Prim dies-then nothing else about the novels, in all of their nihilism, will make any kind of sense; if one can make sense of nihilism.

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Erik Leafblad, "God Loses!" and other news...

My good friend, fellow staff member, collaborator and thought partner, Erik Leafblad will begin working on a PhD at Luther Seminary beginning this fall.  Erik will continue some of his key roles at Youthfront but his Youthfront job descriptions shifts to a primary focus of earning a PhD in Theology.  Erik is perfectly designed for this task and I am thrilled for him, along with the rest of our staff.  If you want a glimpse into Erik's thinking then you should consider these two resources.

The first is especially relevant in the midst of Holy Week.  The current edition of the Immerse Journal features an article by Erik entitled "God Loses."  I'm telling you that the price of an Immerse subscription is so worth it when you get the quality of articles such as Erik's in edition after edition.  While you must be a subscriber to read Erik's article (SUBSCRIBE NOW :-), you can see Daniel Shroyer's response to "God Loses" online here.

The second resource from Erik comes from the Youthfront Book Shorts Series published by Barefoot Publications. His book short entitled, Youth Workers as Spiritual Guides: Spiritual Theology as Living Knowledge, should be consumed and contemplated by thousands of youth workers.  I hope Erik’s ideas shape the way youth workers construct their ministry theology and praxis.

Erik Leafblad has a brilliant theological mind and youth workers should be thankful that he is focusing his theological work on youth ministry.  Erik helps us examine Friedrich Schweitzer’s work on the social dynamics of Pluralization, Individualization and Privatization and how these impact religious ideals of the young people we minister to.  Erik gives us insight in how we might navigate through the current cultural landscape in guiding youth into meaningful and sustaining Christian formation.

Erik makes the case for leading youth deeply into the Story of God and why and how youth must see their own personal stories intersect with God’s overarching story.  Erik believes that youth workers should not underestimate young peoples ability to think deeply and sophisticatedly about theology, meaning and life.  The wise youth worker, who serves as a spiritual guide for young people, must help them make the critical connection to participation with God’s Mission.  When someone gets clarity of what it means to actively participate with Jesus Christ’s ministry it is life altering and unshakable.

Envisioning small groups of youth workers sitting around discussing the concepts in this book short make my heart beat with excitement about the impact potential this would have on the youth worker’s churches, communities, congregants, young people and even their own lives with God.

*The cool thing about this book short series is the fact that they are downloadable and can be reproduced by youth workers to engage in conversation with their volunteer staff for the purpose of training and shaping the ethos of the youth ministry of a church.

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Philosophy and Youth Pastors

Philosophy and Youth Pastors

By: Mark Wampler

Socrates was just a big kid-a pot-bellied, snub-nosed kid. He never stopped asking the types of questions we all asked when we were kids. You've heard kids play the why game, right? 

Here is a story my family loves to retell:

Grandma, does that mascot have boy or girl parts? (Only I didn't say it so politely.)
Uh, I'm not sure, Mark. Should you be talking like that? (Grandma's friends stifle laughter.)

Why aren't you sure, Grandma? Why shouldn't I talk like that? And on and on.

Socrates called himself a "gadfly" because he would buzz around the Agora in Athens, making people swat away his questions about the nature of truth, justice and religion. Thales, an ancient Greek who lived two hundred years before Socrates and usually considered the first philosopher, is perhaps best known for falling into a well as he was gazing into the starry heavens above. (A servant girl saw it happen and began to laugh hysterically and question the practical value of philosophy-the first critic.) Plato, Socrates' student, wrote that philosophy begins with the profound sense of wonder that youth brings to the world. At the front end of life, the world is a big mystery, one big puzzle to fit together. Who can think of a more joyful sight than a wide-eyed child discovering something awesome for the first time? Perhaps this is one of the reasons Jesus enjoins us to become like children.

Youth pastors are in the perfect position to encourage this sense of wonder and should be a sympathetic ear for those Socratic figures (Socrati?) asking the big questions. A youth pastor might be one of the only adult figures seen as an ally in the battle of life; quite different from how parents and teachers can be perceived.

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An interview with Steve Argue

Steve Argue has been a part of the Immerse family from the beginning. His insights into youth ministry are always challenging and worth listening to. So we were excited to sit down with our friend and talk about some of the articles he has published with Immerse, what his youth staff at Mars Hill Bible Church in Grandville, MI are up to and of course #RunningThoughts. Steve is the Life Development Director at Mars Hill, serving as a member of the Leadership Team; giving oversight to kids, adolescent, emerging adults, and adults teams, and directing Mars Hill’s Internship and Residency Program.

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Interview with Kenda Creasy Dean

Dr. Kenda Creasy Dean is Professor of Youth, Church and Culture at Princeton Theological Seminary and author of the recently released books, Almost Christian: What the Faith of Our Teenagers is Telling the American Church (Oxford University Press, 2010) and The Theological Turn in Youth Ministry (Intervarsity Press, 2011).  Kenda serves as an Advisor for Immerse: A Journal of Faith, Life and Youth Ministry.  Recently, Youthfront staff member Erik Leafblad interviewed Kenda for the Immerse Journal Blog.  Definitely worth a listen.  Click here.

The Complexities of Adolescents Spiritual Formation

Immerse Journal is consistently probing, providing a place for dialogue, asking questions, raising issues and always encouraging the reader to sit in the complexity, tension and ambiguities of the realities of our lives as ministers.  Start 2012 out right by subscribing to the Journal changing the landscape of North American Youth Ministry.

Going Deeper With The Complexities of Adolescents Spiritual Formation

By: Brock Morgan

When I first started in youth ministry, I really thought bigger was better. I thought true success was about big events, big growth, with a big movement. Granted, I did grow up in the '80s, when parachute pants were the norm. Walking into my high school youth group room as a 15-year-old was like going onto the set of the MTV show Remote Control  (google it if you don't know what that is). Our youth group's name was Battle Zone, and it was all set up with smog machines running and Steve Taylor singing "Meltdown" in the background. This was what being a Christian teenager was all about for me. When I went into youth ministry as a leader, these were the images I had of youth ministry.

I remember being a youth pastor in L.A. in the mid '90s and drawing large amounts of students to our mid-week programs. I was still operating out of an old model of youth ministry. As a result, we were definitely light on substance. Honestly, you can only do attraction-based youth ministry for so long. Shallow ministry, as we all know, does attract students, but it does very little to nurture spiritual growth and development, and it doesn't effectively engage students in the faith journey.

Grant Wood's article in the July/August 2011 issue of Immerse, "The Complexities of Adolescent Spiritual Formation," resonated with me. The first thing that jumped out about the article is that Grant is no longer a youth worker.

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A New Immerse Rolling Off the Press

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A Youth Workers Opinion on Immerse

The following is the beginning of a Blog Post by Calvin Park, who is Director of Youth Ministries at Gaithersburg Presbyterian Church in Maryland.

Immerse Journal

If you are a youth worker and you don’t have a subscription to Immerse Journal, you need to get one as soon as possible. Immerse is a truly top notch periodical for youth ministry. It’s not even that expensive. Surviving on a youth pastors salary can be tough, I know. If you can’t afford their–extremely fair–rates, then see about having your church foot the bill for a subscription or two, and pass it around to all of your adult volunteers.

One of the things I appreciate most about Immerse is that it takes youth ministry seriously. It also takes theology seriously. I’m constantly encouraged and challenged as I read Immerse because the writers know that youth ministry is far from simple. I read a variety of youth ministry resources and sometimes I’m still amazed at the oversimplicity of those resources. At other times I’m frustrated by a same-old, same-old approach. That isn’t the case with Immerse. It consistently challenges me to think deeply about my ministry and my students.

Read the full post here

Tim Keel Speaks

My good friend, Tim Keel, who founded the extraordinary Jacob's Well Church, left with his family to New Zealand after more than a decade of serving as the Pastor.  After a two year absence, the Keel family has returned (this was not a planned movement away and back) and Tim is serving as the Lead Communicator at Jacob's Well.  The Immerse Journal this month features Tim's story and we also interviewed Tim released in multiple parts.  This is Tim responding to a question I asked him about a Theology of Place, Stability and Pilgrimage.  To download a free digital version of this edition of Immerse (a first time special offer) click here -> Download Immerse-Nov-Dec-2011

 

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