Revisiting Relational Youth Ministry

Andrew Root reviews the history of relational/incarnational youth ministry in American evangelicalism and recasts the practice as one of "place-sharing"--not so much "earning the right to be heard" as honoring the human dignity of youth and locating God in their midst.

For more than 50 years, relational or incarnational ministry has been a major focus in youth ministry. But for too long, those relationships have been used as tools—as a means to an end—where adults try to influence students to accept, know, trust, believe, or participate in something. While our motives may be good, it’s possible that by focusing on these goals, we’re not ministering the whole person. When we choose not to engage in the full life of a student, we run the risk of failing them and our ministry. In this thoughtful and insightful book, Andrew Root challenges us to reconsider our motives and begin to consider simply being with and doing life alongside teenagers with no agenda other than to love them right where they are, by place-sharing. As he shares stories of his (and others’) successes and failures in relational youth ministry, you’ll find practical ideas to help you recreate the role of relationships in your youth ministry. If you’re involved in the lives of teenagers, whether as a youth pastor, volunteer youth worker, church leader, or parent, you’ll want to read this book and work together to discover the value of place-sharing in the lives of teens. You’ll see that it’s time to tear down the old structure of relational youth ministry and start again.

What is youth ministry actually for? And does it have a future? Andrew Root, a leading scholar in youth ministry and practical theology, went on a one-year journey to answer these questions. In this book, Root weaves together an innovative first-person fictional narrative to diagnose the challenges facing the church today and to offer a new vision for youth ministry in the 21st century. Informed by interviews that Root conducted with parents, this book explores how parents' perspectives of what constitutes a good life are affecting youth ministry. In today's culture, youth ministry can't compete with sports, test prep, and the myriad other activities in which young people participate. Through a unique parable-style story, Root offers a new way to think about the purpose of youth ministry: not happiness, but joy. Joy is a sense of experiencing the good. For youth ministry to be about joy, it must move beyond the youth group model and rework the assumptions of how identity and happiness are imagined by parents in American society.

In Youth Ministry and Theology Shorthand, David Bailey explores the dialogue between practice and theological education through the lens of youth ministry. This qualitative study illuminates how youth ministers talk about their work amongst young people. Through the slowing down of the youth ministry process it is discovered that youth ministers speak in theological shorthand. Theological shorthand is a paradox: it is both meaningful--it fuels long-term sacrificial service amongst young people--and it is problematic, as it risks untethering youth ministry from the wider narrative of the Christian story. The book will appeal to youth ministers, clergy, academics, graduate and post-graduate students, but also informed volunteers involved in youth ministry. Through the discipline of practical theology, it correlates the voices of the youth ministers, a set of materials used to deepen faith, and contemporary expressions of sung worship. These are then brought into conversation and explored via different aspects of Trinitarian theology to deepen the theological grammar within contemporary youth ministry and to help develop theological literacy.

Research in youth ministry has excelled and developed rapidly over the last four decades. Youth ministry is not just a church practice, but has become an emerging academic discipline, with a variety of methodological, theoretical, and contextual approaches. This academic handbook offers an assessment of contemporary youth ministry research to assist students doing bachelor, master, and doctoral research, and youth ministry scholars, in their studies of youth ministry. By examining youth ministry research through the lens of the following five fundamental questions, the reader is challenged to engage with state-of-the-art theory, methods, and findings from current youth ministry research: • Who are the youth in youth ministry? • Where is God in youth ministry? • What is the purpose of youth ministry? • Who is the youth minister in youth ministry? • How to research practices in youth ministry? The academic handbook is a must-read for everyone who is interested in systematic reflection on youth ministry and youth ministry research.

You may not be a dynamic speaker, know all the latest rock musicans, or even dress in the latest fashions, but if you love young people and desire to invest in their lives, your influence can be life-changing. This book can help.

"Wes is young, enthusiastic, and perhaps a little idealistic about his new position as the youth pastor of the largest church in his denomination. Running into the ministry at full-steam with the best of plans and intentions, Wes soon learns that all the idealism and plans can’t prepare him for the struggles he’s facing. When Doug, the star quarterback, stops coming to youth group, Wes is faced with questions and frustration from the parents and church leaders. When he tries to win Doug back, Wes becomes even more confused when he learns that Doug began attending the youth group at the smaller church in town. Britt is a seasoned youth worker who has been at the smaller church in town for too many years to count. Doug ends up at Britt’s youth group, and soon after, Wes comes to Britt for insight. Only months before, Wes thought little of Britt because of his small youth group, but now he comes to Britt for help. In this creative fable, you’ll be invited into the ongoing conversations between Wes and Britt as they explore what it takes to have an effective youth ministry. You’ll watch as they discover what it takes for students to have a long-term, transformative faith. As Wes changes the way he does ministry, you might find yourself with a new perspective as well."

Wesley Ellis exposes the harmful impact of developmental psychology in youth ministry, proposing a theological anthropology that frees us for deeper relationship with young people. Propelled by the conviction that we must see youth as beings rather than becomings, Ellis reorients us toward relational inclusion and away from rigid developmentalism.