Will Teenagers Disappear?

Will Teenagers Disappear? is an interesting document that came out in 2000. It proposes that within the next 20 years, the social construction that we know as "adolescence" will change dramatically.

William Kirn elaborates:

"What will a world without teenagers look like? Like the adult world does now. Adolescents will feel the same pressures as their parents do: to succeed financially, to maintain their health, to stay on society's good side. What's more, adolescents will field these pressures using their elders' traditional techniques: spending money, taking medication, contracting for professional advice. The carefree years will become the prudent years, and the prudent years will continue throughout life. That's how it used to be, in the 19th century, and that's how it will be again in the 21st. The age of James Dean, the Ford Mustang and making out will seem, in retrospect, like what it was: a summer vacation from larger human history."

While I would deem this a tad deterministic, I think that it is important to stop and reflect on how what we understand as "the traditional teenager" is in the midst of a fantastic transformation.

The question I pose is, what are the implications for youth work?

What are your thoughts?

On the Move - by Bono

"The one thing, on which we can all agree, is that God is with the vulnerable and poor. God is in the slums and in the cardboard boxes where the poor play house. God is in the debris of wasted opportunities and lives, and God is with us if we are with them. 6, 500 Africans are dying every day of a preventable, treatable disease, for lack of drugs we can buy at any drug store. This is not about charity, this is about Justice and Equality."

Bono, On the Move.

Shane Claiborne: When Violence Kills Itself

Shane Claiborne on the recent Virginia Tech shootings:

"Sometimes all the peacemakers need to do is practice revolutionary patience, and steadfast hope – for the universe bends toward justice, and the entire Christian story demonstrates the triumph of love. And it makes it even more scandalous to think of killing someone who kills – for they, more than anyone in the world, need to hear that they are created for something better than that."

For more, click here

Evangelicals Debate Whether Environmental Stewardship is a Pressing Moral Issue

There is a very interesting debate currently taking place among evangelicals. There has been a lot of debate in the National Association of Evangelicals regarding whether or not environmental concern and the stewardship of creation should be one of the important political agenda items that the Church is advocating. Christianity Today has recently joined into this debate.

Some, like James Dobson, feel that this distracts from other moral issues such as homosexuality and abortion. Others, like Richard Cizik from the NAE, feel that this is just as important.

I have been following this debate for the past couple of months. It is a very interesting dialogue that wrestles with the question of who we are as evangelicals. I would encourage you to take a look at both sides of the conversation.

Letter from James Dobson
Challenge by Jim Wallis
Brian McClaren's response
Lynsay Moseley's response
Bill McKibben's reponse
Randall Balmer's response

Revisiting Blogging After a Long Break!

Friends,

It has been a long time since I have blogged. This year has been one of the busiest, but most exciting years of my life.

As a result, my blogging has had to sit on the back burner for some months. I am going to try to be a little more consistent with this...

I will be occassionally posting as time permits. I love this medium and always feel inspired when this opportunity is available.