You may have to Search all our reviewed books and magazines, click the sign up button below to create a free account.
Based on the National Study of Youth and Religion--the same invaluable data as its predecessor, Soul Searching: The Religious and Spiritual Lives of American Teenagers--Kenda Creasy Dean's compelling new book, Almost Christian, investigates why American teenagers are at once so positive about Christianity and at the same time so apathetic about genuine religious practice. In Soul Searching, Christian Smith and Melinda Lundquist Denton found that American teenagers have embraced a "Moralistic Therapeutic Deism"--a hodgepodge of banal, self-serving, feel-good beliefs that bears little resemblance to traditional Christianity. But far from faulting teens, Dean places the blame for this theologic...
Youth and the Quest for a Passionate Church.
The questions our youth have are often the same ones that perplexed the great theologians. Andrew Root and Kenda Creasy Dean invite you to envision youth ministries full of practical theologians. Follow them into reflection on your own practice of theology, and learn how to share that theology through rich conversation and purposeful experience.
"In The Godbearing Life, the authors offer a lively spiritual primer and practical guide for those who pastor young people. Dean, Foster, and DeWald rechart a course for youth ministry through the classical spiritual disciplines of the church"--
Starting Right: Thinking Theologically About Youth Ministry is the first academic textbook that introduces youth ministry students (whether undergraduate or graduate level) to a marriage of solid research, real life, and accessible design. Whereas most college-level texts may reflect a thorough (though impenetrable) mastery of the field, they tend to expect readers to plow through unnecessarily thick prose and bland design because “it’s good for them.” Youth Specialties doesn’t agree. In this debut title to a continuing academic book line, college and seminary students will be introduced to real-life research, real-life youth ministry dilemmas, and real-life solutions.Contributing wr...
Today's youth ministry is tomorrow's mainstream theology
Since 1993, forty-nine theological seminaries have created opportunities for high school students to participate in on-campus High School Theology Programs (HSTPs) that invite them to engage in serious biblical and theological study. Many of the young people who take part in these programs go on to become pastoral or lay leaders in their churches. What has made these programs so successful — especially given the well-documented “crisis of faith” among young people today? In this book thirteen contributors — many of whom have created or led one of these innovative theology programs — investigate answers to this question. They examine the pedagogical practices the HSTPs have in common and explore how they are contributing to the leadership of the church. They then show how the lessons gleaned from these successful programs can help churches, denominations, and seminaries reimagine both theological education and youth ministry.
This book addresses the vital role of public Christian worship in adolescent spiritual formation and shows how important youth ministry and worship ministry are to each other. Despite numerous research projects, books, articles, and resources that have been published about teenagers and about worship in recent years, the relationship between the two has been addressed only peripherally if not altogether overlooked. Drawing on his extensive experience in worship ministry and youth ministry, Eric Mathis offers insights into the worship practices of teenagers, corrects common misperceptions about worship, and critically examines four prominent worship models in current practice. Mathis invites youth pastors, worship leaders, ministerial students, and congregations to elevate the voices of young people in the worshiping community and enhance worship for all ages. The book includes a foreword by Kenda Creasy Dean.
Soul Tending expands on the ideas Kenda Creasy Dean and Ron Foster put forth in The Godbearing Life: The Art of Soul Tending for Youth Ministry (published by Upper Room) and offers a practical way for senior high youth and young adults to study spiritual disciplines while strengthening relationships among participants. The study includes lessons on inward, outward, and corporate disciplines. The goal is that Christ would be formed in each participant. Youth and adults co-journ together as they examine classical and contemporary disciplines, supporting one another, and intentionally seeking encounters with God. Key Features: -- Easy-to-use format allows group members to chart their own course through the book -- 43 sessions give participants plenty of material to choose from for a spiritual life retreat, an occasional session, a seasonal study for Lent or Advent, a short-term option, or a weekly covenant group -- The role of the leader/facilitator can change each time the group meets -- The teaching component can be used as a large group session, or as the basis for discussion in the small group or spiritual life retreat
“Contemplative Youth Ministry is refreshing rain for dry youth workers and barren youth ministries. More than the same old youth ministry tips and tricks, it gives principles and practices to soak in God’s grace, love, and power. I wish I had read it 15 years ago.” - Kara Powell, Ph.D., executive director, Center for Youth Ministry and Family Ministry, Fuller Theological Seminary “Mark invites readers to be encountered by the presence of Jesus who is always near. This book is transparent about the challenges that churches and families face as they desire to be effective in youth ministry. The book is filled with the honest stories of different kinds of youth ministries representing t...