Separated Brothers

Separated Brothers is a fascinating article (June 16, 2009, Economist.com) on Latinos and the changing face of religion in America. Here is one of the fascinating quotes regarding the growing 15% who are now "born again":

Gaston Espinosa, a professor of religion at Claremont McKenna College, puts it. He estimates that about 3.9m Latino Catholics have converted, and that “for every one who comes back to the Catholic church, four leave it.” The main reason, he thinks, is ethnic identity. Evangelical services are not only in Spanish, as many Catholic sermons are nowadays, but are performed by Latinos rather than Irish or Polish-American priests, with the cadences, rhythms, innuendos and flow familiar from the mother country. The evangelical services tend to be livelier than Catholic liturgy and to last longer, often turning into an outing lasting the whole day. Women play greater roles, and there are fewer parishioners for each pastor than in the Catholic church.

Fascinating insights, especially for our brothers and sisters in Destino. What do you think?

The Evangelism Model: Leading Movements of Evangelism

For the last twelve years, the Campus Ministry of Campus Crusade for Christ has been operating from what has been known internally as "The Evangelism Model". One of the tools based up on it is Getting Biblical About Evangelism. While it has been applied in many different contexts, its principles have helped clarify what is involved in leading movements of evangelism.

Here is a "introduction" I used with team leaders this summer.

Since evangelism always involves:

God - The Master

• Evangelism is first & foremost a work of God.
• Therefore, a leader must learn to discern and align to what God is doing in their context.

World - The Masses

• The audience is the defining context.
• Therefore, the leader must understand and adapt to the audience in their context.

Believers - The Messengers

• Believers are the primary initiators in evangelism.
• Therefore, the leader must empower, equip and engage the labor force in effective outreach.

Gospel - The Message

• The true gospel is always about Jesus—who he is, what he has done and why.
• Therefore, the leader must ensure that the unchanging gospel is communicated with life-changing power.

Communication - The Methods

• Methods will vary according to the context.
• Therefore, the leader employs methods that bring it all together.
• Empowering laborers—aligned with God and adapting to the audience—who are communicating the unchanging gospel with life-changing power and relevance.
  

If we are effective at developing leaders of evangelism with these competencies, how are we doing?

Changing Student Landscape (Part 3)

Pardon the delay, but I am finally completing my series of posts on the "Changing Student Landscape". The last few weeks of conferences and vacation delayed me.

In Changing Student Landscape (Part 1; Part 2), I have been exploring student trends that influence evangelism. I continue here with two final cultural observations.

#7 Disillusioned with Christianity
Christians have a PR problem. There is not only a growing disillusionment with institutional Christianity, but Christians, as a people, are increasingly perceived negatively. Student attitudes have been chronicled in numerous ways, including Dan Kimball’s book, They Like Jesus, But Not the Church, and Jeff Martin’s documentary, “Lord, Save Us From Your Followers". Kinnaman & Lyons’ research, recorded in the book with the descript title, UnChristian suggest six common perceptions of Christians:

• Hypocritical
• Too focused on getting converts
• Anti-homosexual
• Sheltered
• Too Political
• Judgmental

While my experience confirms the research, I have also found that students do not necessarily apply these negative attributes to every believer they meet. Rather, if they perceive you as an open, honest, safe, and caring person, they have the ability to differentiate between you and the general public image. But one thing is for certain, this is a cultural apologetic for why we, as believers must be the primary initiators of significant positive spiritual interactions. When this generation is ready to seek, they are not inclined (given their general view of Christians) to turn to us for answers. We have to engage with them and show them (i.e. genuinely demostrate) that we are different than the perceptions.

#8 Worldview Stew
The final characteristic I’ll mention in this series is the inconsistencies in worldview. While there are exceptions to the norm, most students’ worldviews are a mixture of various beliefs adopted from the media, peers, education, family and other influences. For this reason, many of their views are logically inconsistent. Yet this does not seem to bother them. Their low view of truth (i.e., all truth is relative) eases any angst that might be felt by living with contradictions. Here are a couple of examples from Pew research:

• 70% of those who claim religious affiliation believe multiple religions can lead to salvation
• 57% of self-identified evangelicals believe multiple religions can lead to salvation.
• 21% of self-identified atheists believe that some kind of God exists.

(Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life)

So what are the implications of this changing student landscape? How do these characteristics effect campus ministry and witness? What are your thoughts?

The Gospel - Reflections of DA Carson

In the continued discussion on what is the gospel, this from DA Carson in an editorial for Themelios...

The gospel is what God has done, supremely in Christ, and especially focused on his cross and resurrection.

Failure to distinguish between the gospel and all the effects of the gospel tends, on the long haul, to replace the good news as to what God has done with a moralism that is finally without the power and the glory of Christ crucified, resurrected, ascended, and reigning.

How would you describe the "essence" of the gospel?

Changing Student Landscape (Part 2)

In Changing Student Landscape (Part 1), I began exploring student trends that influence campus evangelism today. I continue here with five more cultural observations.

#4 Emerging Adulthood
Life for today’s student is not the same as it was for the student of (say) the 70’s. To be more precise, the stage of life is not the same. Think. for example, of marriage. (For an excellent research source, see: The National Marriage Project, Rutgers.) The median age for marriage in 1970 was about 23 for men and 21 for women. Today that has jumped to 28 and 26. What has changed? Today’s student does not enter into the responsibilities of adulthood (as assumed in the 70’s – marriage, settled career, home, etc.) until later in the twenties. Today’s student is in the early days of “emerging adulthood” (as described by Jeffrey Arnett), a period now between adolescence and adulthood. Or, as they are sometimes referred to, they are “twixters”.

But what characterizes this stage of life? Arnett suggests:

1.It is the age of identity explorations.
2.It is the age of instability.
3.It is the most self-focused age of life.
4.It is the age of feeling in-between, in transition, neither adolescent nor adult.
5.It is the age of possibilities.
Jeffrey Arnett, Emerging Adulthood

Wow! Think of the implications of this for significant engagement regarding life and the gospel.

#5 Spiritually Minded
But what is the spiritual orientation of today’s student? The UCLA research project, Spirituality and Higher Education, (a body of research important to anyone serious about campus ministry or understanding today’s student), demonstrates this is a highly spiritual aware (or minded?) generation. For instance:

77% entering Freshmen agree “we are all spiritual beings”
71% gain strength by trusting in a higher being
58% indicate that integrating spirituality is very important or essential
84% have had a “spiritual experience”

To engage in safe conversations about spirituality is not unusual. Spirituality is a common theme in today’s student culture. They might not use the word, but the reality of spirituality ubiquitous (i.e., it shows up everywhere).

#6 Identity Lockboxes
But does that mean that they are spiritually open-minded, ready to explore and change? Fascinating research has been done by Tim Clydesdale that would suggest not. His in-depth, longitudinal interviews and field research with college freshmen reveal is that most freshmen are thoroughly consumed with the everyday matters of navigating relationships, managing gratifications, handling finances, and earning diplomas—and that they stow their (often vague) religious and spiritual identities in an identity lockbox well before entering college. The key phrase there is “identity lockbox.” It seem that their religious identity is not abandoned (as has often been suggested or assumed). Rather it stored away, still in tact, subconsciously kept for a later stage in life.
Tim Clydesdale, The First Year Out: Understanding American Teens After High School

What are the implications for evangelism? Is it easy to engage an identity that has been stored away, even locked up? Is it easy to see that identity change? This alone should press our dependence upon the power of the gospel and the Spirit’s work. Our conversational skills and relevant messages are not (by themselves) adequate.

Two more trends to go on this series… To be posted next.

Thoughts?

Changing Student Landscape (Part 1)

Last night I was engaged in an informal conversation with about 25-30 young campus ministry leaders regarding evangelism and culture. I mostly listened to the heart, vision, frustration and best practices of these emerging leaders. The conversation drew my mind back to earlier this year, when I was asked to speak to a group of about 100 directors of student summer projects on the subject of emerging trends among students as they make an impact on evangelism. My thoughts were delivered under the title of “The Changing Student Landscape: Exploring the Trends”. Along with my own reading, research and reflections, I utilized summaries found in Ivy Jungle's Campus Ministry Updates--a resource well worth subscribing to, if you have an interest in campus culture.

The next few posts will provide the essence of what was delivered.

“It is not the reality but the image of the audience that determines how communication occurs. The communicator chooses both content and communicative style based on his or her ideas about the audience—who they are, what they are interested in, and how they will respond. Normally, these ideas about the audience are approximately correct because of shared experiences and similar backgrounds and cultures. But…(ed.: You can fill in this blank.) A first step in improving communication is to gain a more accurate understanding of the audience.” (Donald Smith, Creating Understanding:A Handbook for Christian Communications Across Cultural Landscapes)

Here are the first three characteristics:

#1 – Introducing this generation of students.
A few demographical observations (mostly obvious):
• This is the largest body of US college students ever.
• Women out number men almost 3 to 2.
• Ethnically diversity grows. (Duh!)
Student culture is a mosaic of micro-cultures & subgroups, thriving in the same cultural landscape.

#2 - A Satisfied Lot
• 93% are happy with the way things are going in their lives.
• 84% say their life is excellent or good.
• 93% are satisfied with their family life and 91% in their relationships with their parents.
• 81% are satisfied the amount of free time they have.
Pew Research, “Portrait of Generation Next” (This is a very helpful report to examine more closely!)

If you are reaching out expecting to find a generation with lots of felt needs on the surface, just waiting and wanting to change, think again. You must go deeper!

#3 – The Digital Generation

What makes this generation different from its predecessors is not just its demographic muscle, but it is the first to grow up surrounded by digital media. (Growingupdigital.com)

When the primary means of storing and distributing information changes, our worldviews change. (Rex Miller, The Millennium Matrix)

Miller explores the four major communication shifts and their implications:

• Oral Culture (Pre-printing press; up to and through Middle Ages)
  
• Print Culture (Reformation, Enlightenment through mid-20th century)
  
• Broadcast Culture (Later half of the 20th century)
  
• Digital Culture (Present)
  

The digital culture is shaping the very worldview of this generation.

Five more characteristics to go in next posts. (See: Part 2 and Part 3)

An Internet Campus - Who Gathers?

Internet campuses for the body of Christ are emerging. Notable in this category is Church OnLine, from LifeChurch.TV. But who chooses to connect (worship? fellowship? learn?) in this fashion?

Bobby Gruenewald of LifeChurch.TV indicates for groups who choose do so (extracted from Outreach Magazine, "Catalyst for Creativity", July/August 2009, pate 86):

Distant: People who are outside the physical reach of the church
Curious: People who would prefer to explore their interest in spirituality in an online context
Mobile: People who are part of our church, but are looking for an option to worship together because they are traveling or displaced
Digital:People who prefer to experience much of their community in an online context

They are hearing accounts of changed lives from people around the globe. A sign of things to come?

Are you curious what an on-line church experience is like (but not wanting to take the time or make the effort to experience it)? Here is an introduction from LifeChurch.TV

God is...Online from BlueDoorMinistries on Vimeo.