jonnybaker

pioneer youth ministry training

if you are involved in youth ministry and would like to do some training we run a certificate at cms through durham university which has a route through it for youth ministry (and one for children and family ministry). we put together a video with john who helped us shape it and teaches on it. he works with frontier youth trust and through that and the streetspace network is connected with and networking youthworkers who are working with young people beyond where the church is currently focused. in my view the church has taken it's eye off the ball of this one - there is less training around, less posts and where people do create posts it's harder to find people who are experienced to take them up. this is our small part of trying to help see that change. it's not too late to sign up for september but get in touch soon!

Pioneering youth ministry - Anvil edition

A new edition of Anvil Journal is out - online and free. It's focus is pioneering youth ministry guest edited by John Wheatley.

elated, an open day and pioneer youth ministry

tuesday was the last teaching day for a group of pioneers at cms who are finishing their diploma in mission, theology and ministry. we have graduation yet to come in july and there are also some certificate and MA students who will be finishing. they have been with us for three years.

as part of the last day i interviewed them to try and reflect with them on the journey and how the training might have helped them and what they felt looking back on it. i ended up going home that day elated because they were all so positive about the impact that being with us at cms pioneer training has had on their lives and how changed they have been by it and i am sure they were being honest - at least no bribes were involved! i love what i do - at times it is really hard work - but tuesday reminded me what a privilege it is. pioneers are an amazing gift to the church and indeed to any area of society - i find them so inspiring. i only wish the church realised that in a few more places and realigned towards encouraging and supporting them more often.

it's the time of year where we are also gearing up for next (academic) year and are thinking about who will start that journey with us to do some modules, a diploma, BA, certificate or MA. the model of training is that students come to us one day a week in term time and the rest of the time are in a context doing pioneer stuff and/or working alongside that. we have an open day next week - it's not too late to book in. but if you can't make that contact me and come and see us. all our awards are with durham university so it's top notch.

we have a new pathway for pioneer youth ministers and children and family workers which is a certificate in mission, ministry and theology with particular modules for those specialisms. if you are involved in those come and be part of the first year to do it. so many pioneers i know are youth ministers or began doing what they do with young people. that was the case for me certainly and in many ways i think this current movement can trace its roots to youth ministry. i wrote three articles a few years back on pioneer youth ministry for youthwork magazine - here's the first second and third if you're interested in what that is all about have a read and then come and join us.

this video is our attempt to summarise what the course is all about if you want a 4 minute version

Why do we need mission pioneers? from Church Mission Society on Vimeo.

rage despair hope

i am so pleased that finally rage despair hope has landed in proost as a downloadable resource. the artwork is a set of illustrations on the book of job by the amazing si smith.  i first saw the artwork and we used it a few years back at grace in 2011. it's been developed as a resource by the creative guys at youthscape - originally designed for schools it coud be used in loads of ways. we based an alternative worship service around it for example. anyway the resource includes the following

• a beautifully made 30 minute film about Job
• 22 high-res pieces of art work created by Si Smith and all of the audio files so each section can be used/presented independently if preferred. 
• Workshop resources to use with the material.
• A further 8 minute movie from the Lacey Theatre Company.

wonderful!

only grief leads to newness - a reflection for the youthwork blog

i have written a reflection for this month's youthwork blog. it seems as though there is a mood in youthwork circles that some change s needed so i share a few thoughts gleaned from work with pioneers on how newness might come through a cycle of grief, dreams and building.

anyway it's over here - only grief leads to newness [HT brueggemann for that title lifted from his book hopeful imagination]

the table - eating alone

on the subject of youth ministry and pioneering there is a day at cms jointly hosted by cym, streetspace and cms reflecting on how you can sustain your faith and life when it can be tough and challenging and lonely at times. it's actually a day that will be suitable for anyone asking that question, not just if you are working with young people. it's a bargain as the price includes lunch… you can book here

reimagining church with young people

loved this article in youthwork magazine by steve leach, one of the students on our cms pioneer training on reimagining church with young people which has a lot of choice quotes in it such as...

More is up for negotiation than we might at first think, and unless we cultivate innovation we risk getting stuck and ultimately extinct. In every group there are always those who see the world differently and dream of new possibilities. They need to be celebrated and encouraged to dream their dreams. They do not need taming and sapping by a tired culture of risk-averse pastors, desperately claiming against all the evidence that fluency in their archaic practice is essential for ministry in the 21st Century. If in their pursuit of Jesus’ vision for his bride and kingdom your dreamers are perpetually scrutinised by defensive guardians of the status quo who perceive them as a threat, the chances are they won’t be around for long.

the table for pioneering youth ministry - gearing up for the year 6

in many ways i think the wave of creativity that has happened in the last 25-30 years in the church began in youth ministry, with youth ministers aware that the gap between youth culture(s) and church was a huge chasm. youth ministers began to look at cross cultural mission for clues as to how you might take a different approach. emerging church, alt worship, fresh expressions, pioneer ministry all followed on in due course. all that by way of saying that it seems great that richard passmore and jo dolby have dreamed up three days in the year to explore pioneering youth ministry. under the heading the table, the first is on oct 13 in bristol. cms are a partner and i'll be there and then at the pioneering spirituality day the next day! you can book here.

[CONCRETE]

love the look of this new youthwork site [CONCRETE] - ben bell seems to be behind it - nice work!

time to wake up! pioneering is making a big difference

i have written a short reflection on the church growth research on the pioneer blog -

time to wake up! pioneering is making a big difference

pioneer youth ministry - final article in the series

the november issue of youthwork magazine has just landed on my doormat (actually we don't have a dorrmat come to think of it so i suppose it's the floorboards!). in it i have the third and final installment i have written on pioneer youth ministry which looks at some steps to starting something new. i really enjoyed writing the series. it's probably the most distilled version of my thoughts on pioneering that i have written. i wanted to out it in youthwork because youth ministry is where i learned i was a pioneer, discovered cross cultural mission, and was given amazing leadership opportunities quite quickly. it's also essential, and the back door for renewing the whole church. and many pioneers who train with us at cms began in youth ministry! love to hear from anyone who has read them...

surviving at 16

richard passmore offers a very moving reflection on memories of being 16 and that he wouldn't survive today with the latest government proposals on young people which demonstrate

a society that has lost its way, a society of selfishness, greed and power

pioneer youth ministry

i have written three articles on pioneering for youthwork magazine. the first is in the current (sept) issue and the next two will be in the following two months. i decided to write for youthwork because a lot of pioneers begin in youth ministry, i learned about mission and pioneering while doing youth ministry and youth ministry is the back door to renewing the church - what happens there happens in the church about 10 or 15 years later! i'd love to know what anyone thinks if you see the articles. give me a shout. at cms pioneer mission leadership training we have a few people who have done training with cym over the years who are joining us for modules or to do an MA. so if you are in youth ministry and excited about the notion of pioneering give me a shout. in oxford we actually have a great combination going on because oxford cym and cms pioneer training are in the same building so there is lots of opportunity for collaborating. the articles are not online - you have to get the magazine...

there is also a grove book on pioneer youth ministry out written by richard passmore and jo dolby which is excellent.

yws13 - resonance

just arrived in west brom to get ready for resonance an early day for the youthwork summit 2013 that jenny and i are leading - it's a reflective retreat type day... then racing back to ealing for the opening of small adventures exhibition!

creativity in youthwork

tomorrow i am leading a training day for youthworkers in london on creativity which i am looking forward to. details, the flyer etc can be downloaded from here. i am sure it's not too late to just turn up!

inspiration in bradford

we had a wonderful resource weekend in bradford...

in the image of god - exploring what the bible says about men and women

the sophia network have a day today (sorry i forgot to blog about it before) - on men women and the bible. i'm sure it will be really good! a while back the network had an online discussion group exploring what the bible says about men and women. as a result of that jen has edited a book in the image of god with various contributers from that original group. it's being launched at the day today. it's a series of eight sessions, ideal for a small group.

it obviously depends on your tradition on whether this is relevant or new, but if like me your background is evangelical then it's pretty important to do the work on exploring what the bible has to say. it seems weird to say but we did a lot of thinking around this about 25 years ago now! part of jen's motivation for setting up the sophia network a few years ago was that it didn't seem like a lot had changed in the world of youth ministry which is a rather depressing thought in some ways. though the sophia network is definitely doing its part to help change that!

we're proud to have this book as our latest release on proost. as ever it's available in print or download. if you are elsewhere in the world than the uk and want a print version you can order through the proost lulu bookshop - this certainly should work in america. proost subscribers it's included in your subscription in the downloads area.

global youth ministry

terry linhart and dave livemore have co-ordinated a huge effort in pulling together global youth ministry which is released today. i have a chapter in the book. it's been a while since i wrote it so i can't exactly remember what i've said but it's along the lines of the development of seeing the practice of youth ministry through the lens of cross cultural mission. but looking forward to the book landing on the doormat and seeing the contributions of people from round the world. there's an excerpt here it you want to get the flavour.

sacred spaces in public places 2 day conference in oxford

oxford centre for youth ministry and cms are hosting a two day conference in oxford on sacred spaces in public places - see details and book here

the blurb...

This two day non-residential conference will explore 3 strands

• Recognising the sacred in the seemingly secular places - where are God's fingerprints in the world around us?
• Creating a sacred space in public place - artistic visual expression of God's presence
• Being aware that we may be the sacred space in the public place - looking at our inner space, an incarnational engagement with the world.

Day 1: Theological and theoretcial input with workshops from our contributors on our threes trands of sacred space

Day 2: Putting our learning into action! Creating sacred spaces in public places in Oxford

consuming youth

a friend rick bartlett who i used to work with maybe 20 years ago is one of the authors of consuming youth. i always welcome books reflecting on what it means to follow christ in conusmer culture - that's the water we are swimming in, and in that sense it's the six million dollar question. and there don't tend to be that many focused on youth ministry - graham cray's grove booklet, tom beaudoin's work, branded, liquid church, practising passion are ones that spring to mind. and then there are others like tom sine, al and debra hirsch, vincent miller who have written more generally about faith and discipleship in consumer culture.

the thing i liked most about the book is a section that suggests working with young people vocationally - helping young people discover who they are, what their gifts and contribution to the world could be and dreaming how that might happen. and suggesting that this comes out of an alternative imagination, or what the authors call an alternative script to that of the western dream. i'd like to see more youth ministry doing that. i was talking with someone yesterday working with young people who seem to feel very hopeless and who are not dreaming of the futures they could contribute to out of who they are. this approach seems a perfect fit for that.

the thing i liked less about the book is that consumer culture and the media are portrayed as the bad guys manipulating and controlling and dominating youth. in cultural studies this would be close to the take of the adorno school of thought in the 70s - big bad culture industries duping and manipulating the masses. very few people subscribe to that view any more at least in the world of cultural studies. there's a lot more negotiation gong on and a lot more meaning making that is possible that is counter to the media industries intentions. i don't for a moment want to underestimate the power of the worldviews of consumer culture. and i think we need to reflect hard on how faith relates to culture, help young people be discerning and learn how to practice faith in this culture. but it's the posture towards culture writ large that i struggle with. i made exactly this point when i reviewed al and debra hirsch's book. from a mission perspective discipleship has to be worked out in the culture and we should pay attention to how god and spirituality are mediated and flow in the culture. this is what we learn about good practice in mission in other cultures - where is god present and how do i join in with what god is already doing? you don't start by rubbishing the culture and saying everyone is manipulated! every culture has good and bad aspects of course but connect positively in mission and background judgement. engagement and resistance are both important reflexes but knowing which to do and when and about what is not so easy. i sound like i'm a fan of consumer culture and i'm not - it has huge problems and i think paying attention to the scripts and so in is important. it's more the tone or posture towards culture or that the book seems solely focused (as evangelicals are won't to do towards pop culture) on resistance...

anyway i'm in danger of getting in trouble on this issue again. but the book is definitely worth a read, opens up some good suggestions on working positively with young people around vocation and should be a good tool to catalyse a conversation about the culture we are all in which is so often invisible to us because it's the water we're swimming in.