Stoking the Passion

Here, read this.

There is so much good here: gathering young people to take part in exciting worship (the liturgy-loving part of me is fascinated), raising awareness of a serious issue, donating items to local homeless shelters, and raising money.  Whether you like the evangelical overtones of the Passion Conference or not, it gets young people excited to be actively part of the kingdom of God in a way that is tangible and life re-orienting.  As someone who was raised evangelical before going mainline, I see the same kind of passion and fire out of people who go to these events as I see in Presbyterian youth and college students who spend time on the "mountaintop" at camp.

What I wonder, though, is if these super-large gatherings are not examples of fresh ideas thrown into old models.  What I see in this sort of event is an updated version of a revival for young people.  I can just hear the old Southern Baptists I grew up with, saying they know exactly what this country needs, and that's a "good ol' hellfire revival."  (I cannot attest to the presence or absence of hellfire at Passion, though I might guess there's not too much of that going on with people who are discussing human trafficking).

The thing I specifically wonder about is how best to empower and implement such a huge crowd of young people and how to inspire a passion for the kingdom of God here in this place.  It's an honest question: what all could be done with so many passionate young people?

Is the main drive of this conference to raise money, and should young people really be targeted and fed the very powerful worship experience of a modern-day revival in order to convince them to give money?  Fundraising and young people put together concerns me.  They're not exactly sitting on huge inheritances, and I wonder how many of those young people are about to finish college and not have work for many years.  I understand the importance of cultivating financial stewardship among young people, and I know very well where that money is going (having spent 3 years involved in homeless/hunger ministry in Atlanta with exposure to the system that upholds human trafficking in that city).  But if raising money is the goal, or one of several specific goasl, for such a conference, is there a line of exploitation and is that line being crossed?  Again, it's an honest question and not rhetorical.  I really want to know.

Secondly, I wonder if these young people are being prepared and equipped with what they need for successful ministry after they learn about/become aware of the issues.  Education is a great first step.  Empowerment is equally important though.  The first without the second leads to cynicism and hopelessness, a sense of knowing what's wrong with the world and not really knowing what on earth we can do about it.

I have a great (glowing, ecstatic) appreciation for the culture shift this conference represents.  I cannot imagine any of my childhood preachers talking about human trafficking in those terms.  They would talk about the evils of prostitution, but they would never dare to ask why she/he is being prostituted in the first place.  The cultural shift is monumental, and it might be the very thing that will change entrenched laws for the better.  As a pastor, I can't help but imagine the theological shift this also represents.  It's enough to make me cry with joy.

But if you had that many young people educated and fired up about such an important issue, what would you call them to do?  I feel like we in the church must have more structured ways to get young people into hands-on work.  Mission years have long filled that need for structure, but the mission field is changing drastically right now.  It's becoming more local with less overhead and more long-term commitment.  Many young missionaries I've spoken with tell me they loved every minute of their mission experience, but they often come away with a feeling of having done a disservice- they came, had a life-changing experience, and then left.  The children they were teaching to speak English fell in love with the missionary, worked out all the kinks in the relationship, and then a new missionary came in.  That one will leave soon too.  Many missionaries have inadequate training for what they are doing.  There is little stability for those who were receiving services.  Many missionaries say they wouldn't do a year-long mission trip again.  If they go again, they go for life.  No more transient relationships, no more half-commitments, more investment in long-term goals.

So, how do we help empower these young people to meaningful mission when they are in a transient period of life?  Are we preparing them for later, when they have steady jobs and can take on long-term relationships with non-profits, agencies, churches, missions, work programs, etc?  Does the Passion Conference necessarily need to be a mountaintop experience that fuels these young people before they return to their everyday studies?  Does the passion outsize the capability of commitment in the immediacy?

Overall, I feel the tangible good outweighs my concerns, no matter how my questions are answered.  I'm still wondering how this fits into a larger view of economics and law, and the work of the church.  I watched the college students across the street return to campus today, with moms and dads helping carry loads of (clean) laundry in baskets and new gadgets from Christmas.  It brought me back a little, to a time when I could fit everything I owned in the back of my Ford Taurus Station Wagon, back when life was centered around this one goal of "getting a good education."  What a bewildering time of life!  I've since gained huge respect for the students who tell me they have no idea what they will do in life, that they are still figuring everything out.  Maybe these are the folks who need some Passion and empowerment.

I'd love to hear about the Passion Conference from someone who attended.  What were your impressions?  Do you think it was big on hype and low on commitment?  Do you think it really inspired those present to the work of the kingdom of God?