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        S y n o d   N E W S l i n k   "Extra Edition"
            wednesday, may 31, 1995


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                      s u m m a r y

Today's Synod NEWSlink "Extra" is the complete, verbatim
text of a report from a youth consultation held within the
Diocese of New Westminster.

In preparation for representing the young people in the
diocese, the diocesan youth delegate to General Synod
undertook a process of consulting with youth members from
parishes around the diocese, parish youth leaders, and youth
ministry support staff.

This report is the summary of those findings and will be
used to help shape the decisions the diocesan youth delegate
makes on behalf of the young people in the diocese.

While the comments received are from members of parishes in
a particular diocese, they likely represent a strong
proportion of young Anglicans around the country as well.

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                            t e x t

Foremost, young people in this diocese are tired of arguing.
     They watch the "adult church" fight about process and
policy, while seemingly ignoring the foundations of our
common faith.  They are frustrated at listening to others
argue about church buildings and which book to endorse, and
feel that by trying to select a "standard" prayer book or
hymn book, the church is failing to offer a home for the
diverse views which they believe makes the Anglican Church
strong.  Whether the church actually is trying to establish
a standard hymnbook and prayer book is less important, they
say, as is the perception.
     Similarly, they believe there is a need to search for a
different model of decision making within the church.  While
they understand the logic behind the vote-oriented
democratic process within Synods and parish councils, most
young people in this consultation felt such a process is
pre-destined to be divisive, leaving people feeling unheard
and unimportant.  Many youths described it as a justice
issue.  There was a very strong call for the church to find
a better model of making decisions about our future as
worshipping communities -- perhaps using the model of
consensus building used by members of First Nations.
     In the parish, some young people found spiritual
development and support of their peers strong, while others
felt marginalized.  Most agreed that support of young people
in parishes throughout the diocese is probably stronger than
that of other dioceses.  One common thread was that many
youths in this consultation said they often felt treated as
workers in the parish, not full participating members.
Youth groups are seen by some people in parishes as 'instant
work groups' to serve coffee, mow lawns, and do pancake
breakfasts.  While most young people who participated said
they were happy to help contribute in this way, they
expressed a desire to participate more fully within the
actual service and parish: as readers, as choir members (not
youth choirs), as Eucharistic administrators, and as members
of parish council.
     One gap in ministry in the diocese appears to be young
adult ministry.  Overwhelmingly, young people found there to
be almost nothing for the post-teen "Gen-X" ages.  They are
turning to other denominations to attend College and Careers
groups and fear that their peers are leaving Anglican
parishes because of this.  A strong number of participants
in this process defined this as perhaps the most critical
issue in youth ministry for our diocese.
     In addition, a number of young people made the point
that young people today have substantially less leisure time
than youths of 10 or 20 years ago.  The workforce is
shrinking and competition to get into post-secondary
educational institutions forces many young people to commit
weekends and evenings to study and work.
     The young people in our communities and parishes are
deeply spiritual -- a few suggested more so than most
adults.  Young people are searching, eager to learn about
their faith and the traditions of Anglicanism, but find
little nurturing of this kind available.  One comment:
"Nobody told me spiritual development would end after
confirmation classes."  Young people believe their peers
'outside the church' want to visit on a Sunday to "try it
out," and that we should be doing a better job making church
an inviting place.  To most who contributed to this
consultation, that meant exploring new forms of worship and
freeing up what most found to be a rigid liturgy.  "It's
hard to bring a friend to church if we don't enjoy it
ourselves," was a particularly illuminating comment.
Reading prayers from a book, reciting words (like a Psalm)
together, and dry music were among the elements of the
service pointed to as having room for improvement.
     It was encouraging to hear many youths express their
commitment to their parish and the wider Anglican church.
There was a feeling that they wanted to stick it out and
help the church change, but some wondered how long they
would be able to when other denomination and non-Christian
organizations are moving so far ahead in youth ministry.
     Young people are very aware that they will help form
the future of the church, and fear that their dwindling
numbers are a very real threat to that future.

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