The Philadelphia Inquirer ran a frontpage piece today on emergent youth ministry (annoying free registration required). For us evangelicals, it makes for an interesting read for also hearing about how Jews are reaching out to postmoderns. I'm quoted in the piece as the lone "critic." The reporter paraphrases my view and my quote a little bit off, but that's not entirely surprising.
What I said was that it's fine to meet youth where they are at. But we can never be content to stay there, and that we should have a clear understanding of where we want to take them. I do think there's a reason that many college-aged people are attracted to the teaching of John Piper. In part, it's because he is willing to boldly and passionately proclaim truth about a great and glorious God, and I do think there is a hunger for something bigger and better, that doesn't just look like the world.
I also drew a distinction between "felt needs" and "real needs." Almost no young person would put "the wrath of God" unto his top 10 list of needs or obstacles to overcome. If we only concentrate on what youth tell us they need, we will not be loving to them. We must create new categories of need that they have never considered. The reporter asked a great follow-up here: I don't understand what you mean when you talk about the wrath of God, which gave me the opportunity to briefly share the gospel of Christ absorbing God's wrath on our behalf.
I tried to paint for the reporter a biblical picture of Christian involvement with the world. Christ calls us to be in, but not of the world (John 17). The church often fails in two directions, I believe: (1) they are both in and of (impossible to distinguish from the world), or (2) they are of but not in (worldly but isolated). The biblical road is much more difficult: remaining and engaging without accomodating and capitulating.
For those who are frustrated that I'm painting the whole emergent endeavor with broad brush strokes, I will say that I tried to qualify my remarks, to point out the good I see with emergent, and to acknowledge its diversity. But nuance and qualification rarely make it into print.
