Youth, Worship, Church
Just doing some thinking around young people, worship, church etc. I found a pile of papers I've collected or downloaded over the last few years around these issues. I found a phrase that was helpful "peparing young people for participation in worship" (I think it was from a Quaker site!). I like that, there seems to be a notion that we can't force or rush, we need to prepare.

One of the things I found is "The Last Waltz" by Steve Collins. It's a great piece on the church's failure around cultural change since the 60's. He suggests (and rightly I think) that youth ministry and a focus on "youth" is part of the problem, as youthwork became the only ground for the church's engagemnet with cultural change. He observes:
"But as those young people enter their 20s and move beyond this space they find their freedoms abruptly curtailed. It is not expected that innovations or new practices be brought forward with them into adult church"
"Graduation" (for want of a better word) from youth ministry into "adult" church is still a huge issue. And authentic expression of worship is a key part of it.