For youth workers, ministers and others who work with teenagers with news, ideas, theology and theory about working with young people.
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What is Youth Work/Ministry
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07.23.08Ethical principles in Youth Work/MinistryThe British National Youth Agency (NYA) has a very interesting document called 'Ethical Conduct in Youth Work' that calls itself 'a statement of values and principles from The National Youth Agency.' The principles of ethical conduct for youth work and what youth workers should be commitment to are: 1. Treat young people with respect, valuing each individual and avoiding negative discrimination. 2. Respect and promote young people’s rights to make their own decisions and choices, unless the welfare or legitimate interests of themselves or others are seriously threatened. 3. Promote and ensure the welfare and safety of young people, while permitting ...
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04.03.08Misquoting Jesus/Truth: What do we do with biblical problems in youth work/ministry?Just listened to yet another great podcast from The Nick and Josh Podcast with Dr. Timothy Paul Jones. Jones has got a book out called Misquoting Truth, its a response to Bart D. Ehrman book Misquoting Jesus. I've not heard of Ehrman before but the interview raised a lot of questions that I have wrestled with about Bible, like sections being added at much later dates (like the story of the woman caught in adultery, added much later...did it happen or not). Jones says is that the church needs to address these issues within our bibles. So what ...
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01.19.08Theology is bull unless…Quote from a friend: 'Unless theology leads to mission (or mission dei) then its just bull***t.' I must confess that I am a little boring and enjoy a good debate about theology to the distress of my wife. Yet as I thought more and more about this and the areas of theology that I get passionate about, I came to realise that in fact I now only really enjoy talking about theology that is practical, that can be applied or lead to praxis. I get so born and my eyes glaze over when talking about the theology of creation Vs. evolution or the ...
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01.05.08How can Youth Work/Ministry be in the Third PlacesThe Third Place is a term coined by US sociologist Ray Oldenburg in his 1990 book The Great Good Place: Cafes, Coffee Shops, Bookstores, Bars, Hair Salons, and Other Hangouts at the Heart of a Community. Oldenburg sees the “first” place as our home and those we live with. Our second place is the workplace (school, college, university) — where we spend most of our days. But third places anchor community life and offer the benefits that come with broader interaction. All societies have informal meeting places. Oldenburg sees the essential ingredients of third places as: they ...
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12.29.07The NAOMIE Youth Work/Ministry Planning ModelAcknowledgment: This post has used a lot of material from a page by Jason Wood that can be found here and on Student Youth Work Online, this site seems to have been neglected for some time, but still has some useful material. All the examples and questions are by Jason Wood. The title questions are taken from a very helpful book: Delivering Good Youth Work: A Working Guide to Surviving and Thriving. The NAOMIE Youth Work Planning Model can help to show clear evidence of all the considerations that you take when you plan a piece of ...
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12.22.07What is Youth Work/Ministry Part 2: Equality of Opportunity2. Equality of Opportunity Equality of opportunity is often confused with political correctness, which sorts to do away with differences, this was often counter productive to reconciliation and building healthy communities, in that individuals and communities often felt that the traditions and characteristics that made them unique were being attacked. In contrast ‘equality of opportunity’ is not about denying differences but recognising and valuing diversity, it also seeks to ensure that discrimination is challenged and that all are given the same opportunities.In practising equality of opportunity, one could look at disability access within ones youth meetings; this could go beyond wheelchair access ...
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12.22.07What is Youth Work/Ministry Part 3: Voluntary Participation3. Voluntary Participation According to ‘Youth & Policy Youth Work’ the principle of young people’s voluntary participation is perhaps the defining feature of youth work, it goes on to state: ‘The voluntary principle ensures that, in their dealings with the institutions which provide youth work and with the practitioners who deliver it face-to-face, young people possess and retain a degree of power which is intrinsic to the practice. Both adult and young person know that at any point the young person can just walk away, thereby leaving the adult powerless to have any influence on them.’1 In light of this, youth ...
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12.22.07What is Youth Work/Ministry Part 4: Empowerment4. Empowerment Empowerment, as Youth & Policy Youth Work puts it: ‘is the practice proactively seeking to tip balances of power in young people’s favour’4. Leading on from voluntary participation, the youth worker is forced to confront questions of power, who has it, how much, used in what ways; this is as a central feature of relations with young people5. The document goes on to highlight that the power which young people can and do actually exercise within the youth work relationship is relative to the degree of formal power (i.e. over money, buildings and equipment) which the youth worker ...
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12.22.07What is Youth Work/Ministry Part 5: Informal Education5. Informal Education Ingram and Harris referring how society deals with the perceived threat of young people , they state that only education encourages young people to grow, develop and take control of their own lives. The authors go on to state that only youth workers are educationalists who focus on young people and advocate on their behalf. Moreover, youth work, according to the authors, is the only agency that is set up to offer education in the broadest sense in a way that: focuses on individuals works with the young person based on a voluntary basis seeks to work ...
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12.21.07What is Youth Work/Ministry Part 1: IntroductionHave you ever thought about what really is youth work/ministry? One of the things that really gets to me is how YW/M can be so misunderstood and therefore underrated. This is why I'm going to do a series looking at what YW/M is. First Im going to look at how the British Youth Service answer the question and how YW/M in the Church can take their answers and use them. I should start off by saying that I have use Danny Brierley’s book Joined Up: An Introduction to Youth Work and Ministry a lot in putting this series together, its ...
recent posts
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