By Dr. Terri Martinson Elton, Director of the Center for First Third Ministry at Luther Seminary I don’t know about you, but music often speaks to my soul. Music has a way of drawing me deeper into my own human experience, while also moving me out of myself connecting me to the world and the…
By Derek Tronsgard Earlier this month the Christian blogosphere exploded when news came from the Pew Research foundation stating that the fastest growing religion in America is, in fact, “no religion”. This self-identifying group of the “nones” are young (18-29), uninterested in joining a church (even after kids!), and evenly distributed between men & women, economic…
By Dr. Nancy Going, Director of the CYF Distributed Learning Program at Luther Seminary You’ve all heard that definition of insanity: When you keep doing the same thing over and over, and this time expect a different result? Could it be that we might just be there (insanity) when it comes to our churches…
By Dr. Terri Martinson Elton, Director of the Center for First Third Ministry at Luther Seminary My niece is a lively, energetic preschooler. She is curious and asks lots of questions. And she has opinions, and isn’t afraid of sharing them. I love my time with her, as I introduce her to new things and…
There’s a new Pew Report out, with clear indication that there is an increase in those who say they have “no religion.” Rev. Clint Schnekloth has by far the most interesting response I’ve seen, arguing that: As a weird hipster Lutheran…I am, to begin with, happy with the increase in the number of people reporting…
By Julie Hagen This fall my congregation began a new format for our children’s church school. We need a significant larger amount of leadership from parents than years past and I’ve discovered that much of my job is finding ways to communicate the importance of being involved. We need parents to be a part of…
In light of Nancy’s blog post Looking for the “Nones” and the recent Pew study that showed one in five adults have no religious affiliation, you might be wondering why people are leaving the church. A five-year project headed by Barna Group president David Kinnaman explores the opportunities and challenges of faith development among teens…
By Dr. Nancy Going, Director of the CYF Distributed Learning Program at Luther Seminary Did you see this news in today’s USA Today? I saw a tweet this morning that named the meat of the report: “The fastest growing religion in America is no religion.” “In the 1960s, two in three Americans…
By Dr. Terri Martinson Elton, Director of the Center for First Third Ministry at Luther Seminary Yesterday was a cold brisk morning and I spent the day biking around Minneapolis and St. Paul. Why? Because I wanted to join thousands of family, friends and neighbors cheer on runners of the Twin Cities marathon. For 26.2…
By Dr. Nancy Going, Director of the CYF Distributed Learning Program at Luther Seminary I just spent the weekend at a big conference of Children’s ministers, and I heard the same conversation over and over. “Our parents keep their children so busy.” “We don’t know even really know the parents or children in our…
By Dr. Terri Martinson Elton, Director of the Center for First Third Ministry at Luther Seminary Have you experienced it? There’s a shift underway. There is a conversation growing in our midst. The conversation began wondering if (what we know as) Sunday School and confirmation ministries were working. This part of the conversation had many…
By Neil Christianson Remember the last baptism you saw? It is a beautiful miracle to see! Through the water and the word, God claims one as his own and we see the transformation right before our eyes. God promises to work in the life of that individual and bring them to eternal life. What a promise!…
Dr. Nancy Going writes about The Faith of Adolescents and how young people must be integrated and central to the life of the congregation. But how do you DO that? Assessment How would you rate your efforts in developing a youth-friendly and youth-involving congregation, building intergenerational connections between youth and the congregation? Have your whole team take…
By Dr. Nancy Going, Director of the CYF Distributed Learning Program at Luther Seminary You can’t be in youth ministry very long, and not have both experienced and been the beneficiary of this phenomenon: The faith of adolescents. When you see expression that raw, passionate, “deeply connected to Jesus” kind of faith that comes…
By Dr. Terri Martinson Elton, Director of the Center for First Third Ministry at Luther Seminary What will future leadership in the church entail? That’s the question our faculty are asking as we think about redesigning theological education. With my colleagues this weekend, we had the chance to name moments where students were living into…
