"Practicing Passion"

written by Kenda Creasy Dean

Reviewed by Murray Brown

Following the acclaim accorded her previous book “The Godbearing Life (co-authored with Ron Foster), Kenda Creasy Dean’s latest work further establishes her in the forefront of theological reflection within youth ministry. In “Practicing Passion: Youth and the Quest for a Passionate Church” she begins by identifying theology as the “weakest link” in our ministry to young people – a ministry over influenced by culture, sociology and educational theory.

Central to the theology she advocates is the concept of “passion”. By this she means far more than the need to harness the enthusiasm and idealism of youth with a ministry full of challenge and commitment. Instead she argues that youth ministry (in fact ministry in general), must be rooted in the Passion of Christ, understood as the sacrificial love displayed through His suffering on our behalf. Thus His passion for young people inspires a passion for Him in them, so that faith becomes not something they add on as one aspect of their identity, but something that transcends and orders their emerging identity.

For this to happen, the author argues that if the church is going to make sense to adolescents, then our ministry must be contain “practices of passion” so that the Passion of Christ and the passion of youth, are brought together in a passionate faith.

Central to Dean’s theology of youth ministry is the conviction that youth ministry is not something adults do to or for young people but something that they do with them. Steadfastness and fidelity are critical to adolescent faith development if passion is to be communicated, and this passion is transferred in the act of “being there” for young people, more than it is through adherence to an educational curriculum.

A second critical conviction is that young people need an experience of transcendence – an awareness of the nearness and awesomeness of God. Rather than presenting God as a holy Being whom they must somehow reach out to and “get”, they must come to see God as One who has already reached into their world and is ever present. The book suggests practices that encourage this, not based on feelings but on faith in a theological fact and the opportunity to explore and enjoy the mystery of God, rather than try to analyse and explain it.

The third conviction presented is to need for intimacy through communion. Here the author goes beyond the well-established need for “community” young people have to redefine community in its more theological perspective – not simply a group of young people who love, trust and support each other, but individuals united around Christ and knit together in Him and enjoying intimacy with Him.

There is much to reflect on and chew over in this, Kenda Creasy Dean’s latest work.
Her reflections on developmental theory and in particular identity development are likely to spark the most debate. Her assertion of adolescents’ innate passion for a life of sacrificial love and the experience of the Passion of Christ may seem to some at odds with what can appear to be the apathy and aimlessness of youth, yet her arguments are well presented and argued and give much valuable food for thought.

She also opens up debate on the sphere and manner in which youth ministry best takes place. An emphasis on a congregational approach to youth work and the use of the Eucharist in particular as a key sacrament and “passionate practice” reflects something of her own denominational background (United Methodist). Yet the depth of her understanding of these practices and her theological understanding of them make for compelling reading and deep reflection for all strands of the church.

Her contribution to our understanding of transcendence and its place in youth ministry is significant, charting a ground that falls between the excesses of hype-filled emotionalism and dry cerebral intellectualism.

Finally her theological reflections on community are valuable indeed, taking the youth worker beyond a pragmatic methodology they may already utilise, to grasp its theological roots and the “God dimension” so critical for it to result in a truly passionate faith.

No doubt deliberately, and rightly perhaps, it is light on (but not devoid of) practical examples and anecdotal stories to make points. Instead Dean relies primarily on theology as a means to convince and convict. This makes the book “heavy going” in places for one not well versed in theological reflection, yet it becomes the book’s main appeal for youth pastors and leaders who wish to reflect at depth upon the theological presuppositions on which they have been building their ministry.

It is, in conclusion, a fine work, well researched and articulately presented and will remain a significant contribution to the ongoing development of youth ministry theology. I highly recommend it.

- Murray Brown is the Director of YouthTRAIN