The reasons for this study are presented as follows: It is easy to see numerous young people in a downtown and clubs on weekends, whereas the youth in a church is hardly seen. To make it worse, the number of the youth going to church decreases as time...
The reasons for this study are presented as follows: It is easy to see numerous young people in a downtown and clubs on weekends, whereas the youth in a church is hardly seen. To make it worse, the number of the youth going to church decreases as time goes by. In the circumstance, thinking about how to make young people go to church, this researcher faced small Christian community for the youth (team structure). Therefore, in the hope that youth ministry will be activated through the small Christian community for the youth as well as that the religious faith of the youth will be enhanced, this researcher determined to write this thesis.
Accordingly, this thesis was intended to investigate the issues of youth ministry, which is at a crisis as the time changes, and examine the roles and importance of youth ministry. And, it proposed the future direction of youth ministry, and a ‘team structure’ of small Christian community for the youth as a way to activate youth ministry. The reason for the proposal of the team structure in this thesis is that the team structure is the most practical method to meet the purposes of this thesis-‘activation of youth ministry’ and ‘youth evangelization’.
This thesis consists of four chapters, which are briefly presented as follows.
In chapter 1, the youth were investigated in multiple ways in order to understand youth ministry comprehensively. And, the definition, target, features, factors, and importance of youth ministry were examined.
In chapter 2, previous studies and Daegu Archdiocese’s ‘Statistics of Religious Influence’ were investigated to analyze the current state of youth ministry. Based on the analysis, the issues of youth ministry were divided into two sub categories. Also, the youth’s secession phenomenon was studied in two dimensions. On the basis of the analysis and study, the future direction of youth ministry was proposed in six ways.
In chapter 3, the definition and features of small Christian community were investigated. And, as a way to activate youth ministry, the community for the youth (team structure) was proposed. Also, the method to apply small Christian community for the youth (team structure) to each church and the practice of the community were proposed. Along with the proposal, the possibility of the community (team structure) was described.
Lastly, in chapter 4, the task of small Christian community (team structure) proposed in this thesis as a way to activate youth ministry was investigated. And, the solution of the task, and the method as to how to settle the community down in a church continuously and systematically were proposed in the dimension of a church, a parish, and an archdiocese.
The purpose and direction of youth ministry are to evangelize the youth and make them live like young Christ. For the reason, this thesis proposed small Christian community for the youth (team structure) as a way to activate youth ministry and to meet its purpose.
This small Christian community for the youth (team structure) is an outcome of an effort made by the priests in charge of the youth in Daegu, Busan, and Masan Archdioceses under the name of ‘New Vision to Evangelize the Youth’ in 2006. Therefore, small Christian community for the youth (team structure) is intended to ‘evangelize the youth and activate youth ministry in a church’. In the aspect, the community (team structure) will help enhance religious faith of each young people and evangelize them. Furthermore, it is expected that the small Christian community for the youth (team structure) will help preach the gospel to the youth, testify to religious faith, and cultivate living young Christ, and thereby activate youth ministry.