New opportuites to reach the missing younger generations
Growing the faith of our children and young people
With Lucy Moore, Head of the Growing Faith Foundation and
Stephen Beamond, Programmes Lead in the Growing Faith Foundation
Deanery Briefing: New opportunities to reach the missing younger generations
Growing the faith of our children and young people
With Lucy Moore, Head of the Growing Faith Foundation and Stephen Beamond, Programmes Lead in the Growing Faith Foundation
Presentation to accompany video available here: Deanery Briefing Growing Faith Sept 2023
Ask any member of the church what we should be focusing on in our mission and you would hope to get a response that includes, “We want our children and young people to have faith in Jesus, to grow in that faith and help shape the Church.’
We know that 76% of Christians with an adult faith come to faith under the age of 18. This finding highlights the importance of prioritising children and young people in our church mission and ministry.
Over the years we have probably researched this aspect of our ministry to the point that what we don’t know is not worth knowing. We have had Children in the Way (1988); All God’s Children (1991) Youth Apart (1996) Growing for Growth (2010) and Rooted in the Church (2016) in addition to the Education Division setting out ten marks of a high performing Diocesan Board of Education. Church members often claim that all the resources are skewed towards the under-16s at the expense of older people.
- So where are the children and young people?
- Why do so many parishes not seem to mind that they have few or no younger church members?
- And how can the church truly become a community for believers of all ages?
Growing Faith is a vision for children, young people and households to come to faith, grow in discipleship and confidently contribute to the Kingdom of God through the community of faith.
Growing Faith is fundamentally about changing the culture so that everyone instinctively puts children and young people at the heart of all we do as the Church of England. It involves churches, schools and households working together with the child or young person at the centre.
- How can your Deanery respond to this challenge to be part of the culture change?
- What practical ways can the Deanery work to support missional work with children and young people across the deanery?
In this Deanery Briefing Lucy Moore and Stephen Beamond from the Growing Faith Foundation will outline the work of the Foundation and will suggest practical ways to help the Deanery play its part in supporting and equipping the missional work of the parish with children and young people.
Lucy Moore
Lucy is Head of the Growing Faith Foundation for the Church of England, helping schools, churches and households to work together for the spiritual flourishing of all children and young people.
Stephen Beamond
Stephen is the programme's lead for the Growing Faith Foundation. In this role he is responsible for the training and delivery of learning and development opportunities for a range of partners including, school and church leaders.
