Princeton Part 2 - lifelongfaith.com · Life • Embodied, expressive & experien al faith &...

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21st Century Faith Formation – Part 2 John Roberto, LifelongFaith Associates

Principles

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New Faith Formation Ecosystem

Church

Home

Ethnic Culture

School (Religious)

Yesterday: Culture Today: Network

Church

Home

Community Online/Virtual

Social Networks

Motivation 3.0 (Daniel Pink) ¨  Autonomy: desire to direct our

own lives ¨  Mastery: urge to get better and

better at something that matters ¨  Purpose: the yearning to do what

we do in the service of something larger than ourselves

Recognize that learning is a process of active inquiry with the initiative residing within the individual.

Principles of 21st Century Faith Formation

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Guide individuals and families in discerning their spiritual and religious needs and creating personal plans for faith growth and learning.

Personalized pathways for discipleship & faith growth. . . .

¨ Guide people in discerning their religious and spiritual needs

¨ Equip people with the resources and tools to learn and grow at their own pace

¨ Provide mentoring and support for the journey


Assessing Spiritual Growth

Working with a Mentor/Guide

Finding Resources on the Network

Engaging in Formation

Sharing with the Community

Reflecting on Growth & New

Needs

Personalizing Faith Formation

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Core Content &

Experiences for Everyone

Content & Ac�vi�es for

People of Vibrant Faith & Ac�ve Engagement


People Who Are Par�cipate Occasional


Spiritual but Not Religious

Differentiating Faith Formation


¨  Courses & workshops ¨  Large group learning

events ¨  Online courses & activities ¨  Small groups: Bible study,

theological study, faith sharing, mission/action groups, support groups

¨  Mentored experiences ¨  Webinars & video

conferencing ¨  Audio and video podcasts ¨  Apps and digital resources ¨  Extended programs,

camps, mission trips

Utilize a variety of faith formation formats, settings, and methods to address the diverse life tasks, religious and spiritual needs, and interests of people.

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Faith Formation Settings

Face-‐to-‐Face & Virtual

On Your Own

Mentored

@Home

Small Group

Large Group

Church Community

Community & World

Virtual & Physical Environments

ü  Church facilities ü  Home ü  Workplace ü  Schools ü  Camps ü  Retreat Centers ü  Museums ü  Libraries ü  Restaurants & coffee

shops ü  Sports settings

ü  Network Website ü  Website Resource Centers ü  Online Schools ü  YouTube, Ted Talks, etc. ü  Pinterest ü  Facebook ü  Twitter ü  Google+ ü  Meeting Sites (Meetup) ü  Edmodo

PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENTS VIRTUAL ENVIRONMENTS

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Offer programs and activities in face-‐to-‐face physical settings; in virtual, online settings, and in blended settings that combine both.

¨  They can be offered only in physical locations ¨  They can be offered only in virtual settings

(online course, wiki, online resource center). ¨  They can be offered in a blended approach,

combining a gathering in a physical location with online delivery (activities, group projects, interaction)

Online – Blended – Physical

Fully online with options for face-‐to-‐face interaction in physical settings.

Mostly or fully online with regular interaction in physical settings.

Online platform that delivers most of the program with support, mentoring, and small groups.

Programs in physical settings guided by a leader with online components.

Programs in physical settings with online resources to supplement the program.

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Event or Program

TALK Conversation Questions

LEARN Watch a Video Listen to a Talk Read a

Story

LIVE Action Project

PRAY Devotions,

Bible Reading, Table Prayer

SHARE Write a Blog Entry Create & Share a Video or Project

Extending Events & Programs

Extend a gathered event or program with online content and activities.

Gathered Event or Program

Stream It Live

(Record It)

Learn On Your Own

Learn in a Small Group

Extend Learning

Share Learning

Creating Multiple Formats

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Incorporate communities of practice to connect individuals and groups throughout the congregation who have a shared interest.

¨  Justice & Service Communities

¨  Bible Study & Reading Communities

¨  Spiritual Practices Communities

¨  Ministry-‐focused Communities of Practice

10 Decades of Life

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10 Decades of Lifelong Faith Formation

0-‐10 11-‐19 20s 30s 40s 50s 60s 70s 80s 90s

Decades of Life

•  Religious socializa�on & faith prac�ces

• Whole family & intergenera�onal faith forma�on

•  Parent forma�on •  Family assets development

Children

•  Exploring & discerning

•  High quality, diverse faith forma�on experiences

•  Guides & mentors

Teens

•  Fresh expressions & explora�ons of faith & spirituality

•  New forms of communal life

•  Mission & service •  Chris�an prac�ce •  Making a life •  Developing in�macy

Millennials

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Decades of Life

•  Embodied, expressive & experien�al faith & spirituality

•  Communi�es of belonging and mission

•  Ar�s�c expression

•  Paren�ng & family life

•  Living solo

Gen Xers

•  Giving their lives purpose, meaning, & fulfillment

•  Spiritual growth in the 2nd half of life

•  Making a difference

•  Life transi�ons •  Grandparen�ng •  Staying connected intergenera�onally

Baby Boomers •  Accep�ng one’s

life journey and faith story

•  Confron�ng losses & accep�ng gains

•  Experiencing a new (renewed) rela�onship with God

•  Health issues & life transi�ons

•  Family

Older Adults

First Decade: Foundations

Religious socialization through the congregation & family. . . .

¤  Internalization of faith practices ¤ Whole family learning ¤  Immersion into the faith life of the

church community with robust intergenerational experiences of worship, learning, & service

¤ Parent faith formation: growing in faith, modeling the Christian faith, and teaching their children

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Second Decade: Exploration

Exploration experiences & discernment ¤ An adventure of local and global

explorations into the Bible, Christian tradition, worship, justice, service, ministry, leadership. . . .

¤  Informed and trustworthy adults who serve as tour guides and companions on the journey of exploration

¤ Youth as the creators of religious content and experiences

Second Decade: Exploration Experiences

Local Chur

ch Life

& Ministri

es:

-‐  Worship

-‐  Service

-‐  Leadersh

ip

-‐  Pastoral

Care

Inquiry Learning: Bible, Christian beliefs, history and

tradition

Global Church

Ministry &

Leadership

Apprenticeships

Online Learning Resources: -‐  People -‐  Audio & Video

-‐  Conferencing -‐  Virtual Tours

World Religions

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3rd Decade: Emerging Adulthood ¨  A living & learning laboratory to

create fresh expressions of the Christian faith that both honor the tradition and reflect the millennial generation’s perspectives.

¨  Fresh expressions of the Biblical message, Christian teachings & practices, spiritual disciplines, worship, art and music, mission to the world, church community. . . .

¨  A generational faith community that embodies these expressions & is still connected to the intergenerational church community

¨  Engaging in mission & service

¨  Developing a Christian life – practices

¨  Making a life; developing intimate relationships

Factors Promoting Faith Growth

The combination of the following factors makes an enormous difference in religious outcomes during emerging adulthood:

1.  the teenager’s parental religion 2.  importance of faith 3.  prayer 4.  Scripture reading 5.  lack of religious doubts 6.  personal religious experiences 7.  having supportive nonparent adults in the

church These most influential factors make differences of sizeable magnitude in substantive outcomes.

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In these seven factors alone, we have identified some powerful teenage factors associated with and, we think, causing differences in emerging adult religious commitment and practice.

n  85% chance of being Highly Religious as an emerging adult if you were in the top 25% on the scales of:

1.  parental religion 2.  prayer 3.  importance of faith 4.  Scripture reading


Family Religious Socialization

Faith

Parental Faith

Parental Modeling

& Teaching Prayer

Scripture Reading

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n  75% chance of being a Highly Religious emerging adult if you were in the the top 25% on scales of:

5.  having support nonparent adults in the church, 6.  having personal religious experiences 7.  lack of religious doubts



Ø  Approximately 70% of youth who at some time or other before mid-‐emerging adulthood commit to live their lives for God, the vast majority appear to do so early in life, apparently before the age of 14.

Ø  Most make their first commitments to God as children or during the preteen or very early teen years.

Ø  Many religious trajectories followed in the course of life’s development seemed to be formed early in life.

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Ø  Parental Influence: The single most important social influence on the religious and spiritual lives of children and adolescents (and emerging adults) is their parents.

Ø  Embedded Family Religious Practices: Effective religious socialization comes about through specific religious activities that are firmly intertwined with the daily habits of family life.


“Emerging adults who grew up with seriously religious parents are through socialization more likely (1) to have internalized their parents religious worldview, (2) to possess the practical religious know-‐how needed to live more highly religious lives, and (3) to embody the identity orientations and behavioral tendencies toward continuing to practice what they have been taught religiously.”

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First Third Faith Formation


Children and teenagers with seriously religious parents are more likely than those without such parents to have been trained in their lives to think, feel, believe, and act as serious religious believers, and that that training “sticks” with them even when the leave home and enter emerging adulthood. (Souls in Transition: The Religious & Spiritual Lives of Emerging

Adults by Christian Smith with Patricia Snell)

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“At the heart of this social causal mechanism stands the elementary process of teaching—both formal and informal, verbal and nonverbal, oral and behavioral,

intentional and unconscious, through both instruction and role modeling. We believe that one of the main ways by which empirically observed strong parental religion produced strong emerging adult religion in

offspring is through the teaching involved in socialization.”

(Christian Smith with Patricia Snell)

Family Faith Factors

¨  Parents possess and practice a vital and informed faith – understanding the Christian faith, participating in worship, praying, and engaging in service and mission.

¨  Family members’ expressions of respect and love create an atmosphere promoting faith.

¨  Parents engage youth and the whole family in conversations, prayer, Bible reading, and service that nurture faith and life.

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Family Faith Factors

Parental Faith & Prac�ce

Family Harmony

Parental Affec�on toward Children

Parental Help with Problems

Family Assets (American Family Assets Study – Search Institute)

¨  Family Assets name 21 specific, dynamic qualities that strengthen families.

¨  Family Assets identify positive dimensions of day-‐to-‐day family life that allow families and their members to flourish.

¨  Family Assets focus on the family relationships, interactions, opportunities, values, skills, and self-‐perceptions that position family members to thrive.

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Nurturing RELATIONSHIPS• Positive communication• Affection

Establishing ROUTINES• Family meals• Shared activities

Maintaining EXPECTATIONS• Openness about tough

topics

Adapting to CHALLENGES• Management of daily

commitments

Connecting to COMMUNITY• Neighborhood

cohesion

ec o• Emotional openness• Support for sparks

S a ed ac v es• Meaningful traditions• Dependability

p• Fair rules• Defined boundaries• Clear expectations• Contributions to family

• Adaptability• Problem solving• Democratic decision

making

• Relationships with others

• Enriching activities• Supportive resources


!

!!

!

Search'Institute’s'Family'Assets'Framework'Search!Institute!has!identified!the!following!key!qualities!that!help!all!kinds!of!families!be!strong.!When!families!have!more!of!these!research*based!assets,!the!teens!and!adults!in!the!family!do!better!in!life.!

NURTURING'RELATIONSHIPS'

1. Positive!communication!

2. Affection!

3. Emotional!openness!

4. Support!for!sparks!

ESTABLISHING'ROUTINES'

5. Family!meals!!

6. Shared!activities!

7. Meaningful!traditions!

8. Dependability!

MAINTAINING'EXPECTATIONS'

9. Openness!about!tough!topics!

10. Fair!rules!

11. Defined!boundaries!

12. Clear!expectations!

13. Contributions!to!family!

ADAPTING'TO'CHALLENGES'

14. Management!of!daily!commitments!!

15. Adaptability!

16. Problem!solving!

17. Democratic!decision!making!

CONNECTING'TO'COMMUNITY'

18. Neighborhood!cohesion!!

19. Relationships!with!others!

20. Enriching!activities!

21. Supportive!resources!

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Families with more assets are more likely to: ¤  Have children who are actively engaged in

school and who earn higher grades ¤  Act in socially responsible ways like spending

time together serving their communities. ¤  Teach youth to make good decisions. ¤  Foster positive identity and values. ¤  Nurture spiritual development. ¤  Build social-‐emotional skills. ¤  Encourage healthy life habits.

Intergenerational Factors

Intergenerational connection and involvement during high school promotes mature faith in both high school and college – a “sticky faith.”

¤  Welcoming and valuing young people’s participation in the life of the church

¤  Worshipping with all of the generations ¤  Serving and building relationships with younger

children ¤  Having significant relationships with adults in

the church and having the community show interest in them

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¨  Intergenerational Insight #1: Involvement in all-‐church worship during high school is more consistently linked with mature faith in both high school and college than any other form of church participation.

¨  Intergenerational Insight #2: The more students serve and build relationships with younger children, the more likely it is that their faith will stick.


¨  Intergenerational Insight #3: High school seniors don’t feel supported by adults in their congregations.

¨  Intergenerational Insight #4: By far, the number-‐one way that churches made the teens in our survey feel welcomed and valued was when adults in the congregation showed interest in them.

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Churches and families wanting to instill deep faith in youth should help them build a web of relationships with committed and caring adults.

Becoming a 5:1 Church 5 Adults to 1 Young Person

in Worship, Teaching, Mentoring,

Rituals, & Community Life

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The Parents’ Ten Competencies (Robert Epstein)

Here are 10 competencies that predict good parenting outcomes, listed roughly in order from most to least important. The skills—all derived from published studies—were ranked based on how well they predict a strong parent-‐child bond and children’s happiness, health and success. 1.  Love and affection. You support and accept the child, are

physically affectionate, and spend quality one-‐on-‐one time together.

2.  Stress management. You take steps to reduce stress for yourself and your child, practice relaxation techniques and promote positive interpretations of events.

3.  Relationship skills. You maintain a healthy relationship with your spouse, significant other or co-‐parent and model effective relationship skills with other people.

4.  Autonomy and independence. You treat your child with respect and encourage him or her to become self-‐sufficient and self-‐reliant.

The Parents’ Ten Competencies (Robert Epstein)

5.  Education and learning. You promote and model learning and provide educational opportunities for your child.

6.  Life skills. You provide for your child, have a steady income and plan for the future.

7.  Behavior management. You make extensive use of positive reinforcement and punish only when other methods of managing behavior have failed.

8.  Health. You model a healthy lifestyle and good habits, such as regular exercise and proper nutrition, for your child.

9.  Religion. You support spiritual or religious development and participate in spiritual or religious activities.

10.  Safety. You take precautions to protect your child and maintain awareness of the child’s activities and friends.

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Adult Decades

• Fresh expressions & explorations of faith & spirituality

• New forms of communal life

• Mission & service • Christian practice • Making a life • Developing

intimacy

Millennials

• Embodied, expressive & experiential faith & spirituality

• Communities of belonging and mission

• Artistic expression • Parenting & family

life • Living solo

Gen Xers • Giving their lives purpose, meaning, & fulfillment

• Spiritual growth in the 2nd half of life

• Making a difference

• Life transitions • Grandparenting • Staying connected

intergenerationally

Baby Boomers

Millennials ¨  A living & learning laboratory to

create fresh expressions of the Christian faith that both honor the tradition and reflect the millennial generation’s perspectives.

¨  Fresh expressions of the Biblical message, Christian teachings & practices, spiritual disciplines, worship, art and music, mission to the world, church community. . . .

¨  A generational faith community that embodies these expressions & is still connected to the intergenerational church community

¨  Engaging in mission & service

¨  Developing a Christian life – practices

¨  Making a life; developing intimate relationships

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Generation X ¨  An embodiment of the religious

experience, both physically (rituals and gestures) and socially through a welcoming and caring religious community

¨  An ability and willingness to place the particular congregation within the larger history of Christianity

¨  A recognition of the importance of artistic expression— whether musical, visual, or through some other medium— to the spiritual journey

¨  Faith communities that provide encouragement and direction to pursue spiritually-‐driven passions, whether through service to others or via creative expression.

¨  Focus on parenting and family life; values, building strong families, activities

¨  Going solo: making a life as a single person

¨  Managing career ¨  Balancing multiple

involvements

Generation X

Expressive Communalism (Finding Faith by Richard Flory & Donald Miller)

Emerging adults have embedded their lives in spiritual communities in which their desire and need for both expressive/experiential activities, whether through art, music, or service-‐oriented activities, and for a close-‐knit, physical community and communion with others are met. They are seeking to develop a balance for individualism and rational asceticism through religious experience and spiritual meaning in an embodied faith.

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Generation X

The dominant characteristic was a desire for a theologically grounded belief that makes sense cognitively, combined with nonrational expressive tendencies—they want a faith that makes cognitive sense to them and that is also an expressive, embodied spiritual experience. Young adult Christians are searching for a more holistic faith than what a purely cognitive and rational approach can offer. They are seeking both a deep spiritual experience and a community experience, each of which provides them with meaning in their lives, and each of which is meaningless without the other.

Young Adults

Congregations That Get It: 6 Themes (Belzer, et al)

1.  Young adults want to feel that there presence is valued.

2.  Young adults want a sense of ownership in their congregations.

3.  Young adults’ interests in religion are multifaceted. 4.  Young adults thrive when they are “met where they

are.” 5.  Young adults welcome opportunities to feel

emotionally affected. 6.  Young adults respond to a theoretical and practice

balance between the particular and universal.

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Young Adults

Characteristics of Churches Reaching Young Adults (Lost & Found, Stetzer, Stanley, & Hayes)

1.  Creating deeper community 2.  Making a difference through service 3.  Experiencing worship 4.  Conversing the content with religious depth 5.  Leveraging technology 6.  Building cross-‐generational relationships 7.  Moving toward authenticity 8.  Leading by transparency 9.  Leading by team

Baby Boomers

¨  Service: Boomers want service opportunities that have a mission – doing things that give their lives purpose, meaning, and fulfillment.

¨  Spiritual Growth: Boomers are in a season of significant life transitions – seeking meaning and purpose in the second half of life.

¨  Intergenerational Relationships: Boomers want to stay connected with the other generations – sharing their lives and faith across generations.

¨  Life issues & transitions – careers, housing, retirement, relationships, finances

¨  Family life & grandparenting ¨  Caring for aging parents

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Designing a Network

1. Identify a Target Audience

2. Research the Target Audience

3. Define the Group’s Point of View

4. Design the Network

5. Create and Test a Network Prototype

6. Implement the Network with a Wider Audience & Continue Evaluation and Improvements

Network Design Process

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Empathize Define Ideate Prototype Test

Innovation Design Process

The d.School -‐ Stanford School of Design

Develop a Pro�ile of a Group

Children & Families Teens & Families Emerging Adults: 20s-‐30s Young Adults: 30s-‐40s Mid-‐Life Adults: 40s-‐50s Mature Adults: 50s-‐70s (Baby Boomers) Older Adults: 75+

1.  Life Tasks 2.  Life Issues 3.  Milestones and

Life Transitions 4.  Spiritual &

Religious Needs

5.  Ethnic-‐Cultural Needs

6.  ____________

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Developing “Content” Areas

Target Audience

Target the Diversity

Vibrant Faith & Active

Engagement in the Community

Minimal Engagement with Faith and the Community

Spiritual but Not Religious

Not Religiously Affiliated

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Scenario #4

  Parent faith forma�on @Bap�sm   Parent mentoring–Bap�sm & beyond   “Deepening Faith & Engagement”   Milestone & church year rituals   VBS & family service, family camp   Early childhood FF   Mom’s groups / Dad’s groups

Scenario #1

  Faith Prac�ces @Home (rituals, Bible reading, devo�ons, service, prayer)   Parent faith forma�on & mentoring   Milestones celebra�ons   @Church family gatherings   VBS, family camp, family service   Early childhood faith forma�on

Scenario #3

  Family life center   Family events: movie nights, concerts, children’s fes�vals   Mom’s groups, Dad’s groups   VBS (with parents), family camp, family service   Paren�ng programs & resources

Scenario #2

  Small group family experiences   VBS (w/parents), family camp, family service, children/family events   Paren�ng programs   “Spiritual Seeker” experiences for parents   Mom’s groups, Dad’s groups

Youth Network

Youth Group

Confirma�on Program

Adolescent Life Issues

Parent-‐Teen

Ac�vi�es & Resources

Bible Study & Religious

Learning

Prayer & Spiritual

Forma�on Service Projects Mission

Trips

Milestones

Youth Leadership

Intergener-‐a�onal

Connec�ons

Parent Faith Forma�on

Parent Educa�on &

Support Groups

Youth Faith Formation Network

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Bringing Sunday Worship

Home Whole Family Programs

Intergenera-‐ �onal

Experiences

Children’s Programs &

Events

Faith Prac�ces:

Bible, Prayer, Rituals. Service Milestones

Parent Faith Forma�on

Paren�ng Educa�on &

Support Groups

Mentors for Parents

“Ge�ng Started in

Faith” Experiences

Families with Children Network

“Programming” a Content Area

Content Area

Activity 1 Resource

Resource

Activity 2 Resource

Resource

Activity 2 Resource

Resource

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“Programming” a Content Area

¨  Take a current program and differentiate the content around the 4 profiles (scenarios)

¨  Take a current program and build online content to extend and deepen the experience

¨  Take a current program and offer it in different formats -‐ small groups, mentored, etc.

¨  Take a program in physical setting and offer it online (e.g., webinar, Google+ Hangout)

¨  Offer a program in different settings: at church, at home, in community settings (Starbucks), etc.

¨  Offer online-‐only options and resources ¨  Offer blended programs with online experiences and

gathered physical experiences

Online – Blended – Physical

Fully online with options for face-‐to-‐face interaction in physical settings.

Mostly or fully online with regular interaction in physical settings.

Online platform that delivers most of the program with support, mentoring, and small groups.

Programs in physical settings guided by a leader with online components.

Programs in physical settings with online resources to supplement the program.

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Faith Formation Settings

Face-‐to-‐Face & Virtual

On Your Own

Mentored

@Home

Small Group

Large Group

Church Community

Community & World

Event or Program

TALK Conversation Questions

LEARN Watch a Video Listen to a Talk Read a

Story

LIVE Action Project

PRAY Devotions,

Bible Reading, Table Prayer

SHARE Write a Blog Entry Create & Share a Video or Project

Extending Events & Programs

Extend a gathered event or program with online content and activities.

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Gathered Event or Program

Stream It Live

(Record It)

Learn On Your Own

Learn in a Small Group

Extend Learning

Share Learning

Creating Multiple Formats

1.  Church Programs & Activities 2.  Community Programs & Activities 3.  People Resources 4.  Print Resources 5.  Audio & Video Resources 6.  Art, Drama, and Music Resources 7.  Online Content: Websites, Blogs, Video 8.  Online Education: Webinars, Courses 9.  Apps & Digital Resources

Faith Formation Content

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Virtual & Physical Environments

ü  Church facilities ü  Home ü  Workplace ü  Schools ü  Camps ü  Retreat Centers ü  Museums ü  Libraries ü  Restaurants & coffee

shops ü  Sports settings

ü  Network Website ü  Website Resource Centers ü  Online Schools ü  YouTube, Ted Talks, etc. ü  Pinterest ü  Facebook ü  Twitter ü  Google+ ü  Meeting Sites (Meetup) ü  Edmodo

PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENTS VIRTUAL ENVIRONMENTS

Build an Online Platform

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Use Digital Tools

Use Online Learning Environments

Princeton Part 2 - lifelongfaith.com · Life • Embodied, expressive & experien al faith &...

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