Generations Z and Alpha: the Prodigals?

LUKE 15:11–32

by Fiona Walton

Fiona Walton (A ‘baby boomer’) works for Christians & Sheffield Schools (CaSS). She also teaches and is the Open the Book Training and Development Officer for Yorkshire.

I once took 30 garden snails into an infant classroom. To be honest, I’m not sure I’d recommend it (especially if you are being interviewed) but let me tell you they go off in every conceivable direction surprisingly quickly (and that’s just the snails!).

My thoughts about the Parable of the Lost Son have been rather like those snails. This article is an attempt to impose order on my gastropod-like thoughts and to share just some of those silvery trails with you.

I have found the parable to be a Tardis – a spacious container. It is filled with invitation and welcome, refreshment, resonance, risk, truth and challenge, possibility and help, inspiration and reassurance, amazing grace, a place of security and shelter. And a perfect Father. Things our children and young people are looking for.

The parable features two young men, and it has much to say to young people today, and to those who love them and hope to minister to them. As I talk to people working with the next generation –who observe what young people say about themselves and to each other - it seems to me that many echo the circumstances and hurt of the younger son in the parable. They are sitting among filthy ‘pigs’ in a ‘far off’ place of extreme famine. Many are hurting or in need. Others are angry, like the older son. They are sick and need a doctor.

“he began to hurt” (Luke 15:14)

Maybe their pain is to do with exam pressure, failure, anxiety, unrealistic expectations, to do with a boyfriend/girlfriend, county lines (‘hired themselves out’, Luke 15.15), grooming, bereavement, loneliness, abuse, with their identity, shame, cannabis use, pornography, maybe it is the comparisons and pressures of social media, cyber bullying, lock down left overs, sexting or perhaps just something someone has said to them. Many are struggling with their mental health. They don’t feel ‘good enough.’

“The son said, “Father, I have sinned against God in heaven and against you. I am no longer good enough to be called your son.” (Luke 15:19a)

Dillon Smith (aged 22) in his article, ‘7 habits of Generation Z Your Church Might be Ignoring’ (https://bit.ly/AriseGen-Z) identifies that this unique generation have grown up viewing themselves as a brand. (Thank you TikTok, Youtube and Instagram.)

This means they can be selfabsorbed and they market themselves on social media as though they are celebrities. This is a lifestyle that can be exhausting and often leads to disappointment, feelings of inadequacy and an acute awareness of their own shortcomings. What do we, the church say to them? How do we say it?

Back to the parable: the young son felt isolated and initially thought that there was no help available to him.

“no one gave him anything”

(Luke 15:16)

Are we, the church, offering young people any help? There is much work to be done with our young people. Do they see us as a possible source of help? There are no (or very few) young people in many churches – Scripture Union believe 95% of children and young people have no contact with Christians. If we believe we have something to offer them and that it is important to serve them we need to go where they are: into schools.

This is the vision of CaSS – to see children/ young people served and supported in schools. We believe there is a role for school chaplains to do life with children and young people where they actually are – to walk alongside them in their world. CaSS offers practical, three-day School Chaplaincy and School Ministry Courses for people interested in becoming a school chaplain. Contact me –fiona.walton@cass-su.org.uk –to find out more about how to join one.

The younger son in the story has options: he has a home to return to. There is both a backagainst-the-wall feeling, and an element of selfpreservation in going home – he is prepared to work and he wants to be fed. He anxiously rehearses his speech - take me or use me as a hired worker and give me food. If he is surprised to be taken back as a son, surely he is shocked to be fed the prized, fatted calf! Do our interactions with or about young people surprise them or confirm their views?

“The father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So, they began to celebrate.” (Luke 15:22–24)

No doubt (?) young people would receive a warm welcome if they rocked up at a church, but as previously stated 95% of our young people have no church background or contact so are unable to ‘return home’there is no relationship to rekindle. How can the church be a bigger part of their life?

“I will set out and go back to my father” (Luke 15:18)

Controversial statements/ questions alert:

• Does the church need to try something different in respect of our young people? Is what we are doing working?

• Are we serving young people where they actually are (school) or where they would like them to be (church)?

• Does the church need to employ more schools’ workers and school chaplains, rather than more youth workers?

• Are Christians answering the questions that young people are asking or are we following our own agenda?

• Are we trained to understand or help young people with the problems they are facing and the lives they are living?

CaSS, alongside others, is working hard to offer training to help resource those working with young people and the many challenges they face. Workshops at Joined Up Conferences have tackled difficult subjects, such as County Lines, Pornography,

Bereavement, Risky Relationships, Identity and ACES (Adverse Childhood Experiences). We cannot bury our heads in the sand about these topics. Find out more at www.joinedupconference.com

Generation Z and Alpha often do not even know any stories or words from the Bible. CaSS works with Bible Society’s Open the Book to train teams of storytelling volunteers. They don costumes and using a script, share Bible Stories in primary schools during collective worship. Through this ministry young school pupils hear the Father’s words. Find out more at www. biblesociety. org.uk/getinvolved/openthe-book/ CaSS also works with Prayer Spaces in Schools, so pupils are offered safe, spiritual, soul feeding, reflective spaces and time. Find out more www. prayerspacesinschools.com

These lost generations need to be found. Their dead need to be raised. They need to know they haven’t burnt their bridges. They need to understand forgiveness. That they can be known as sons, not hired out servants.

Let’s serve them and guide them home.

Questions

• How could you tell the next generation they are good enough and celebrate with them, like the father in the parable?

• Are most of the young people in your church from church families? How will you reach others?

• Has this article challenged you (the snail thing doesn’t count!)? How?

Christians & Sheffield Schools (CaSS) run a resource hub on their website. It is full of resources and useful links. www.cass-su.org.uk

Stepping Up To End Youth Unemployment In Sheffield

by Catherine Wiffen #####

Since the last edition of Arise! magazine went out, Ascend has reached a huge milestone. A milestone that those of us on the team only dared to whisper, and even then, only to one another. Our whispers finally changed into shouts of joy as we celebrated our first cohort of young adults in Sheffield moving from unemployment into work. We took them for a slap-up meal of burgers and chips (their choice) and created a space to be able to congratulate them on all they have accomplished. We gave them certificates, we affirmed each of them with three words that had marked their time with us, and we spent some time reflecting on their Ascend journey – think ups and downs and you’ve got it!

As the Ascend team, we want to see an end to youth unemployment in Sheffield. What sets us apart from other employability schemes is that we start with a solid foundation; every young adult is made in the image of God, all are worthy of dignity, there is no situation beyond help –even in the deepest pits we find our Maker, and all the world and everything in it is His. Because of this, when we meet our young adults, we’re ready to hear their stories, we’re interested in their dreams, and we remind them that they don’t just need to fall back on ‘retail’ as an answer because that passes the test in the Job Centre. We look to match our young adults with employers, to open their minds to what could be, pushing them to see that doing something is always better than doing nothing. They start by doing a twoweek work trial with us and join some employability training with our team. A structured, robust and – most importantly –holistic approach is taken to training. They are gaining valuable skills such as CV writing and interview technique as well exploring who they are and what they’re made for. One of our young adults once said to me: ‘I’ve never heard the word introvert, now I understand why I am like I am’. These sessions are truly life-giving and transformative. We also pair each Ascender with a Christian mentor, who meets regularly with them, providing a safe and open space to listen and reflect. Mentors may also help mediate with employers if issues come up in the workplace, and some invite their mentee into other community activities. One young adult who finished his placement over a year ago still plays football with his mentor’s church group every week! It’s so rewarding to work closely with a young adult like this. We’re always looking for more volunteer mentors: we offer full training and support to help you feel confident as a mentor. Please get in touch (details at the end of the article) if you’d like to find out more.

At its heart, Ascend wants to extend to young adults in Sheffield the common graces that God gives us. In the majority of cases, our young adults have experienced the collateral damage of our broken world. We believe that God always brings order out of chaos and one of the ways we see that manifest is through the gift of work. As Adam and Eve were given the garden to tend, we see that that is as a direct result of God bringing it to creation through his ordering of the chaos we read about in Genesis 1. Work is a good and gracious gift.

Some of the funding for Ascend comes from Sheffield City Council and other secular charities, but we’d really love to grow it to a point where it can be completely funded by Christians who support the entire vision of Ascend.

Already, some churches and individuals in Sheffield have committed to giving regularly to support the work of Ascend. Could you and your church add Ascend to the list of local causes you support?

Before we left our celebration with our first cohort, we gave each of them the opportunity to reflect on who they were before Ascend and who they are now. The common theme overwhelmingly was that they found acceptance and a community of people invested in their well being. For nearly all of them, this was a first-time experience. Of course, our longing for community and acceptance points to the reason God instituted the Church; it is amongst his people we will come to fully know and be known. The last words our young adults heard from the Ascend team were: ‘consider Jesus’. We pray expectantly that God will use Ascend to grow his Kingdom. These are our new whispers, let’s hope one day they will turn to shouts of joy too.

If you’re interested in partnering with Ascend, you can do so in three ways: praying with us, mentoring for us and giving financially to us. If you’d like any more information, please contact: catherine@ togetherforsheffield / 07526721115.

THREE WAYS TO PRAY FOR ASCEND:

• For our young adults to keep building meaningful relationships with our team

• For employers to be open to a different way of recruiting and partnering with us

• For the team to grow in love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness and self-control.

Thank you, Arisers!

Back in August, we received an email from a church leader asking if we could put out a call for a volunteer wedding photographer, and an Iranian interpreter, to help with the wedding of an Iranian refugee couple who were getting married in early October, at St Stephen’s, Netherthorpe. We shared the request on one of the Arise Send Out emails, and people rallied around! An Ariser volunteered to photograph the wedding, and it was a beautiful day.

The church leader even told us that it was one of the highlights of their ministry. What a blessing! Don’t forget - if you’re not already in the Arise community, we’d love you to join today: visit www. AriseSheffield.org and click ‘Join In’.

The Family Works receives transformative funding grant

The Family Works, a family support project set up by St. John's Owlerton, has been awarded £250,000 over the next three years by Benefact Trust, in order to grow and support more families across South Yorkshire.

Born out of a longing to see more families thrive, The Family Works supports any family – with children aged up to 18 – which feels they just need a little help to move their lives forward. The team is made up of volunteer Family Mentors from the local community who build encouraging and positive relationships with families.

The Family Works employs dedicated Link Workers who ‘walk’ families through support with other agencies

Ascend employment programme is changing the lives of unemployed young adults in Sheffield

Over 4,000 believers across Sheffield and beyond chose to shine in a dark season, taking part in Arise:Hallow last Autumn.

Believers were invited to display their faith for the two weeks either side of Halloween, by creating a window display for Streets of Light, and by wearing a faith symbol with Wear Your Faith Fortnight. Streets of Light trail or networks, ensuring they can access the additional help if needed.

The grant from Benefact Trust is transformative for The Family Works, enabling them to make long-term plans to continue to support families in Sheffield. Find out more about The Family Works here: www.thefamilyworks.co.uk/

Arise:Hallow & Arise:Christmas impacting thousands of Sheffielders

maps were distributed free of charge to schools across Sheffield, helping families to find positive messages of light, hope and love across the city. Thanks to the support of generous Arisers, and in partnership with the Diocese of Sheffield, Arise helped provide thousands of free enamel badges to help believers wear their faith. Many participants told us that they’ve kept their badge on their coat ever since, wearing their faith every day. Plans are already beginning for Arise:Hallow 2023: watch this space.

In time for Advent, churches across Sheffield built connections with schools, nurseries, and neighbours through the gift of Real Advent Calendars (Fairtrade chocolate calendars containing the real Christmas story). Arisers who gave out calendars were struck by how positively they were received: “It surprised us: there were a lot of people who were really receptive, more than we’d imagined.”

As Arisers prepare to cover Sheffield in prayer, and reach out with gifts of Real Easter Eggs and Easter cards, please pray that the seeds planted last Autumn will lead to new growth this March.

Ascend is an innovative programme that supports unemployed young adults in Sheffield to find and keep good jobs. Through being surrounded with a network of peers, advocates, volunteer mentors, and trainers, the participants are overcoming barriers to work. So far, 19 young adults have participated in Ascend since it launched in October 2022. They have been matched with employers who have offered them short work placements; they’ve attended group workshops every fortnight; and some of them have also benefited from a personal mentor.

About a third of the Ascenders have already been offered jobs, and others have found the programme transformative in other ways. “One Ascender had been estranged from their family for some time, but now that they have routine, and a good rhythm, and a job, they’re reconnecting and spending time together again,” says Ascend Trainer Josh Cutting.

“We’re seeing the Ascenders grow in their willingness to dream about the future, in them thinking that they can achieve more than just an entry-level job, but that they can progress. For young adults whose parents and grandparents are unemployed, this is a huge change. We’re also seeing them really come out of their shells and grow in confidence. One Ascender

Josh and his co-trainer Nikki Williams have been really struck by the openness of the Ascenders to exploring faith. “We’re having lots of conversations about faith, about Jesus. As we share on the different topics around leadership, teamwork, communication and emotional intelligence, we’re seeing opportunities to share the gospel. They’re also coming to pizza nights with people from

Sheffield’s young adults urgently need more opportunities. Could your organisation create a parttime, entry-level role for an Ascender? Thousands of young adults in Sheffield believe that Covid has ruined their chances to find meaningful work. They just need someone to give them a real opportunity. To find out more about how you could transform the future of one of these young adults, email Katie@togetherforsheffield. co.uk

Our young adults also need mentors, to meet with them for an hour every two weeks. It makes a real difference to their progress to have someone give that additional time. Ascend can provide a mentoring pack with guidance and suggested outlines for mentoring conversations. If you’re interested in mentoring a local young adult, contact Cat@togetherforsheffield. co.uk to find out more.