People were bringing children to him in order that he might touch them, and the disciples spoke sternly to them. But when Jesus saw this, he was indignant and said to them, “Let the children come to me; do not stop them, for it is to such as these that the kingdom of God belongs.”(Mark 10:13, 14 NRSVUE)
Does your congregation want to faithfully pass on faith to young people? So do we.
Do you want to ensure that the good news of Jesus is shared from age to age? We want to help you do just that.
Capital University was recently awarded $1.25 million dollars from the Lilly Endowment as a part of their first series of Nurturing Children through Worship and Prayer grants. Our project, Age to Age: Curating Congregational Rituals to Form Faith With and Within Children, will equip faith communities with accessible, culturally competent resources that strengthen the faith of young people. With professional expertise in theology, education, music, accessibility, DEI, and human development, Capital is positioned to empower congregations of all sizes—and especially those that do not employ professional children’s ministry staff—to provide compelling opportunities to strengthen children’s faith.
Each year, Age to Age will gather ecumenical cohorts of 8 congregations that will meet monthly together to accomplish three goals. First, through monthly remote meetings, we will accompany one another in solidarity as we minister in this precedented era. Second, congregations will identify ways that their particular communities might better support faith formation in children. Third, cohort members will each be matched with a consultant whose professional expertise matches their particular needs. Throughout the year, Age to Age consultants will create and curate resources for cohort members and then help congregations implement learnings in their specific contexts.
What sets Age to Age apart from other programs is the intent to create and curate faith formation resources that are both accessible and culturally competent. This is vital because, for people to know God, precisely because all people deserve to so that our children can form profound faith that appreciates ways that God’s image incarnates within people of all abilities, ethnicities, genders, races, sexual orientations, and more.
We take this cue from Jesus, who demands that the disciples remove the obstacles that prevent children from coming to him, even if the obstacles are the disciples’ themselves and their societal norms. You see, sometimes the things that we normally do—that we’re comfortable doing, maybe even the things that we like doing—are themselves hurdles to others coming to Christ. By creating and curating accessible, culturally competent resources, we’re ensuring that all children can come to Jesus, even if that means we, like the disciples, need to get out of the way and do some things differently.
And here’s the beauty of this story: by getting out of the way, the disciples didn’t lose access to Jesus. Instead, more people could approach Christ in their own way while the disciples retained their particular relationships with Jesus. Accessible and culturally competent resources ensure as many people as possible can engage God’s goodness in worship and can celebrate divine diversity throughout all creation. That’s the vision for Age to Age: a world where all people who use these resources can find themselves within God’s love.
You may already know that I am no longer Capital’s University Pastor, and if so, you might be wondering how we’ll accomplish all this. Don’t fret! President Kaufman has contracted me to ensure we hire a program director and maintain positive relationships with faith-based funding organizations. My new role at HopeWood Outdoors also opens the door for potential partnerships that could further expand the Age to Age resources through our outdoor ministry network.
Age to Age will only thrive with your participation. How can you do that?
1. Do you know someone who would be a great leader in this project? Great! We’re hiring a Program Director for Age to Age in the coming months. When ready, the position will be posted at https://capital.applicantpro.com/jobs/. Check it out and share the opportunity widely!
2. If your congregation is interested in participating in an Age to Age cohort, email cfl@capital.edu.
3. Are you aware of accessible, culturally competent resources to share with others? Share that here to add it to the list of curated assets. The forthcoming Age to Age website will host all of the resources created and curated by consultants, giving free access to these resources to all throughout the life of the grant.
4. Is your congregation is already doing innovative children’s ministries that you’d like to share more broadly so that others might benefit from your wisdom, let us know!
Drew Tucker