1. The Value of Theological Reflection in Youth Ministry
Let’s Reflect:
The Value of Theological Reflection in Youth Ministry
Rev. Louise Kenyon
Assistant Dean at Nazarene Theological College, Manchester, England

2. Hello!

3. Who am I?

4. Who am I?

6. Aims
This webinar will discuss the value of intentionally reflecting on our practice in youth ministry. We will look at one or two models of theological reflection that can help deepen an awareness of God’s presence in our youth ministry and highlight practical implications for our lives and ministries.

8. Reflection Reflection
Reflection is, “the act of deliberately slowing down our habitual processes of interpreting our lives to take a closer look at the experience and at our frameworks for interpretation”. (De Beer and Killen, The Art of Theological Reflection, 1999, p.x)

9. The Slo Mo Guys https://youtu.be/np68FhljCb8
OK Go, One Moment

10. ‘Faith Seeking Understanding’
(St Anselm)

11. “…making the transforming connections between our real life issues and the fundamentals of our Christian heritage”. (Laurie Green, Let’s Do Theology: Resources for Contextual Theology, p.iv)

12. Reflection must be intentional

13. Theological Reflection Möbius Strip

15. Reflexivity/self-awareness
Who are you?

16. Reflexivity/self-awareness
Values
Beliefs
Experiences
Knowledge
Personal context
Culture
Education
Gender
Ethnicity

17. Reflection Practitioner
The practice of a worker who is:
Able to use knowledge (the application of a critical understanding of theoretical ideas and information) in their work

18. Reflection Practitioner
The practice of a worker who is:
Sensitive and self-aware in their work

19. Reflection Practitioner
The practice of a worker who is:
Able to evaluate and reframe work done and incorporate this into future work. (Donald Schön)

20. Personal Reflectivity
“involves reflecting upon the ways in which our own values, experiences, interests, beliefs, political commitments, wider aims in life and social identities”

21. The Pastoral Cycle
(See, judge, act)

22. The Pastoral Cycle
Theological reflection in ministry is the process of bringing to bear in the practical decisions of ministry the resources of Christian faith (Whitehead 1980 pix)

23. The Pastoral Cycle 1) Name the experience What is happening?
2) Look at the wider information and implications
Why is it happening?
3) Where is God in the experience?
What does it mean?
4) Bringing change
How shall we respond?

24. Laurie Green’s reflective spiral

25. Theological Reflection is an intentional process

26. The Christian tradition
Personal experience
Culture

29. “Take care of my sheep”
John 21:15-19

30. Helpful reading
Paul & Sally Nash, Tools for Reflective Ministry, 2012.
Andrew Root, Taking Theology to Youth Ministry, 2012.

31. Questions