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Previous | Next CURRENTLY IN CULTURE
The life of Canadian youth examined
Peter J. Woelk
Often stereotyped, misunderstood and sometimes just ignored by adults, today’s youth (15-25) are different than youth of yesteryear. Many of today’s youth live for the present. While many youth find happiness attending all-night parties, called raves, Christian youth find fulfillment in worshipping God and witnessing Christ to their friends. They are more open about their faith and don’t fear sharing Christ with others. In general, today’s youth seem to love hanging out with other youth and want to be popular, but want to express themselves differently. They also want to be loved and respected. Both Christian and non-Christian youth have the same fears and frustrations as many adults. But what is behind the way youth live and think today? What is it that youth really want out of life? Recently, several Canadian magazines looked at youth.
The Maclean’s April 24 issue featured the cover story, “Rave Fever”, which looked at the popularity of the all-night parties for youth. In larger urban centres such as Toronto and Montreal,
raves draw hundreds to thousands of young people, most of whom are between the ages of 15 and 29. Ravers preach peace, love and unity, disdain violence, frown on alcohol and are open-minded about others. However, once seen as fun, raves are now becoming places where drugs are openly sold. The danger from drug abuse, and the risk of dying from that abuse, is so real that some communities are considering ways to regulate raves.
The centre for Addiction and Mental Health in Toronto reports that “57% of students who had attended a rave in the past year had used cannabis but no other illegal substance. Two-thirds of those who had been to a rave are heavier drug users than nonravers. And 4.4% of all the students surveyed had taken ecstasy (MDMA) in the past year.”
Ravers say that their culture is about the music and the love-fest factor, not drugs. Some concerned parents even attend raves with their children. One parent was impressed with how well behaved youth at a rave acted towards each other: “Everyone’s friendly and respectful of one another.”
Self-expression is central to the rave culture. Dressed in bright colours and big hats decked with toys and candy, ravers wear clothes that tend to be fun and comfortable rather than sexually provocative.
Tim Weber, a sociologist, notes that today’s youth are looking for positive experiences to offset the comparatively stressful climate they’ve grown up in. Many high school students see raves as “mini-vacations away from daily stressors”. He also says that ravers, who were raised by done-it-all, seen-it-all baby boomers, are also the generation that grew up with latchkey-ism, AIDS, the dominance of clothing brands and the pressure to start planning a career during adolescence.
In the April 24 Report, the cover article, called “From the Mouths of Babes”, describes how today’s youth are more open about their faith in their schools and universities and are also speaking out on social issues like abortion and pornography. The article notes that while Christian youth may question the usefulness of the church, their loyalty to Christ is unswerving. Many wear WWJD (What Would Jesus Do) bracelets and other religious symbols and openly worship and witness for Jesus. Many examine their own ethics and those of their friends, including relationships with the opposite sex.
Some observers believe that this resurgence in Christianity is a direct result of the shootings in Littleton and Taber. Others think it’s just another strand of New Age. Youth leaders across Canada agree there is a renewal of spirituality in Canada.
Edmonton’s People’s Church targets unchurched young adults. Associate pastor Dave Roussel says, “At least 40% of the group is made up of raw, first-generation converts”. “These kids were raised by New Age parents, many of them from broken homes. They’re tired of how the other half lives.”
Today, the group averages 60 young adults at its weekly Bible studies and is averaging one new adult convert per month.
“The kids set the [moral] standards,” says Roussel, “And they are rather high. At least half the group, male and female, has decided not to date until they are ready for a lifetime commitment.”
Tehillah, a Monday night praise and worship service at Calgary’s First Assembly (Pentecostal) Church, attracts 600-900 young people, aged 18-25. They come for the loud Christian rock music, prayer and ministry opportunities. Youth pastor Steve Osmond says, “I’ve been involved in youth ministry for 10 years. And this newest generation is different. They have no fear about sharing their faith, no shame in identifying with Christ and a total willingness to commit their time and finances.”
One 18-year-old attender of Tehillah was “captivated” by the “vibrancy” of the people he observed. Since his conversion a year ago, he has persuaded 16 friends to join him in his newfound faith. Now instead of partying, they spend their spare time witnessing for Christ.
University of Lethbridge sociologist Reginald Bibby, Canada’s best-known demographer of spiritual matters, is conducting the first in-depth survey of adult and youth spirituality since 1992. It is tentatively entitled, “The Renaissance of Religion in Canada”.
John Stackhouse, professor of culture and theology at Regent College, Vancouver, senses something is changing. It may stem more from an aging population than from any personal traumas youth are facing. He points out that baby boomers rebelled against the church partly because they saw it as part of an established culture they hated. But boomers were so successful at marginalizing the church that today’s youth have grown up knowing little about it. “Kids are free to consider the Christian faith without their parents’ prejudice,” says Stackhouse. “And when they learn about its stringent moral demands, it becomes a radical and interesting alternative.”
Annual youth worship festivals are also gaining popularity. In 1994, 535 youth attended the first YC, the largest such event, in Red Deer, Alta. YC99 attracted about 7,000 participants. During YC2K in Edmonton, more than 14,000 showed up for three days of teaching and worship featuring Christian music by artists such as Newsboys and Michael W. Smith.
The number of university students involved in campus ministries is also growing rapidly. At the University of Winnipeg, Varsity Christian Fellowship has seen its lunchtime worship sessions on Friday grow from nothing three years ago to now averaging over 100. Christian students say that non-Christian students are no longer overtly hostile to the Christian message.
Faith Today’s May/June 2000 issue featured “The Secret Life of Christian Teens”. Two articles, both written by youth, said Christian youth find fulfillment in their relationship with God. They strive to live godly lives, but struggle with faith questions. They have a desire to make their parents’ religious convictions their own, but are dismayed that adults don’t allow them to find their own faith in God.
Youth fear for the future. They don’t know what career to choose and if they will marry. They fear failed relationships. Many feel no one loves them or has ever loved them; some think they are unlovable and ugly. Some youth struggle with loyalty to friends when moral issues are at stake.
Youth enjoy music. Some think non-Christian music negatively influences their moral outlook, others say it makes no difference. Some don’t have problems with the morality portrayed in movies and on TV. One youth writes: “No one can live up to the church’s expectations of what our lives should be; no one can live up to the media’s expectations of what we should look like; no one can live up to the world’s expectations of what our lives should include.”
Youth tend to keep secrets because of shyness and embarrassment and for personal autonomy and privacy. They will confide in anyone they feel is trustworthy, including parents, teachers and friends, and only if they know they won’t be judged, stereotyped, patronized or lectured. Mostly, youth want understanding, love, patience and honesty.
Peter J. Woelk is editorial assistant for MB Herald.
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Last modified June 16, 2001.
© 2001 Mennonite Brethren Herald.
Published by the Canadian Conference of MB Churches.
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