Contemplative Youth Ministry: Practicing the Presence of Jesus. By Mark Yaconelli. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2006, 256 pp., $19.99.

Contemplative Youth Ministry: Practicing the Presence of Jesus is the result of research conducted by Mark Yaconelli, the creator and co-director of the Youth Ministry and Spirituality Project. From 2000 until 2003, he gathered a group of leaders from 13 exemplary churches and 10 denominations in the United States. These churches ranged from conservative evangelical to liberal Protestants to Roman Catholic. He does not give a description of these churches and does not define “exemplary.” Leaders were trained to “explore a different way of sharing Jesus’ message of love with young people” (27). This book is his reflection on what happened in these churches.

Yaconelli has made several insightful observations about youth ministry with which we can agree. He tells youth leaders, “We cannot hope to touch the hearts of youth if we have lost our own spiritual rooting” (20). He identifies a key problem in most churches today when he declares we spend so much time “doing church” that we do not have time just to spend with God. His purpose in writing the book is summarized by this quote, “We have to give ourselves permission to pray, to listen to people, and to be humble and willing to wait on the Holy Spirit to lead the way. How can we share God if we’re too busy to be with God? How can we love kids if we aren’t present to them?” (21).

We do want our youth “to be with God” and to experience his presence. The methods in this book, however, are subjective, mystical, and lack the authority of the Word of God. One of Yaconelli’s main approaches is to have the youth listen as the leader reads a passage of Scripture several times. As the passage is read, they listen for a word or phrase that “shimmers” or “sticks,” and then share how they feel this applies to their life of faith. At this point, there is danger of the Bible becoming completely subjective and open to any idea. When Satan tempted Christ, he quoted Scripture but out of context. Christ responded with a hermeneutically correct, “It is written” (Matt 4:4). As followers of Christ, we are responsible not simply to respond to Scripture based on our feelings but to interpret the Word of God rightly (2 Tim 2:15).

The author relates how attending a retreat led by an Episcopal priest who emphasized silence, prayer, and imagination impacted his life. Many of these exercises, he claims, were part of an ancient and forgotten contemplative prayer tradition within the Christian church. When calling the church to change how we minister to youth, however, we must have a solid Scriptural foundaion—not just a few testimonies that tell how Ignatius Loyola would have done it.

The book references Christian Smith’s landmark research in Soul Searching. This research clearly reveals parents as the most important influence in their adolescents’ lives. Yet Contemplative Youth Ministry fails to mention the importance of parents in the life of youth. How does the contemplative method involve parents in the spiritual development of their children?

Yaconelli seems to believe that what youth need is to “find the God within them.” He appears to decry having either Scripture or church leaders as an authoritative voice in the lives of youth. They are simply to “experience Jesus” for themselves. He gives several examples in Scripture of people “experiencing Jesus,” but ignores the fact that most of the teaching of Jesus is drawn upon the authority of the Old Testament. Jesus told His disciples that they were foolish because they did not believe all that the prophets had spoken and then, “beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself ” (Luke 24:25-27).

Yaconelli implies that Christ would not come where the church gathers today but would be out where the people are. There is some truth in this. Yet the Bible also affirms that it was Jesus’ custom to attend synagogue as well (Luke 14:6), and we must never forget that it is the church for whom Christ died. Yaconelli frequently says that Jesus expects nothing from us; while there is a measure of truth in this, Jesus says, “You are my friends if you do what I command you” ( John 15:14). In addition, the Great Commission describes his expectation for followers of Jesus.

The book appears to be pessimistic towards preach- ing or what he calls “word-heavy youth ministry.” Several times in the Gospels, however, we read that Jesus “preached” and Romans 10:14 asks how people can hear without a preacher. All of this seems rather “word-heavy.” The gospel must be proclaimed and reflected in the way we live. He is correct when he says we need to slow down, spend undisturbed time with God, and commune with him. In authentic communion with God, however, the Holy Spirit works through the Word of God to transform our inner being so that we desire to serve him in the world to the glory of our Savior.

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[Editor's Note: Brian C. Richardson is Ph.D. Basil Manly, Jr. Professor of Church Ministries The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary]