Monday, June 04, 2007

The Socinian posts thought-provoking stuff

The Socinian describes a High School RE program that is absolutely not at all the YRUU program where I teach. The place I go every Sunday has the several dozen bright, thoughtful youth are politically active to a point, but have not bought into the rather dogmatic AR/AO mindset.

They do carwashes, sell totebags and put on a monopoly tournament and a Murder Mystery Dinner Theater for various charities. We have discussions of political issues and how religious issues apply, philosophy and how to deal with everyday difficulties of teenage life. We have about ten overnights a year and we do several cons where the kids bond and really get to know each other.

And again, there are several dozen of them. It's a vibrant, active group.

This may make The Socinian's point.

CC

4 comments:

fausto said...

Not sure if you're helping make my point or not. Among other things, I was trying to say that a heavy tilt toward AR/AO and sex ed content in the officially available RE materials for adolescents crowds out other kinds of support and subject matter that would be more essential to youthful faith formation.

Are you saying you have a vibrant and active youth program primarily because you ignore what comes down from HQ, and go the do-it-yourself route instead? If so, that's consistent with what I was trying to say. The supportive materials available from HQ don't minister to your kids' actual needs in content and emphasis.

Are you saying you have a vibrant and active youth program that is modeled after and draws upon useful and well-balanced faith formation resources that are available from HQ? It doesn't sound like you're saying that, but if you do get that kind of official support, you're rebutting me.

In any case, I would agree with you that the "AR/AO mindset" is "rather dogmatic".

Anonymous said...

what is "AR/AO" ?

Anonymous said...

Kim, AR/AO is "anti-racism/anti-oppression."

I asked the same question a few posts back!

Robin Edgar said...

Kim. FYI ROTFLMU*UO is "Rolling on the floor laughing my ass off." ;-)