Submitted by Hailee Barnes,
NNPCW Coordinating Committee member

When was the last time you heard someone of an older age said to you, “You are the future of the church”? I’ll bet it wasn’t that long ago because I hear it quite frequently. Whether it is in a group that I am being addressed or as an individual, I have most frequently heard it said in delight when they see something that the youth, young adults, or myself are doing that is pleasing to them. I have often been frustrated with this comment, I was not sure why until a few days ago as I was having a conversation about what being and doing church means.

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines “church” in these three ways;
1: a building for public and especially Christian worship
2: the clergy or officialdom of a religious body
3: often capitalized: a body or organization of religious believers: as a the whole body of Christians

I am certain that it is not to the first definition for which they are referring. It would be legitimate if they were referring to the second definition because for most of us it will take some time to become clergy, hence the future, but I am pretty sure that is also not what they are referring to. It is the third definition that I believe most people who speak of us “being the future of the church” are referring. So the church is “a body or organization of religious believers”, ok take NNPCW for example, “We are young women in college connected by our belief in God”. So we are a body of believers, hence we ARE church, not in the future, but today.

I believe that we should start valuing our youth and young adults in church for who they are and what they do in the church right now, not only what they will do as adults. There are high school students serving as elders, there are college students who are very involved with their home congregations or the national church. This will take looking at how we speak about and to youth and young leaders in the church. I believe it ties in very well with the use of inclusive language. Not only should we be using inclusive language for God, we should also use inclusive language for church and start to value and include youth and young adults in the church picture.