Is East Jamaica Conference (and West Indies Union) really serious about Adventist Youth in this day and age?
Are the leaders aware of how they are perceived by the young Adventists today? Do they CARE about how they are perceived?
Are they willing to make a difference, or will they just do whatever it is they want to do without getting feedback (and actually listening to feedback) from those who are on the front lines?
Sad to say, I believe the answer to these questions is in the negative. I am not sure whether this is because they are ignorant/unaware of the issues on the ground, or whether it is because they don’t care about the issues on the ground; and I am not sure which option would be worse.
For me, I perceive that the head conference officials either do not trust young persons to be able to lead, or do not think it important to facilitate the growth of young leaders or to account for the true importance of young people. I don’t know if this is because they think that they will be around forever, or that the young people will automatically have the experience and knowledge needed when we reach their age (and we are fast approaching that age as well). Either way is a poor state of thinking and will only lead to disaster.
The West Indies Union has established a “Youth Month” which is a very good push designed to involve the youth in leadership. Unfortunately, this push may obscure the fact that youth should have already been involved in such leadership even without the push. It is a sad truth that many youth perceive that their church leadership is fighting them down/not giving them a chance to do their part for the Lord.
I will admit that some youth do not present themselves as ready for this level of responsibility; at the same time, we must be ready to give people a chance to prove themselves. We must also be ready to provide support in the case that someone fails. Failure is not the final end, nor can we always just rely on “what’s always worked.” Church mission is risky business, but with Christ at the controls, the risks will always be managed.
So, what is the solution? I believe there needs to be a frank and open discussion between conference officials and youth leadership in the church, where conference can clearly state what they believe is the situation with our young people and where the young people can clearly state what they believe is the situation with their leaders. Conference needs to unequivocally state that they are here to uplift and support the young persons in our church, and will provide them with the chance to be ready to contribute towards the SDA church’s mission in Jamaica and around the world. Conference also needs to put its money where its mouth is, and realize that they are not the end-all-be-all of the SDA church’s existence. The Young People need to realize that they need to step up and be true Christians, true leaders, true participants and not just followers or bench-warmers. Things that have been said in private need to be made public; organization needs to be a true activity and not a nebulous state hoped to be attained. Leaders must lead proactively, not go reactive and timid.
Only then can we in the Jamaican SDA church begin to rise out of the mess that we are currently in.
