Listening to & Amplifying Young Voices
The ELCA faces the critical challenge to engage younger generations who often feel overlooked in church settings. The research the Barna Group conducted to inform the work of God’s Love Made Real highlights this growing disconnect: At least half of ELCA laity believe their churches are not effectively prioritizing young people, making innovative approaches to youth engagement crucial.
“Young people are looking for what everybody is looking for, which is belonging,” explains Savanna Sullivan, program executive for youth with the Lutheran World Federation.
This search for belonging is answered through intentional efforts to integrate youth into all aspects of church life. Encouragingly, many innovative ELCA congregations are successfully reaching and engaging youth in some pivotal ways.
Meaningful Leadership Roles
At Christ Lutheran Church in Wichita, Kan., the Rev. Chad Langdon’s vision has transformed how young people participate in worship. “When we started … today’s middle school and high school students were 4- and 5-year-olds who were reading in front of the congregation,” he shares. “Now, these youth are super comfortable doing everything.”
Exemplary ministries discuss empowering young people through such methods as introducing a youth delegate to the congregation council or providing microphones during children’s messages — ensuring young voices are literally heard and amplified.
The Rev. Andrew Rickel, pastor of Grace House on the Georgia Tech campus in Atlanta, describes the need for a posture shift, from assuming that clergy always know best to listening to students. “We need to not just be a student-led ministry but a student-driven ministry,” Rickel says. “You need to tell me what you are interested in and need.”
Creating “Brave Spaces”
ELCA leaders also emphasize the importance of understanding what congregants need in order to feel they belong (no matter their age) and creating spaces that promote this. The Rev. Daniel Pugh, pastor of Christ the King Lutheran, Cary, N.C., calls these “brave spaces.”
“We promise to be brave with you,” he says.
“Our youth feel so comfortable because they’re watching adults be comfortable and be their authentic selves,” adds Haley Stone, director of youth and family. “If you are welcome and you belong in a space, you tend to feel at peace there.”
The Lutheran Episcopal campus ministry at the University of Northern Colorado–Boulder, led by the Rev. Monica Butler, demonstrates another effective approach. Modeled after the Dinner Church Movement, it creates welcoming spaces where students can engage in authentic conversations about faith. Butler notes how openness and dialogue can make a difference.
“Right now, we have two people from very different faith backgrounds, theological commitments and language who are living next to each other,” she explains. “They have shared with me the ways they are learning from each other, and I’ve seen that play out in the way they show up and care for each other. Their differences aren’t barriers.”
Intergenerational Connections
For these ELCA churches, youth ministry isn’t about segregating young people; it’s about fostering connections across generations and giving them the opportunity to grow alongside older adults in their lives.
Wanting children to remain part of the worship service, congregations such as Christ the King or Advent Lutheran Church in Manhattan establish “praygrounds” where children can participate in worship and play together at the same time. Even when the noise gets to be a little too distracting, the congregation is willing to find solutions to prioritize kids being in worship.
As a smaller congregation, Langdon has seen intergenerational relationships bring vitality to Christ Lutheran and its nearby community.
“We have about 15 senior adult volunteers who help pass out snacks and drinks [to high school students we serve],” he says. “It’s been cool to watch them interact, and for the high schoolers who have no church background to love coming over here.”
Meeting Young People Where They Are
In his work with the Naming Project, a youth ministry camp for LGBTQ+ youth and allies, Deacon Ross Murray has learned that engaging younger generations should begin with an outward curiosity, not just a desire to bring them into ministry programming. “The more we can build the relationship with people, in their own setting, in their own space where they feel like themselves and the most comfortable, makes it easier to bring them into our space,” Murray says.
Some congregations are intentional about reaching beyond traditional church walls as well. Advent engages young adults through pub theology sessions and food pantry service opportunities.
“One young adult first started coming with his girlfriend to serve in our food pantry,” shares Hayley Moe, a former vicar of Advent. “Then he started coming to some of the young adult events, and he realized that there was a place for him in the church.”
Making space for young people, she adds, can create an enduring desire for community and faith practice.
“Last summer, we anticipated the number in worship to go down,” Moe says. “However, it didn’t because of the consistency of the young adults. … Each Sunday, a group of young adults would stay after worship to continue talking. They were showing community was building. They invited each other to events and created their own [gatherings]. Now, they take the initiative to seek out other young adults and get them plugged in.”
The Path Forward
Across the ELCA, innovative congregations are demonstrating the transformative power of authentic youth engagement. Their success stories prove that meaningful change happens when churches move beyond token representation and give young people real authority and voice in congregational life.
As Langdon reflects, “I want them to say, ‘At my church, I was the assistant minister on some Sundays; I also helped count money; I served communion and did numerous other things.’ I hope the church would allow them to get plugged in at whatever age or level."
The message is clear: Young people aren’t just part of the future of the ELCA — they are an essential part of its present vitality. For congregations ready to truly empower youth, the path forward requires courage: the courage to share leadership, to create brave spaces for authentic engagement, and to allow young people’ gifts and perspectives to contribute to the future of their faith communities.
