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Empowerment

Who could you see these people becoming in 25 years time?

Empowerment

Who does God see these people becoming in 25 years time?

Empowerment

Empowerment is....

• 1. to give power or authority to; authorize, especially by legal or official means: I empowered my agent to make the deal for me. The local ordinance empowers the board of health to close unsanitary restaurants.

• 2. to enable or permit: Wealth empowered him to live a comfortable life.

Empowerment

• Enabling young people to become the people whom God created them to be.

• Kerry Young: ‘For empowerment lies not only in the establishment of power-sharing structures or processes but importantly in the reclaiming of oneself as fully intelligent, fully powerful and fully human.’ (p4)

‘Fully intelligent, fully powerful and fully human’

• Made in the image of God – Gen 1:27

• Given authority and power to reign over creation – Gen 1:28-31; John 19:11

• Having appropriate boundaries – Gen 2:15-17

Empowerment

• ‘...spiritual growth and understanding will take place when young people are given the opportunities to be practical theologians.’ (Emery-Wright p8)

• i.e. Being empowered to give things a go and then to think and reflect theologically upon what happened

Stephen Emery-WrightEmpowerment

1) Create opportunities for young people to speak of their theological ideas concerning worship and other areas of Christian life and to give their voices power.

2) Empowering young people by providing them with the language and experience from which they are enabled to speak.

Two roles of Church leaders & Youth Workers (Emery-Wright)

Empowerment

Rachael Evans

• From St Alban’s Church, Wickersley

• Committed Christian family• Attended Unite aged 14 in July

2009• Became Unite young leader in

March 2011• Active member of PCC

Empowerment

• Took over CU at Wickersley Secondary School• CU organised shoebox appeal in school• Wickersley collected (and filled!) more

shoeboxes than any other school in Rotherham

Empowerment

Group Questions

• Do we give young people opportunities to try new things?

• Do we give them space to learn from their experiences?• Do we feel comfortable constructively criticising our

young people?• Do we praise our young people enough when they try

new things (even if things ‘fail’ or do not work out as planned?

• Can you give an example of a young person who you have – or could – empower[ed]?

Empowerment

Equality / Diversity

• Equality of opportunity ‘strives to ensure individuals and groups have equal access to the common economic system and to be in a position to maximise their benefits from it.’ Brierley, p117.

• It’s not about denying the differences between people; rather, it aims to make sure that all people and groups are given equal opportunities to succeed.

‘Aurora Church’ activity

Equality & Diverstiy