I just want to add a few praises for Young Life and a few thoughts.
(I’m a convert to Catholicism, April 10, 2004.)
I don’t think Young Life can be accused of being “fundamental” or even “evangelical.”
I was raised in a Conference Baptist Church. It’s been many years (Class of 1975), but back then, our church never really encouraged kids to get involved with Young Life because they thought the Gospel message was too watered-down (Just the basics–follow Jesus, very little else). Our Youth sponsors thought that Young Life was just too low-key on the Bible, with not enough “meat” for Christian kids.
Our church preferred to see kids come to their Youth Group rather than get involved with Young Life or Campus Life.
(Note: My Conference Baptist Church, and the CB denomination in general, is very tolerant and accepting of Catholics, and our pastor was good friends with the priest in the Catholic Church that I now attend. Our church even got together with Catholics a few times to promote unity and friendship. I never heard anything bad about Catholics from my church or denomination; on the contrary, I heard a lot of good about Catholics.)
I think the feelings about Young Life still linger among truly fundamental denominations. They really don’t like the simple, basic, “follow Jesus” message. They want something more “fundamental,” more conservative, more “accept Jesus into your heart to be your personal Savior and Lord.” They have a real problem with something that they perceive as “ecumenical.” To some Fundamentalists, “ecumenical” = “one-world” = “Antichrist!”
I don’t know if Young Life still uses this simple message, but when I talked to a Young Life leader a few years ago about getting a group started in my daughter’s high school, it seemed pretty non-denomination, extremely basic Christianity.
One thing to think about–Young Life is still allowed and even welcome in many public and private-secular schools, while churches of all denominations, Catholic and Protestant, are virtually shut out. I think that we should encourage groups like Young Life that at least get kids thinking about Jesus Christ and His claims. It sure beats a lot of the organizations that are hanging out in high schools.
And I think Catholic kids, if they don’t have a strong youth group in their own church, should be encouraged to join Young Life and live out their Catholic Christianity along with all the Protestants! The way I see it, this will encourage kids to look into Catholicism. Of course, this means that the Catholic kids should be well-catechized, and if there is no youth group in their church to do the teaching, then it’s up to the parents.
A Catholic kid doesn’t have to be sucked into Protestantism. I think it’s just as likely that a Protestant kid could be “drawn” to Catholicism. It may not happen for years, but it plants a seed. I think this happened in me.
The other thing that Catholic families can do is invite the Young Life meetings into their home. (I don’t know if Young Life still meets in homes, but it used to.) When I was growing up Protestant, I met so many really cool Catholics who were obviously Christians just like me, including Catholic teenagers. That made it a lot easier for me to eventually come home to the Catholic faith. I didn’t have to overcome the idea that many Protestants have that “Catholics aren’t really Christians.”
But if you hide in your Catholic Church and refuse to meet Protestants halfway, it just makes Protestants think even weirder things about you. Staying away from Young Life and criticizing it will only create more bad feelings between Catholics and Protestants. I say come out, come out, wherever you are, and show the Protestants what Catholic Christianity is all about.
