Coming of Age

What is the state of faith today among younger men in the church? How is the church responding to the spiritual needs of a new generation? Armed with these questions and many more, authors Roland Martinson, Paul Hill, and David Anderson conducted interviews with young men (ages 18-40) of differing life and faith experiences, and differing ethnic backgrounds in six regions of the U.S. This new book, Coming of Age, is based on the results of this study. The health and vitality of the ELCA and other mainline denominations depends, in part, on keeping young men engaged in faith development and in connecting faith to life issues. The study focuses on eleven factors that have an impact on the spiritual journeys of young men and offers practical advice to those who provide ministry to young men in the church.
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Based on a study sponsored by Lutheran Men in Mission, the writers interviewed a cross-section of young men on eleven factors to determine how these factors affected spiritual development and the interaction of faith and life. The book reveals what the interviews uncovered, and the authors analyze what this might mean for ministry to and with young men today. The factors studied were relationships, male mentors, crisis, time management, work, the power of defining moments, nature, sports, spiritual hunger, service, and avocation. Each factor is then explored in depth in order to help young men and those who engage in mentoring them in dialogue about the factors that make for meaning, identity, and spirituality.
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