Abstract
There has been an increase of discussion and focus on matters of theological significance in the area of youth ministry. An area that remains neglected concerns the professional youth worker in Southern Africa. This focus on professional youth work has gained a great amount of urgency from the office of the presidency of Southern Africa, who in collaboration with the Commonwealth desk have prioritised the focus on youth work in South Africa. Unfortunately, the focus on the professional youth worker, the career youth pastor, within the church in Southern Africa fails to receive a similar amount of attention. The article will highlight the need to pursue a theological articulation around the office of the career youth pastor by building a practical theological argument for the office of career youth pastor. The article will address a case study of a mainline evangelical denomination regarding its theological articulation of the career youth pastor.
Highlights
The office of the youth pastor is a recent development in a South African context and is usually based upon a Western or European model
The aim of the article was to address the lack of theological articulation for the office of the career youth pastor in the Baptist Union of Southern Africa (BUSA)
The problem raised in the article was addressed and supported by theoretical and empirical research to investigate the validity of the office of the career youth pastor by addressing the theological reasoning along the lines of a biblical foundation, a cultural justification and adolescent identity formation
Summary
The office of the youth pastor is a recent development in a South African context and is usually based upon a Western or European model. Youth ministry as a practical theological discipline requires adequate reflection upon its praxis and a certain amount of skill and knowledge by the practitioners for effective ministry (Nel 2005:459). It is in this context in South Africa that an emerging conversation regarding the nature and status of the professional youth worker has emerged (Commonwealth 2013; National Youth Development Agency (NYDA) 2008:7; The Presidency 2013). There is a clear repercussion on the lack of discussion regarding the professional youth worker as one observes the steady decline of youth in the church
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