D. A. Carson on Generational Conflict in Ministry
Generational Conflict in Ministry The older group viewed the younger men as untested, ignorant of the lessons learned by suffering, far too cerebral, dizzyingly scattered and ill-focused, cocky, impatient, even arrogant. The younger group viewed the older men as, at best, out of date: they had slipped past their “sell by” date as much as had the communist regimes. They were ill-trained, defined too narrowly by yesterday’s conflicts, unable to evangelize the new generation, vainly clutching to power, consumed rather more by tradition than by truth. And in very large measure, both sides were right.
Perhaps I am mistaken on this, but I don’t think that the divide is really or mainly generational these days (or that it ever has been mainly this). There are both young and old who stand on opposite sides of many of the dividing lines across the theology and ministry landscape. I think, and it is only a hypothesis, that the fact that the traditional vs. non-traditional factor falsely gives the impression that it is old vs. young. That simply doesn’t follow—there are a lot of young traditionalists and older people who are quite non-traditional.
I am not suggesting that age/generation plays no part in this, but that it is a side bar to the main discussion. Worse, it can often serve as a tangent that leads people away from the more substantive discussion. That a young person or an older person puts forward or shoots down an idea really isn’t important. It is whether that person, young or old, supplies sufficient biblical warrant for or against that idea. It is very counterproductive to pit young against the old (and vice versa) or privilege some group because of their age.
Most of us have seen very bad theology and ministry ideas spring from both old and young. We’ve also seen efforts to be more biblically sound from both old and young. In both cases, I think people lined up with either bad or good ideas because they agreed, not simply because of their age. People tend to pool based on shared beliefs and values, not necessarily age grouping. That’s why you’ll find young guys applauding MacArthur right now and some older guys not too happy with him. It’s not their generation that dictates this, but their agreement or disagreement with his point. Carson is not doing it, but many use the generation thing as a lazy way to dismiss what they disagree with. This is prejudice, not argument.
At least that’s the view from someone in the generation between JMac and my seminary student son.
I am not suggesting that age/generation plays no part in this, but that it is a side bar to the main discussion. Worse, it can often serve as a tangent that leads people away from the more substantive discussion. That a young person or an older person puts forward or shoots down an idea really isn’t important. It is whether that person, young or old, supplies sufficient biblical warrant for or against that idea. It is very counterproductive to pit young against the old (and vice versa) or privilege some group because of their age.
Most of us have seen very bad theology and ministry ideas spring from both old and young. We’ve also seen efforts to be more biblically sound from both old and young. In both cases, I think people lined up with either bad or good ideas because they agreed, not simply because of their age. People tend to pool based on shared beliefs and values, not necessarily age grouping. That’s why you’ll find young guys applauding MacArthur right now and some older guys not too happy with him. It’s not their generation that dictates this, but their agreement or disagreement with his point. Carson is not doing it, but many use the generation thing as a lazy way to dismiss what they disagree with. This is prejudice, not argument.
At least that’s the view from someone in the generation between JMac and my seminary student son.
DMD
As a young guy, the times I feel like I want to totally dismiss someone in the older generation are almost always when they make no effort to really understand me. And conversely, the times when I sit slapping my forehead towards the younger guys are when they make no effort to understand the older generation. When real listening and thinking happens, all generations are edified by each other.
Perhaps I am mistaken on this, but I don’t think that the divide is really or mainly generational these days (or that it ever has been mainly this).
I agree. I believe that society’s wholesale adoption of theories on adolescence and age-segregation has wired modern man to view most issues in terms of stages of life instead of by the issues themselves.
Which older generation? On one level, it might not make much sense to ask such a question. After all, isn’t generation a unifying concept, a grouping of people within clear if admittedly somewhat arbitrary lines? Not really. Generation is one of the lesser sociological factors. Race, geography, economic class, and language are probably all more determinative of a person’s religion, political affiliation, ethical standards, etc. Sometimes a momentous world change, such as WW2 or the shared experience of living under a communist regime, can overpower these other factors, but otherwise generation remains a lesser factor. It never subsumes entirely these other factors. It then follows that generation is a loose unity that reveals a more prominent plurality. Interaction with “the older generation” varies wildly depending on which segment of that generation one is engaging.
This leads to another question? Is it a matter of choice which older generation one experiences? No, then yes. First, we cannot choose to whom we are born or how we will be raised. So at least some of our interactions with the older generation are determined for us, and we can never rewrite them. However, especially on the ideological plane, one can seek out mentors and role models from a different segment. They can incorporate a different segment of the older generation into their experience. They can, to some degree at least, choose which older generation with whom to identify.
Much of the discussion of generational conflict within conservative Christianity has neglected these realities. Much of the talk about “young fundamentalists” under-emphasized the tendency for these young people to align themselves with a different stream of Christianity. It is generational, in the sense that it is mostly young people doing the re-aligning. Yet, it is not so much about generations as about genealogy. Many of these young people see themselves not as the heirs of Billy Sunday and Bob Jones, Sr., but of J. Gresham Machen and C. S. Lewis. Thus, the disagreements are not just between young and old, but between really divergent strains of Christianity. Failure to recognize this leads to exasperation and misunderstanding.
This leads to another question? Is it a matter of choice which older generation one experiences? No, then yes. First, we cannot choose to whom we are born or how we will be raised. So at least some of our interactions with the older generation are determined for us, and we can never rewrite them. However, especially on the ideological plane, one can seek out mentors and role models from a different segment. They can incorporate a different segment of the older generation into their experience. They can, to some degree at least, choose which older generation with whom to identify.
Much of the discussion of generational conflict within conservative Christianity has neglected these realities. Much of the talk about “young fundamentalists” under-emphasized the tendency for these young people to align themselves with a different stream of Christianity. It is generational, in the sense that it is mostly young people doing the re-aligning. Yet, it is not so much about generations as about genealogy. Many of these young people see themselves not as the heirs of Billy Sunday and Bob Jones, Sr., but of J. Gresham Machen and C. S. Lewis. Thus, the disagreements are not just between young and old, but between really divergent strains of Christianity. Failure to recognize this leads to exasperation and misunderstanding.
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