I'm afraid I'm a bit sceptical about the intrinsic value of Earth Hour. As a tool for raising awareness of the threat of climate change, I agree that it has some use. As a vehicle for actually reducing the level of greenhouse gas emissions, it is really just a load of hot air.
However, its popularity as an exercise tells us plenty about our current society, and in particular, the Gen Y's that drive the pointy-end of public opinion. These are the same people that embraced the white plastic 'Make Poverty History' wristband in prolific numbers. Like the Earth Hour exercise, this raised awareness but was unlikely to have cut through to making concrete changes in behaviour. The same people who have sported some white plastic jewellery have now turned off their giant plasma screens for one hour on Saturday. The coal power stations kept burning, and poverty is far from history.
But even this jaded Gen X'er is excited about the opportunities these 'causes' present to us as we try and connect with our community. We need to realise that supporting a 'cause' is something that Gen Y's find attractive.
Instead of organising a hedonistic youth group social, the culturally-savvy youth minister will consider ways in which the group can unite for a cause. I've heard stories of groups that 'love bomb' neighbourhoods, offering to provide practical help to households that are in most need. It may seem counter-intuitive to get a group of young people together to mow the lawns of complete strangers, but this is strangely attractive to this cause-hungry generation.
This kind of connecting has enormous potential. What if a bunch of geeks approached the local primary school and offered to provide some help with their IT needs? What if some uni students with some spare time offered to join the canteen roster? These activities would raise the profile of the church, provide opportunities to connect with a new group of people, and strengthen the relationships between the church and the school administration as we seek to grow SRE.
Schools can also come on board with these kinds of initiatives as part of their curriculum.
As reported on this site last year, Youthworks ran a outdoor education camp for a school which provided a three-day 'City Mission Experience'. It aimed to help students think more about the issues of poverty, as well as helping them learn skills in urban independence.
Has your church or ministry run any 'cause connection' programs or activities? What advice would you give those who are trying to establish these kinds of events?
