The Kids Are All Right

If you don't know anything about Christianity in general or Evangelicalism in particular, you won't know what to make of what's going on at Asbury University, a small, conservative Methodist college in Kentucky.*

Here is what happened. This comes from Dr. Thomas McCall, a theology professor at Asbury Theological Seminary.

"Most Wednesday mornings at Asbury University are like any other. A few minutes before 10, students begin to gather in Hughes Auditorium for chapel. Students are required to attend a certain number of chapels each semester, so they tend to show up as a matter of routine.**

But this past Wednesday was different. After the benediction, the gospel choir began to sing a final chorus—and then something began to happen that defies easy description. Students did not leave. They were struck by what seemed to be a quiet but powerful sense of transcendence, and they did not want to go. They stayed and continued to worship. They are still there."

People have begun to talk and are trying to evaluate what the, uh, heck, is going on at Asbury. Some say it is The Holy Spirit. Some say it is just youthful emotionalism. 

 

 

Dr. McCall continues, "I teach theology across the street at Asbury Theological Seminary, and when I heard of what was happening, I immediately decided to go to the chapel to see for myself. When I arrived, I saw hundreds of students singing quietly. They were praising and praying earnestly for themselves and their neighbors and our world—expressing repentance and contrition for sin and interceding for healing, wholeness, peace, and justice."

Of course, our virtual public square, Twitter, has commented. 

One guy, a Baptist, posted a Tweet that criticized the kids for not using the King James Version of the Bible. He also noted, to his horror, that some of the kids were Methodists. You know how they are.

Mike Cosper tweeted, "Christian Twitter’s response to the Asbury Revival is a vivid case study in disenchantment. The need to posture, condescend, add an asterisk, and otherwise position oneself above the situation is ultimately an effort to make meaning of it within immanence."

I don't know what "an effort to make meaning of it with immanence" means, but I think he's saying don't make a big deal out of a bunch of Gen  Z kids not reading the King James Version of The Bible out loud.

Here's my opinion, in the words of Pink Floyd: Leave them kids alone.

The senior class at Asbury University entered school in the fall of 2019. Then, in the spring of 2020, Covid hit. I'm unsure how Asbury handled it, but I'm sure classes were held virtually. 

Of course, everybody had to wear a mask. Everybody was isolated in one way or another.

On top of that, the past seven or so years have been continuous. Everybody is yelling at everybody else because they simply hate each other. There are wars and rumors of wars, and now, oh Lord, there are balloons.

The Millennials had to move back home to make ends meet. Gen Z couldn't even leave the house.

Back in my insurance days, one of my co-workers would say, "There's got to be a better way."  That's what the kids of Asbury are saying.

 

 

Again from Dr. McCall. "Some are calling this a revival, and I know that in recent years that term has become associated with political activism and Christian nationalism. But let me be clear: no one at Asbury has that agenda. As an analytic theologian, I am weary of hype and very wary of manipulation. I come from a background (in a particularly revivalist segment of the Methodist-holiness tradition) where I’ve seen efforts to manufacture “revivals” and “movements of the Spirit” that were sometimes not only hollow but also harmful. I do not want anything to do with that.

And truth be told, this is nothing like that. There is no pressure or hype. There is no manipulation. There is no high-pitched emotional fervor.

 

To the contrary, it has so far been mostly calm and serene. The mix of hope and joy and peace is indescribably strong and indeed almost palpable—a vivid and incredibly powerful sense of shalom. The ministry of the Holy Spirit is undeniably powerful but also so gentle."

 

It is wild to think the Spirit of God would come to a small school in Kentucky when it could come to the red carpet at The Oscars and have everybody experience it.  But God moves in mysterious ways, and his still, small voice is saying the kids are all right.

 

Footnotes

*Here's a fun fact. The school was named after Francis Asbury, a famous Methodist preacher. Do you know who else was named after Francis Asbury?  NFL Hall Of Famer Fran Tarkington.

 

**When I went to Louisiana College, we had chapels and boy were they routine.