Jamie
Sweet is a Protestant Christian who has recently returned from Gent’s Camp
where he was a volunteer leader. The Gent’s Camp is a religious holiday camp
run by Scripture Union for boys in grades 8 to 10 (Scripture Union Qld, 2013).
During the camp participants are engaged in activities that challenge them to
develop resilience and contemplate their spiritual identity (Scripture Union
Qld, 2013). Jamie expresses the importance of understanding his own identity as
a child of God and his eagerness to assist young boys to forge their own
relationship with God.
The
purpose of this article is to examine how experiences at religious camps can
influence a young person’s developing sense of spiritual identity and the role
contemporary practices serve in this spiritual development. This paper will present the interwoven constructs of identity and
engagement discussed in the qualitative interview with Jamie.
People
of Christian faith often base their self-esteem and concept of self on the “faith that they are
loved by God” (Crocker & Wolfe, 2001, p. 594). Indeed Friedman (1997, p.
22) identifies that belief in a system greater than oneself can promote a sense
of “place in the world.” This has been the case for Jamie who, when asked how
religion has helped him in his life, explained: “My faith gives me identity… My
identity is as a created being, a child of God and as God is eternal and
unchanging, my identity is eternal and unchanging because of that… I can change
my mind and make mistakes as much as I want and I don’t become any less or
different because of that.” Jamie’s understanding of himself as “a
child of God” therefore allows him to overcome the uncertainty which arises
from one’s “beliefs being under scrutiny” that many religious individuals
encounter (Rindfleish, 2006, p. 348).
Whilst
a solid sense of identity is essential, this self-reliance must be coupled with
working for and contributing to the world, argues Wiebe (2010, p. 140) and
Roebben (2008, pg. 207). This sense of altruism is entrenched in the
scriptures of most religions (DeYoung, 2012, p. 62). Jamie discussed his
struggles to stay true to his faith during his teenage years and now recognizes
that there is a lot of experience that he has to contribute to the “common
good” (Roebben, 2008, p. 207) explaining that he “wants to do something with
people and to help people.”
Jamie
insists that participating in religious holiday camps greatly contributed to
the spiritual views he holds today and thus advocates for engaging young boys
in developing their spiritual identity. As “spiritual and religious
identification” emerges during early adolescence (Friedman, 1997, p. 22), holiday
camps have an important role to play in supporting the developing religious and
spiritual identities of the participants. As Friedman (1997, p. 23) recognizes,
“values and ideals are worthwhile concepts, but seeing them in action is what
really makes them come to life”, which Jamie supports explaining that “it’s by
being in it with people that they look up to as men and seeing what they do and
copying that.”
Jamie
explains that while “you are not forced to get involved in any of the more
Christian focused times… you get to see what it looks like and share your own
experiences with people who you trust.” He states that this promotes
discussion as participants “get a different perspective on how Christianity actually
works.” Roebben (2008, p. 209) illustrates that this discussion assists
individuals “to communicate about what they have perceived with others to
clarify their own point of view.” Having access to a wide range of knowledge
sources and being actively engaged in discussing one’s perceptions allows
individuals to ascertain and evaluate their own beliefs, acting as a source of
education (Cheong, Huang & Poon, 2011; Roebben, 2008, 209).
The
increased presence of religion online means access to knowledge sources and
religious views are increased (Cheong, Huang & Poon, 2011). Jamie
illustrates the benefits gained from having access to sermons posted by
international preachers, showing excitement at the ease of, what Cheong, Huang
and Poon (2011, pg. 1163) define as, accessing powerful spiritual knowledge. Access
to this knowledge means that spiritual messages are more accessible and
disseminated much more efficiently than previous methods (Cheong, Huang &
Poon, 2011, pg. 1176). For example Jamie discusses that “digital community
noticeboards” provide a much more accessible way to communicate and learn.
However, Jamie’s view, which is common according to Cheong, Huang and Poon
(2011, p. 1175), regards the limiting fact of individualism (DeYoung, 2012, p.
65). Jamie argues that “the ability to go and spend time actually interacting
with people at church is something you can’t really go past.”
When
asked for his opinion on how the media shapes religious communication Jamie
maintains, “there is no reason why we should be left out of the way the rest of
the world communicates.” Despite Rindfleish (2006, p. 344, 358) claiming that,
with the increase in consumerism, spiritual knowledge is becoming increasingly
embedded in the “fascination with self” and the “process of becoming”, Jamie
maintains “the way that you live should be in service to God… [Even in light of
New Media] The foundational truths of Christianity don’t change.” However,
religious practices are constantly changing (Rindfleish, 2006, p. 344) and, as
Jamie explains: “You want to stay progressive and stay modern because you have
young boys and you want them to be engaged.”
Jamie
goes on to discuss the method of worship engaged with at the camp. In the case
of Gent’s Camp, this takes the form of heavy rock worship songs performed
whilst the participants form a mosh pit. This form of worship rejects the set
ways normally engaged to connect to the sacred, making the experience more
relevant for young Christians (Bossius, Kahn-Harris & Hager, 2011, pg. 2;
Till, 2010). Jamie stresses the deep spiritual connection he experiences when
he is singing, which Jennings (2008, p. 167) describes: “the music works to
form a passage from the profane into the sacred space.”
Music
has long been used in religious rituals to elicit emotions and express one’s
faith (Bossius, 2011, p. 51; Bossius, Kahn-Harris & Hager, 2011, p. 1;
Jenning, 2008, p. 169; Miller & Strongman, 2002). Adapting genres such as
heavy rock to worship music reflects the culture and history of the people who
engage with it (Bossius, Kahn-Harris & Hager, 2011, p. 2; Mumford, 2001, p.
44; Till, 2010, p. 173). Jamie is passionate about the potential of such
innovations: “You shake this idea that worship has to look like this, has to be
in pews, has to be quiet and has to be contained and it’s a couple of songs and
you sit down and that’s it.” Jamie maintains, “Expressing your enjoyment with how
you were created [through performing] is really important in order to
understand how you should exist as a child of God.”
The
perceptions and experiences of Jamie expressed in the interview show a deep
connection with and belief that Gent’s Camp engages participants in spiritual
development. For him, this connection is enhanced through the introduction of contemporary
practices. When engaged with alongside traditional interactions, he believes that
the contemporary practices promote access to spiritual knowledge for all
people. This brief insight into the spiritual connections Jamie has developed
suggests the need for more focused analysis of the ways in which young people’s
understanding and spiritual development can be enhanced.
References:
Bossius, T. (2011). Chapter 3 - Shout to the Lord: Christian worship music as popular culture, church music, and lifestyle. In T. Bossius, A. Hager & K. Kahn-Harris (Eds.), Religion and Popular Music in Europe. I.B. Tauris & Co Ltd: New York.
Cheong, P. H., Huang, S., & Poon, J. P. H. (2011). Cultivating online and offline pathways to enlightenment. Information, Communication & Society, 14(8). 1160 – 1180. doi: 10.1080/1369118X.2011.579139
Crocker, J., & Wolfe, C. T. (2001). Contingencies of self-worth. Psychological Review, 108(3). 593 – 623. doi: 10.1037//0033-295X.108.3.593
DeYoung, C. P. (2012). Chapter 4 – Christianity: Contemporary expressions. In Palmer, M. D. & Burgess, S. M. (Eds.), The Wiley-Blackwell Companion to Religion and Social Justice (pp. 61 – 76). John Wiley & Sons Ltd: West Sussex, UK. doi: 10.1002/9781444355390
Friedman, D. (1997). Encouraging religious and spiritual identity: Steps camps can take. The Camping Magazine, 70(1). 22 – 24.
Jennings, M. (2008). ‘Won’t you break free?’ An ethnography of music and the divine-human encounter at an Autralian Pentecostal church. Culture and Religion: An Interdisciplinary Journal, 9(2). 161 – 174. doi: 10.1080/14755610802211544
Miller, M. M., & Strongman, K. T. (2002). The emotional effects of music on religious experience: A study of the Pentecostal-charismatic style of music and worship. Psychology of Music, 30(8). 8 – 27. doi: 10.1177/0305735602301004
Mumford, L. R. (2011). A variety of religious composition. Christianity Today, June. 42 – 44.
Rindfleish, J. (2006). Consuming the self: New age spirituality as “social product” in consumer society. Consumption Markets & Culture, 8(4). 343 – 360. doi: 10.1080/10253860500241930
Roebben, B. (2008). Fellowship of fate and fellowships of faith: Religious education and citizenship education in Europe. Journal of Beliefs & Values: Studies in Religion & Education, 29(2), 207 – 211. doi: 10.1080/13617670802289718
Scripture Union QLD. (2013). Gents Camp. Retrieved April 15, 2013, from http://www.gentscamp.com/GENTS/About_GENTS_Camp.html
Sylvan, R. 2002. Chapter 6 - Message: Rap music and hip-hop culture. In Traces of the Spirit: The Religious Dimensions of Popular Music (pp. 182 – 213). New York University Press: New York & London.
Till, R. 2010. Chapter 9 - Do you believe in rock and roll. In Scrambling the Sacred and the Profane(pp.168 – 192). Routledge: London & New York.
Wiebe, M. (2010). Social work, social justice, and religion: A personal perspective. Canadian Social Work Review, 27(1). 139 – 142.
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