Intergenerational ministry, in various forms, has been around the church for a very long time. In “Intergenerational Christian Formation: Bringing the Whole Church Together in Ministry, Community and Worship” by Holly Catterton Allen and Christine Lawton Ross, we read “Throughout much of Christian history, the whole body of Christ – that is, all generations – met together for ministry and worship as well as most other gatherings; intergenerationality was the norm. However, in the last several decades, all but the smallest congregations have tended to separate the generations regularly for learning, frequently for fellowship and service, and sometimes (or always) for worship.”
Today, many ministry experts tell us that it is time to focus again on bringing all ages together again. Read their findings here http://www.genonministries.org/pages/intergenerational-ministry-all-about-intergenerational-ministry.
GenOn Ministries has developed a Visioning Tool to help churches pursue intergenerational ministry. Our hope is that churches will begin having conversations about the transformation that happens when generations learn and grow together.
This tool uses 19 factors to represent the tangible characteristics that underlie a church’s ability to consistently build disciples through intergenerational ministry. The visioning process includes 1) taking a picture of a church’s current setting for intergenerational ministry and 2) creating a plan for becoming an intergenerational church.
We love helping churches with this process! So, let us know how we can be helpful by contacting us at 877-937-2572 or info@GenOnMinistries.org.