BOYS BECOMING MEN...FOR GOD
There is an urgent need for churches to be able to call young men in a way which captures them - their energy, their imagination... their whole life. James Stacey reports.

TWO THOUSAND years ago, a young man called Jesus gathered around Him twelve other young men. He discipled them in such a way as to provide the Church He founded with rock-solid apostles who "turned the world upside down".

Jesus Fellowship aims to be a Church that dares to put into practice the revolution that Jesus began, not shirking some of His tougher demands. Such a call to "do the difficult thing" appeals to young men; pain is not unattractive to them if it's in the interests of a cause. "No pain, no gain" may be a cliche, but it also happens to be true - and its truth rings true for boys in the deepest part of what it means for them to be becoming a man at all. The painful taking up of a new identity is a basic part of the shedding of infancy.

Many cultures have rites of passage, symbolic milestones which mark boys' transition from childhood to adult manhood. Nelson Mandela, in his autobiography Long Walk To Freedom, tells of his, within the Xhosa tribe in South Africa. For six weeks, Xhosa boys about to come of age would leave home and live in a tent where they would be circumcised. No cry of pain was allowed. While they were healing, they would lie under a blanket which would be burnt just before returning home as an adult man.

This fierce ritual makes receiving the key of the door seem lightweight - but even such a simple act can have symbolic meaning. The important thing is that young men are given the opportunity to" cross the line". Lowell Sheppard, in his book Boys Becoming Men, urges churches to provide what he calls "PROPs" for young men - Puberty Rites Of Passage. He advocates such deliberate acts of transition at age 10 or II, again at 14 or 15 and finally on arrival into full adulthood. The content can vary, but should contain elements of challenge, spiritual discovery and celebration of the young man's growth by the wider family and community. Challenge provides a humbling encounter with his limitations as well as an opportunity to overcome them; time, often alone, discovering his spirituality affords the opportunity to authenticate his faith as a grown man; celebration affirms the young man as accepted and loved - and genuinely valued by the community.

The form these rites of passage take is secondary: whether it be climbing a mountain, spending some days alone, or a symbolic dive into the arms of their older brothers: the essential thing is that churches see the need that young men have for such rites, and respond to it with imagination and courage. And it is churches who express and practice the radical ideals of the kingdom of Jesus that are best positioned to inspire young men to embrace Christian discipleship: an initiation into manhood is not the same as a baptism into faith, but the two can - and should - be linked.

In today's UK, many young men are rootless, lacking direction. Previous generations were more likely to be trained by older men or their fathers in a trade, establishing a sense of "passing on" skills and identity. Today's young men often do not have a stable father-figure. The result is all too common: young men express their testosterone-charged development in sullen rebellion or in anti-social, even violent behaviour. May the churches rise to the challenge, live radical and call young men to the painful, fruitful way of Christian manhood.

James Stacey is a leader of the Jesus Fellowship Church.