Prayer is a multi-facetted conversation with God, and like all conversations, it takes on different tones and happens in different ways according to the various circumstances we find ourselves in. There is no one-size-fits-all method of prayer. The Prayer Book Society have stated recently that prayers used for hundreds of years will become more popular among younger people as they’re increasingly dissatisfied with constant innovation and reckless instability in the Church. They suggest that a profound spiritual and intellectual thirst will prompt young people to revisit the 1662 Book of Common Prayer: a collection of traditional prayer books used in services within the Church of England, and much of the wider Anglican Communion.
I was both encouraged and challenged by this statement. Encouraged, because I do think we need to re-dig some of the ancient wells within the Church that tap into a deeper spirituality. But I was also challenged by the statement about young people being dissatisfied with constant innovation and reckless instability within society and the church. If I’m honest, I have always thought that one of the joys of being young was embracing constant innovation and being drawn to reckless instability! I hardly think that being drawn to use the Book of Common Prayer will end this. However I do believe that there is a profound spiritual and intellectual thirst that may lead young people to dig into these ancient wells, such as The Book of Common Prayer. As we ground ourselves in a deeper spirituality, we should draw on the history and heritage of all that has gone before to enhance our ability to live as tranquil, reflective and prayerful people within the Church; a Church that has only grown by constant innovation and occasional bouts of reckless instability!
This year we at 24-7 Prayer produced a prayer course called Origins, specifically to teach young people to pray. We have been overwhelmed by its popularity; sending: sending copies everyday all over the world. This indicates that young people want to pray and moreover, they want to be taught how to pray. The Book of Common Prayer is part of that picture, but in and of itself it will not be enough.
We need to see new and innovative approaches to helping young people develop a deeper devotional life. The challenge for any youth worker is always: how do I disciple my young people in a deeper walk with Jesus? This will take all our imagination and the use of all the tools we have at our disposal: both ancient and modern. The world will always be subject to constant innovation and reckless instability, and so will the Church. It is this reckless instability that has always been the catalyst, propelling the Church into periods of growth.
We need young people with a deeply grounded spirituality to live in the midst of society and the modern Church and if The Book of Common Prayer helps us then I am all for it, but it will never stand alone. We must innovate as we navigate. In this changing landscape, connection with the past is incredibly important, but fresh imagination for the future is also needed. We need depth, rootedness and connection to our past but this needs to be complemented with fresh approaches to prayer for the future. If we do both, we will build strong prayerful lives to carry us into an ever changing and unstable future.
Brian Heasley, director 24-7 Prayer GB
