Not that there’s anything wrong with being a senior citizen, or that the average reader of this newspaper may well be in his (or more likely, her) seventies–with age often comes wisdom, and the good sense to go to church on Sunday.

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BC Youth in the LEAP program at Sorrento Centre last summer included many diocesan youth

The survey conducted a few months ago by the Anglican Journal (and reported here) was a survey of readers of the Journal in British Columbia willing to fill out and return a form. Retired people may have more time to do this, so the average respondent could be a bit older than the average Anglican in this diocese–but probably not by much.

For those who we believe that it’s important that the Anglican Church in this part of the world have a future, the figures suggest that this diocese should doing more–a lot more–to attract and hold young people and young families.

To its credit, this diocese has taken action in some areas. It has decided to support Camp Artaban with $50,000 every year for the foreseeable future. The camp last summer attracted over 800 young people. It is a fine outreach program.

Also valuable are youth pilgrimages to Taizé in France led by Bishop Michael Ingham. Several young people from throughout the diocese have gone on these. Another pilgrimage takes place this July.

Some other youth-focused initiatives: TOPIC has instituted a youth page. In the Synod Office lists are kept of educational resources, and can be made available. For a while youth workers got together to exchange ideas, and received a bit of diocesan funding, as has the odd youth-centred event like the “Cosmic Mass” at the Cathedral in July of 2005.

But are these diocesan efforts enough? There are still too few of our parishes attracting significant numbers of young people or young families.

Youth delegates attending Diocesan Synod last May as a group presented a motion asking the diocese to consider creating and funding a diocesan coordinator of youth ministries by January 1. Synod passed the motion. While the position has been considered, no action has been taken, and is not likely to be in the near future.

For at least three years the diocese hasn’t had anyone on staff devoting full-time attention to Christian Formation (what used to be called Christian Education). Parishes have been pretty much left on their own to figure out how to set up and run effective Sunday schools and youth groups.

Our diocese has many needs. With so many seniors, there’s the need for a director of planned giving. With many parishes struggling with aging plant, there’s the need a Task Force on Physical Resources. And of course there’s the constant housekeeping–filling clergy vacancies, collecting assessments, producing a diocesan newspaper and website, and so on.

It’s hard trying to convince an aging diocese to devote significant resources to helping parishes attract and hold young people and young families. Still, the Journal survey must be a wake-up call. If the Diocese of New Westminster is to have a viable future, youth work has to be a priority too.