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There has been a trend lately in many disciplines (such as social work and some areas of health) to view people holistically. With the drive of secularism in today’s society it would appear that the time has come for the church to rethink how it “does” youth ministry and look at youth through the same holistic lens. "Youth" in the community can no longer be thought of as a problem that needs to be solved - but as a vibrant group of people who have a lot to offer congregations throughout all the churches.

To ascertain how the church can be made relevant to this group, a combination of
several approaches, offering insights into different facets of life, should be investigated.
In this essay I have critiqued five of the perspectives that I believe would be most useful
to meld together into a more powerful approach to youth ministry, showing how I believe
they could work together to renew, re-establish, and reaffirm the church's relationship
with the younger members of our communities.

Firstly it is important to have an understanding of how different the culture of today’s youth is to that of each previous generation. The word culture is not limited to someone’s ethnicity but also relates to their norms of behaviour, the way they dress, the way they speak, the values and belief systems by which they were raised and the common history by which a sense of identity is gained. Although they might have their age in common, young people are not a single group of people who all have the same experience.

In past times New Zealand was primarily seen as a bicultural society, Māori and Pakeha.
Within Māori there is a wide divergence in culture, ranging from traditional to contemporary, and it is a culture that is undergoing rapid social change. The traditional Māori lifestyle of living on the marae has, in many parts of the country, given way to Māori moving to cities...