Casey Deiner (RAD) offers a water blessing to an older member of Living Water Church in Borabu, Thailand, as a sign of respect during the Songkran festival. Photo: David Fisher Fast

Vol. 1, No. 3 — May 2007
Learning to Listen
An intergenerational activity
by Arloa Bontrager

Scripture: Luke 10:38-42

Goal: To be the "love of God in action" through listening and thus discover the wisdom in everyday conversations and ordinary lives.

Materials needed

Reflect on the scripture: Mary sat a Jesus' feet listening to what he said. She gave Jesus her full attention, listening to him as an act of love and service. Perhaps Jesus was teaching and imparting wisdom to Mary, or perhaps they were simply having a conversation among friends with Jesus telling Mary about his day or about his recent travels and encounters. In either case, Mary was tuned in to Jesus. Have you ever experienced, or offered, the love and service inherent in the act of listening?

Video interviews: We are surrounded by people who welcome a space to share their stories, just as Mary did for Jesus. This activity will challenge your group to set aside a time to intentionally "sit at the feet" of adults in your congregation, offering them a space to share their wisdom. Please note that this will likely involve pre-planning and arranging on the part of group leaders.

1. Divide your youth into groups of two or three. Each group should have a video camera and list of interview questions. One person in the group should plan to run the camera and the other one or two to conduct the interview. (If you don’t have video cameras, use a digital or tape recorder or take notes.)
2. Ask, and designate, one or two older adults to be interviewed by each group, either in their homes or at the church. (Make sure to set aside private space for each group if they are at the church.)
3. The questions are designed to begin with small talk and then move on to matters of faith. Encourage your youth to ask questions of their own if they think of them throughout the interview.
4. Expect this activity to take at least 45 minutes to an hour.

Wrap up: Bring the group back together for a short wrap-up. You will likely not have time for much reporting at this point.

Reporting: Plan a subsequent youth meeting for reporting. Each group might prepare a short video with significant clips from the interview to share with the group. Or they could prepare a verbal report sharing highlights of the interview. Have them report on:

• what they heard that surprised them or was interesting to them
• what they learned from having a conversation with an older generation
• what they learned about the church and God

You may even want to invite those interviewed to be part of this meeting and share what it was like to be offered the gift of listening.

Look for a way youth can share what they’ve learned with the rest of the congregation. They may be given time during Sunday morning worship to present orally or show their video clips, or they could produce a newsletter for congregants to read.

Arloa Bontrager is the director of SOOP and Youth Venture. She also coordinates Servant Projects for Mennonite Church USA conventions. Arloa and her husband Rohrer Bomberger are members of Walnut Hill Mennonite Church in Goshen, Ind. Contact Arloa at