Young people do not need theology translated into simpler terms; they must be invited to participate in the real work of theology. The problem with most Christian education programs is not that they fail to communicate information, but that they position young people as consumers of information rather than interpreters. Instead, we must recognize that young people can be faithful thinkers, capable of dealing with complexity.
A game that requires serious thought
Last spring, I created a game called “Theses & Thrones” for our annual June church camp. The game places campers at the heart of the theological conflicts of the English Reformation. They each join one of four factions (Henricians, Evangelicals, Puritans and Traditionalists) who compete for influence on a map of the British Isles through debates and strategic positioning. Imagine a board game with peg-shaped preachers competing against each other in “preachings” during which the losers are defrocked. The key, however, is not in the rolling of the dice, but in how fun the ordination of new preachers is.
Gamification has two parts each day. The first part takes place in the morning and focuses on a doctrinal controversy, such as the question of authority, the Eucharist, justification, liturgical language or the role of the saints. Each faction receives a “faction file” which contains information about their faction’s beliefs regarding the issue of the day. Then, they have one hour to offer a presentation highlighting their faction’s beliefs. Through persuasion, creativity and collaboration, they were able to win the debate, using a combination of rhetoric, art, craft, acting and even stop-motion videography. Adult volunteers serve as judges, and factions are rewarded by ordaining a certain number of new preachers based on how well they present their faction’s beliefs on the topic of the day.
The second part of the gamification takes place in the afternoon. After the factions have studied and proclaimed their beliefs on the topic of the day, a historic event takes place. From the dissolution of monasteries to the Edwardian Reformation, from Marian persecutions to Elizabethan colonization, historical tides sweep across the game board and alter the balance of power. Players not only hear about the history of the Church, but they also begin to feel it in their bones as the fortunes of their factions rise or fall over the course of the story.
Learn skills for our own time
One of the keys to making this work is that there are no heroes or villains in the game. Each faction is respectable in its own right; there were reasonable people who took each position, and the game honors each position as such. Although the Episcopal Church leans more toward the center, our “media” (“middle way”) approach means we can advocate for a variety of theologies while praying together. This game highlights this commitment by not preferring any faction over another, but rather creating an experience where young people are invited to think for themselves about the theological ideas that resonate in their hearts. By assigning roles, not opinions, the game encourages a deeper sense of theological empathy rooted in understanding across differences.
The game also instills overall resilience. Students experience what it was like for Christians to live in times far more turbulent than ours. Imagine thinking that the Protestants came to power in earnest, with an erudite young monarch in King Edward, only to have him die an untimely death that led to the coronation of none other than “Bloody” Mary. This overall engagement with real history gives an anxious generation a sense that things are going to turn out okay, even though it seems like the world is coming to an end right now.
What Churches Can Learn
Churches often assume that training should be gentle, linear and simplified. But when young people are asked to engage with the fullness of the tradition – including its arguments, tensions and living questions – they respond with depth and seriousness. The structure of “Theses & Thrones” shows this unequivocally.
Extending this approach to congregational life means rethinking not only What we teach, but how we invite young people to participate in the continuing theological work of the Church. Here are six ways churches can support young people as theologians through training:
1. Reclaiming Diversity of Opinion as a Congregationalist Practice
Most programs emphasize what the community has in common. But training also happens when young people are asked to take bold stands and stay connected with peers who land in a different place. Introduce young people to the fact that faithful Christians disagree on important issues and that having an opinion means being prepared to defend it. Interpretation belongs to the whole body, including those who are still finding their place.
2. Create training spaces where the issues are real
Expect the youngsters to rise to the occasion. When an activity truly depends on their reasoning, collaboration, or proclamation, they throw themselves into the task knowing that they have a real stake in the outcome. Build sessions that require thoughtful input: presentations, debates, shared discernment, or reading in small groups. Make those contributions shape the outcome of the season.
3. Prioritize collaboration over consumption
The training deepens when people have to build something together. Design processes in which young people persuade each other, distribute responsibilities and produce shared work, such as a presentation, a project or a joint statement. Young people do not come to church to absorb the content; they come to belong. Give them tasks that require a true partnership.
4. Make room for agency, not just participation
Young people do not need permission to think theologically; they need the opportunity to share their thoughts out loud. Invite them to lead discussions, analyze historical moments, or offer reflections during worship. Give them roles that matter. Training takes on its full meaning when young people are participants rather than observers.
5. Normalize complexity and encourage resilience
The Church does young people no favors by protecting them from the conflicts, failures and ambiguities that have shaped Christian history. When young people see that faith has always grown in turbulent times – and that tradition has survived – they recapture their own moment of anxiety. Struggling with hard material makes them more grounded, not less.
6. Honor young people as theologians in their own right
The work of interpretation, proclamation and discernment is not advanced material. It is simply a Christian practice. When young people engage directly with the Christian tradition, they begin to see themselves as contributors to the life of the Church. Churches must treat them not as apprentices awaiting adulthood, but as full participants whose theological imagination enriches the entire community.
By expecting young people to think, invite them to talk, and trust them with complexity, congregations can become communities that learn together, listen together, and grow together.
The way of living stories
“Theses and Thrones” rests on the same ground that gave birth to Living History Sermons: the belief that people, and particularly young people, learn faith by practicing it. Where Living Stories sermons invite congregations to interpret Scripture together, “Theses & Thrones” invites young people to get used to the arguments and tensions of tradition through play. The setting is different, but the posture is the same. Instead of being presented with conclusions, participants are asked to step into the material, talk about it, and make sense of it in real time.
Our first experience with “Theses & Thrones” was a real success. We received funding to continue work on the game before it was ready to be shared widely with the entire church. As with the living history sermons, “Theses & Thrones” will be a free resource offered as a ministry of St. Gregory of Nyssa Episcopal Church. If you would like to be notified when the revised, ready-to-play version of “Theses & Thrones” becomes available, please follow the Living Stories Newsletter. In the meantime, you can learn more about “Theses & Thrones” in this game guide.
The image shown is from an unknown creator on Pixabay
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Peter Levenstrong (he/him/his)
Peter Levenstrong (he/him) is associate rector of St. Gregory of Nyssa Episcopal Church in San Francisco, California. Passionate about intergenerational faith formation, he is the creator of Living Stories, an innovative homiletic model that transforms the sermon into a community storytelling experience. Rooted in Montessori and Godly Play traditions, Living Stories engages congregations of all ages in the co-creation of sermons through tactile storytelling and inquiry. Peter is dedicated to reinventing preaching as a participatory act that fosters deep spiritual connection and belonging.