Money quotes from the review of Googling God in the National Catholic Reporter by the obviously astute Erin Ryan:
Issue Date: October 5, 2007
GOOGLING GOD: THE RELIGIOUS LANDSCAPE OF PEOPLE IN THEIR 20S AND 30S
By Mike Hayes
Paulist Press, 208 pages, $16.95
In his book for youth (my edit: young adult) ministers, Googling God: The Religious Landscape of People in their 20s and 30s, author Mike Hayes makes it clear that young adults are more than just the church’s “future.” They are the church now.
“God often is so far removed from young adult life that they long for opportunities where they can see, feel, taste and smell the very fervor of religion,” says Mr. Hayes, who points out the importance of following up these experiences with solid church teachings and guidance from ministers.
“In Part Three of Googling God, Mr. Hayes gives practical advice about methods of doing ministry and resources for further reading. He also stresses the importance of using technology, especially the Internet, and gives tips on how to start your own Web page, which every church should have, he says, in the age of Google search engines and instantaneous answers.”
“Mr. Hayes also notes that all the young adults he interviewed wish for “a more collaborative dialogue between the church and young adults,” and that whether they are from Steubenville or from a Jesuit parish in New York, they tend to think beyond “liberal” or “conservative” categories. And from the interviews, it is clear that while their approaches to life are diverse, each young person has clearly given a lot of thought to the spiritual questions he or she has faced.”
And finally, the big quote which refers to Mark Hart’s Blessed Are the Bored in Spirit which she also reviewed in the same column:
“Both authors both clearly have a lot of experience with young people, but by letting the young individuals speak for themselves, Mr. Hayes winds up with the more engaging book.
She gets it. Now you can too. Buy my book
Read the whole article here: