By Pastor John Hulden
When I was 10 years ago, I got to tag along with my Dad to the 1970 Lutheran Youth Gathering in New York City. My Dad, Rusty Halaas, was on the team that planned for thousands of teenagers to descend on the Big Apple with nightly gatherings in Madison Square Garden. No matter that New York City was going through a very bad cycle of crime in 1970. No matter that there was a huge political divide in the country over the Vietnam War. (I realized at a young age that some Lutheran Christians don’t shy away from difficult issues.)
“For our ‘service learning,’ attendees at the 1970 Youth Gathering climbed aboard Pete Seeger’s Clearwater Sloop docked on the Hudson River.”
I remember walking into “The Garden” and seeing the boxing ring as the main stage. (In January 1974, the “Fight of the Century” – Ali vs. Frazier II – happened in that very same boxing ring.)
For our “service learning,” we climbed aboard Pete Seeger’s Clearwater Sloop docked on the Hudson River. We explored the boat, heard about protecting the environment, and sang with the world-famous Pete Seeger. His boat and lobbying efforts got the factories to stop dumping waste into the river, and also, Seeger’s work was one of the reasons the Clean Water Act become the law in 1972.
I’M AN OLD Lutheran pastor. I have an abundance of memories…. especially the 13 national youth gatherings I’ve attended. Here’s reflections from just two more.
“I am somebody!” As a teenager at the 1979 Lutheran Youth Gathering in Kansas City, I had front row seats to hear Rev. Jesse Jackson lead us in his litany of empowerment. (Trying to get front row seats is a longtime Youth Gathering tradition!) Then my world was rocked when I heard an African-American teenage girl sing “Lift Every Voice and Sing.” Powerful.
Brenda and Pastor John were pleased and surprised to find their portraits in the Superdome!
“As a teenager at the 1979 Lutheran Youth Gathering in Kansas City, I had front row seats to hear Rev. Jesse Jackson lead us in his litany of empowerment, ‘I am somebody.’”
Fast forward to the 2000 Gathering in St. Louis that I attended as an adult leader. We listened to Archbishop Desmond Tutu say “thank you” to US Lutherans and the rest of the world for standing with the oppressed in South Africa to end Apartheid.
Twenty years earlier as a college student, my friends and I tried to get Concordia College to divest in companies doing business with the white South African government. Our little group of activists failed. And then, two decades later, at a youth gathering, tears roll down my face when I hear “Thank you, thank you, thank you, and thank you” from Archbishop Tutu. A lesson was learned: The larger church can be a powerful force.
ARE YOU EXCITED TO join us at the 2022 ELCA Youth Gathering in Minneapolis? I hope so. Please don’t miss this opportunity to deepen your walk with Jesus and learn about your church and the world — as a teenager or an adult volunteer. You get to make memories with thousands of your new friends from across the ELCA.
Trinity Lutheran, Moorhead, Gathering attendees enjoy the dress up booth at the 2012 Gathering in New Orleans.
“Are you excited to join us at the 2022 ELCA Youth Gathering in Minneapolis?”
Wait, when is it? Oh, yeah, it will be July 24-28, 2022, in Minneapolis. I can’t wait!
P.S. I am honored to serve on the “Synod Day” planning team for the 2022 Youth Gathering. Thanks in advance to all of our congregations who have agreed to host teenagers for the day in church buildings all over the Twin Cities.
May 22, 2021 Gathering Volunteer Corps application opens
June 22, 2021 Getting Ready Materials available
July 22, 2021 Gathering Volunteer Corps application closes
July 22, 2021 Financial assistance application opens
September 22, 2021 Early-bird registration begins
November 22, 2021 Regular Registration begins
November 22, 2021 Servant Companion application open
A shorter version of this blog can be found on the ELCA’s Youth Gathering website.