Alvin Blount is back again with another set of resources. This time he’s gathered resources for youth. From prayer and faith formation to LGBTQ+ and social justice, there’s something in this list for youth exploring equity and justice in the world.
Anti-racism and Social Justice Sources for Youth and Youth Ministry Leaders
Diocese of East Tennessee
Prepared by Alvin R. Blount
Costs for the following sources can vary depending on where they are purchased.
Making It Right: Building Peace, Settling Conflict
-Marilee Peters
-hardcover, $24.94
-paperback, $19.95
-136 pages
-Annick Press
-2016
-reading age: 14 years and up
-description: This source discusses injustices from bullying to wars and provides the reader with stories of young people who are working to further peaceful resolution to heal past wounds. Restorative justice is not a “quick fix,” but it is a way to get teens engaged in building peace among our communities.
Peters, M. (2016). Making It Right: Building Peace, Settling Conflict. Annick Press.
The Dating Games #1: First Date
-Melody Carlson
-paperback, $12.99
-226 pages
-Revell
-2013
-reading age: 14-17 years
-description: Five girls who are good friends have never been on a date and they are anxiously awaiting homecoming and hoping that they will all have dates for the dance. They form a secret club with the intentions of helping each other find dates. Through this process, these friends learn important lessons about love, purity, and dating. The author of this novel is a bestselling author and favorite of teens who tackles topics favorite topics among girls—friendships and boys.
Carlson, M. (2013). The Dating Games #1: First Date. Revell.
Just Ask: Kim: Book 1 (Diary of a Teenage Girl)
-Melody Carlson
-paperback, $9.95; Kindle, $9.99
-256 pages
-2005
-Multnomah
-reading ages 12-17
-grade level 7-12
-description: Kim receives a speeding ticket, and her father says that she can retain her driving privileges if she writes a column for his newspaper under a pseudonym, “Just Ask Jamie.” She thinks that giving teens advice about parents, dating, drugs, depression, piercings, etc., should be easy until a classmate is killed, and letters begin to come in about life and death. Kim finds herself at a crossroads and is not sure who to “just ask.” Should she rely on the Christian heritage of her adoptive family or the Buddhism of her Korean heritage?
Carlson, M. (2005). Just Ask: Kim: Book 1 (Diary of a Teenage Girl). Multnomah.
Youth Ministry as Peace Education: Overcoming Silence, Transforming Violence
-Elizabeth Corrie
-paperback, $24.00; Kindle, $9.99
-199 pages
-2021
-Fortress Press
-description: Emory University’s Candler Theology School faculty member, Elizabeth Corrie, explains how young people can address the root causes of hatred and how to build more peaceful communities as they are already leading movements in many places to change policy and culture for the common good, yet churches can at times be absent in mentoring and supporting these young leaders. This source by Corrie offers clergy, students, and youth ministry practitioners a new approach to youth ministry by helping them to transform violence, injustice, and to overcome silence.
Corrie, E. (2021). Youth Ministry as Peace Education: Overcoming Silence, Transforming Violence. Fortress Press.
Queerfully and Wonderfully Made: A Guide for LGBTQ+ Christian Teens
(Queefully and Wonderfully Made Guides, 1)
-Leigh Finke
-paperback, $14.60; Kindle, $10.49
-260 pages
-Beaming Books
-2020
-description: Understanding sexuality or questioning one’s sexuality or gender identity can be confusing, especially if you’re a Christian. One can wonder if something is wrong with them, or will they be accepted by friends and family. This source will provide the needed answers from LGBTQ+ professionals and testimonies from young adult queer Christians who have been on very similar journeys. The good news is knowing that God loves us exactly the way we are.
Finke, L. (2020). Queerfully and Wonderfully Made: A Guide for LGTBQ+ Christian Teens (Queerfully and Wonderfully Made Guides, 1). Beaming Books.
Call on Me: A Prayer Book for Young People
-Jennifer Gamber
-paperback, $16.61
-Kindle, $11.99
-126 pages
-2012
-Morehouse Publishing
-description: This source is divided into four parts with topics regarding faith, milestones, friends, family, school, work, and community. One can find prayers of thanksgiving for graduation, a driver’s license, blessing a relationship, courage, a job, for help, a sports event, an exam, graduation, starting high school or college, etc. In addition to our youth, camp, youth, and retreat leaders will find this source useful, as well as those searching for a perfect gift for a young person.
Gamber, J. (2012). Call on Me: A Prayer Book for Young People. Morehouse Publishing.
Bad Things, Good People, and God: A Guide for Teens
-Bryan Bliss
-paperback, $16.40
-Kindle, $12.99
-132 pages
-2022
-Morehouse Publishing
-description: Teenagers are left to ask why bad things happen as they witness increasing violence in schools, shopping malls, etc., and a country so heavily divided politically. Through honest talk about sin and suffering, this source gives readers the opportunity to explore and find a sense of peace around the question of evil. Bliss is an award-winning author with training in theology and has worked as a curriculum designer and youth pastor.
Bryan, B. (2022). Bad Things, Good People, and God. Morehouse Publishing.
New Directions for Holy Questions: Progressive Christian Theology for Families
-Claire Brown
-Anita Peebles
-Perry Hodgkins Jones, illustrator
-paperback, $14.54
-Kindle, $11.99
-128 pages
-Morehouse Publishing
-2022
-ages 6-12
-description: This source regarding Biblical stories with accessible language is oriented towards anti-racism, gender equality, affirmation of LGBTQ+ people, and social and economic justice for all with questions for reflection in each chapter. The Rev. Claire Brown is one of the authors of this must-have book, and she serves as Rector of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, Athens, TN, in the Diocese of East Tennessee.
Brown, C. & Peebles, A. (2022). New Directions for Holy Questions: Progressive Christian Theology for Families. Morehouse Publishing.