Riots

Browsing the news headlines again today I came across this article. It caught my attention because the reported incident took place not far from my home town. Admittedly I don't know much about the St Marys Kenmure Centre and had to to a little further research. As with my previous entry this article threw me more questions than answers. My first question would perhaps be why the young people were so keen to hurt and destroy the facilities which are supposed to offer them a better, more secure way of life and the people who are volunteering to help and support them? I understand that the young people who are placed in the centre have emotional and behavioural issues which will be the main factor playing a part in such incidents - these are not just your average teenagers. Personally, I can't imagine what life must be like for them. It saddens me to think of young people living their life in such detention - no matter how good the facilities it's still not a 'normal' life however much the centre claims to provide. What makes me even more curious is that those involved in the riot have been sentenced to four years detention. For young people already living in care centres, how will detention contribute to the progress they are supposed to be making? Will it strengthen or destroy the work already done by volunteers there? I can't make too much comment on the issue as my own experiences are different I know very little about the children's panel and related systems but I would like to know more about it.

However, apart from calling out for my compassion articles of this nature also present a real challenge to the church. What are we doing to help young people like this in our area? One of our own church ministries, FNL, takes in a lot of kids from the local area each with their own history and certainly some of them are challenging. I love being involved in this ministry because we provide safety, security, activity and a certain inclusiveness to our local young people. I do think that such an outreach can be extended. Does our local council know the kind of support that we provide? If they did would they make better use of it? Can we extend our ministry from bringing young people in, to taking our volunteers out and extending our mission to places like St Marys? Could the local church make better links between themselves and council projects across the country?

I know great work is already being done - I always like to challenge us to do more.

The Great Commission is the greatest challenge to Christians to show the love of Jesus Christ in this world. If we fail to reach out beyond our own doors are we rising to that challenge?