Entertainment Claimed To Weaken Youth

Press, Volume XCIII, Issue 27896, 18 February 1956, Page 13

Entertainment Claimed To Weaken Youth

Too much entertainment and protection and the lack of a strong challenge to a life of worthwhile service were the main causes of delinquency among young people, according to the Rev. Phillip Potter, youth secretary of the World Council of Churches.

Delinquency was a reflection on society and the Church; it was a sign of fundamental weakness. Failure of family life and boredom were other contributing factors, he said when he arrived in Christchurch yesterday on a tour of New Zealand. When young persons brought Christianity to their work, to their relationship with others, including people of other races, to their attitude to politics and to their leisure activities, they could then make sound contributions to the life of their country.

“In this bewildering world of ours we are not sure which way we are going and we have lost our sense of purpose,” he said. “This is the concern of the churches and the World Council is interested in seeing the churches working together to face problems of society with a message of purpose and hope, particularly for young people.” In most parts of the world there had been a tendency for large numbers of young people to leave the churches after a time and the youth department of the World Council of Churches was anxious to find out why that happened, he said. On the other hand, young Christians everywhere were doing outstanding work for the cause of church unity and for the unity of the world by sharing their resources and ideas. Their concern was not for some idealistic future but for present concrete opportunities of service.

“This will to serve is particularly evident among young Christians in Asian countries and they throw out

a challenge to the Christian youth o New Zealand to join hands with them,’ he said. As youth secretary of the Work. Council of Churches, Mr Potter is or a world tour and has already visitec Hawaii, Japan, Formosa, the Philippines, Malaya. Indonesia and Australia. One of the objects of his journey is to try to ascertain how fai young people are being integrated into the life of churches. When he leaves New Zealand, he will go to Bangkok Rangoon and India. Now stationed at Geneva, Mr Potter was born on the Island of Dominica and was educated in the West Indies and later in Britain. He is a minister in the Methodist Church, and will preach at the Durham Street Methodist Church on Sunday morning.