Did anybody tune in earlier this week to watch Hard as Nails, a documentary about a “tough love” Catholic youth ministry run by Justin Fatica? Newsweek has a short piece about the ministry. This sort of scene doesn’t sound like something that my church’s youth director would allow:
Though his ministry, called Hard as Nails, is aimed at Catholic teens, he sounds like an evangelical. His tactics include drill-sergeant-like assaults: “If you sin, you better have the courage to bash Jesus’ face in!” Fatica screams at one cherubic girl, pushing her to the verge of tears. “Have you sinned in the last 24 hours? Have ya?! HAVE YA?!” Fatica wants his disciples to feel the pain that Christ suffered for their sins. At one session, a kid picks up a metal folding chair and whacks Fatica—at his direction—on the back, as the minister repeatedly screams to another supplicant, “Jesus took all this pain for you!” He re-creates Calvary, ordering teens to carry heavy crosses up a hill, or asking them to stand, arms extended against the wood, while their peers pound the cross with a hammer and scream insults.
There’s a trailer for the film, and the film website has some interviews and other information. And there’s the Hard as Nails ministry website.
What do you think of extreme/”tough love” ministries like this? Have you ever experienced one yourself? They mostly just creep me out. I suppose the rationale is that breaking through the layers of apathy and spiritual numbness requires this sort of… aggressive evangelism and discipleship. I imagine that there might be a small percentage of people out there for whom this is the case. But as a teaching technique, it’s awfully far from Jesus’ quiet, probing questions and challenging parables. And the last thing emotionally fragile teenagers need is to be screamed at by a muscular evangelist about how awful their sins are, and how much pain Jesus had to experience because of them. Surviving junior high is difficult enough without that….
(Hat tip: Amy Welborn.)
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December 19, 2007 at 16:26
I was going to go into theology, but is it any worse than some of the psychological stuff that goes on in evangelism? I even think we can get into psychological bullying/brainwashing without realising it.
But back to the theology anyway. Yes it’s true Jesus suffered for our sins, but he suffered so that we wouldn’t have to.
December 19, 2007 at 16:38
Yikes! Good for some? Probably.
Does this remind anyone else of gnostic self-flagellation?
December 19, 2007 at 16:50
This is nuts. “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”
This is not just another controversial Christian technique. This is not just aggressive evangelism. This is abusive and 180 degrees from Christ’s attitude. It’s embarrassing and counter-productive, and I feel so mournful for those poor kids going through this “ministry”.
To break through apathy (if that’s really the goal here), one need not get louder or more abusive. All one must do is LOVE.
December 19, 2007 at 17:47
I do not see much value in what this man is doing. I think he is going to do more harm than good. It will make for some good “bash Christians” news stories though . . .
December 20, 2007 at 03:58
Some of the things he said and did looked realllllly good…while some of the things he did and said looked REALLLLLLLLLLY idiotic.
Hitting him with a chair? Come on. Which of the Apostles did anything remotely close.
This is just absurd man. Absurd.
December 20, 2007 at 15:11
Also…did he ever consider what may happen if some younger or less mature teens see this? I can see the headlines now…
“Child beaten to death by chair as siblings mimic minister”
December 20, 2007 at 22:10
Yeah… I would say that it seems rather out there. I could not imagine doing this in my ministry ever…
December 21, 2007 at 01:35
Actually, sounds a lot like what was reported to me when I 6 or 7 years old from some of my Catholic friends in my neighborhood at the time. Hardly the gospel preached by most evangelicals that I know though there are some who I know who promote this kind of thing. I’ll stick to the Bible.
December 26, 2007 at 22:38
I believe that what this minister is doing
with the youth is awesome. I challenge the
people who say that his methods are aggressive and too intense. Wake up please! We are living in such perilous times. I can’t even imagine how things will look for us in the future. You have bombs, massacres, genocides, highschool shootings, must I go on. The Lord uses people like Justin to reach kids because he can connect with them. Justin is not afraid to be honest and real. There are kids out there in this world who are playing with Ak-47s. Who are taught to hate others because their parents and people they admire tell them to. There are kids who are contemplating suicide at this moment. Asking themselves, Why I am Here? My life seems like it has no purpose, why go on? I don’t know everyone’s situation, but I know that sometimes without someone to encourage you. You feel like there is no hope for you. If this man is trying to dicourage kids from hurting themselves and others, then I support him 100%. I think that us as Americans and other people around the globe who say they are Christians, must ask themselves who’s side am I on? I know that Justin’s methods may be too much for some of you, but he is trying his best to reach out to the youth. I think that if we as believers would stop criticizing each other, then maybe we would get the job done. I am glad that God has made men like Justin after his own heart. I hope that we all take the time to evaluate our selves and ask ourselves, what I’m I doing to help God’s youth? The truth is the youth needs help. We need help because many of us are angry and hurt. We are full of fear and rejection. We need someone to remind us of how much we matter to God.Someone to tell us how much we are worth.