Ten years ago elephants were killing 100 people a year in Africa. With elephant numbers expanding it was decided to have an annual cull to lower the numbers of animals and lower the number of people being killed. Ten years later elephant numbers are lower but every year 3500 people are now being killed by elephants.
Zoologists believe that because the hunters cull the older males and females this has caused a break down in the complex family group relationships. Basically there are no longer any older elephants to model lead and guide the younger animals. This lack of wisdom is highlighted when the elephants are put in stressful situations. The result is less elephants instead of killing fewer than 100 people a year are now killing 3500 people a year.

Complex animals work best in multi generational groups especially humans. Families, clan’s, multi generational family groups are where people find stability, permanence, wisdom and growth. Basically it is a balanced environment.
This is especially needed in spiritual communities. To really flourish and develop as a Christian one needs to have both those more mature and less mature than us. We need people who are in different places in life than ourselves. On Sunday we went to the McDonalds gathering. It was neat to see a House Church where you saw children of all ages, teenagers, young families, grown up families and retirees all participating in a spiritual group that was truly multi generational. I truly believe that a multi generational church is an ideal to be desired and is closer to the gathered churches one would have experienced in the New Testament.

Sadly both Institutional and Organic Church seems to always lean towards specialising when it comes to spiritual matters. Whether it is Youth Groups, Sunday school, senior groups, new Christian groups or even special interest groups we seem much focussed on separating the generations and separating people by spiritual maturity as well. I believe this is one of the major reasons that the Bride of Christ in the West has continually been unable to successfully bring followers through into maturity and especially why the church continues to haemorrhage out Believers once they have moved beyond the youth programmes of church.

Two years ago radio Rhema interviewed an American who had done a PhD on Youth Groups and their impact on American Churches. His conclusions were staggering. Youth Groups in the short term were very positive and created major gains in its members but the Youth group environment on average also meant the fracturing and declining of the individual’s relationships with other believers of different generations including family and other church members. This breaking of the generational connection from a sociological perspective was considered one of the critical reasons why the large number of teenagers and 20 year olds vanish from church statistics by the time they reach there mid 20’s.

Whether it is the elephants in Africa, a gang of young men hanging out together, or even a youth group, people of just one generation have more of a propensity towards disfunctionalisim and impermanence then a multi generational group.

Church is like a jigsaw; each generation whether it is children, teens, singles, couples, senior citizens, New Believers and mature Believers all bring an important piece of the spiritual puzzle to the church.
Mono generational gatherings can be great and fruitful but different generations put the icing on the spiritual cake.