For more than 20 years, Luther Seminary has made a strong case that ministry with young people is a theological task. A new $1.196 million grant from Lilly Endowment Inc. will move this work deeper into the congregational practice of children’s ministry.

Led by Professor Andrew Root, Carrie Olson Baalson Chair of Youth and Family Ministry, with support from Visiting Instructor Kurty Darling ’25 Ph.D., the grant project seeks to advance and accelerate a theological turn in children’s ministry. The project intentionally focuses on children’s ministry not just as a programmatic activity but as a place where God is encountered and lives are transformed. Through ministry cohorts, development of a core text, dissemination of practical resources, and conversations with children’s ministers nationwide, the project will articulate a distinct case for the theological significance and shape of children’s ministry.

“Without attention to the person and the practice of the children’s minister, children’s ministry has been too often seen as tertiary, even as lightweight, ecclesial work. It is not,” said Root. “Our hope with this project is to change imagination around divine action as it relates to the practice of children’s ministry.”

Luther Seminary is one of 170 organizations funded through three rounds of the Lilly Endowment’s Nurturing Children Through Worship and Prayer Initiative, which was launched in 2022. The aim of this national initiative is to support faith- based organizations as they help children grow in faith and deepen their relationships with God.