Intergenerational Ministry—a Forty-year Perspective: 1980–2020

This article traces the historical development of the field of intergenerational Christian education and formation over the past forty years with the aim of demonstrating its steady growth in scholarship and ministry and its promise for the future of congregational life and discipleship. The article highlights significant movements, terms, figures, publications, and ministry expressions that surfaced over two twenty-year periods, each part set in the narrative and from the perspective of two different scholars. This article concludes with a brief address of the implications for preparing educational and ministry leaders. Although far from exhaustive, this article offers the reader an abbreviated primer of the past four decades of intergenerational ministry and scholarship.