This is the closing interview made by Steve Knight

Steve Knight - Hey David, you were probably the first person I heard ever talk about “the global youth culture,” and you would know about it. You’ve been traveling all over the world (with the possible exception of Africa, right?), reaching out to the global youth culture with the unflinching love of Jesus for, well, a looooong time (two decades?!). What is happening “out there” (among young people) right now? What is a trend (or trends) that you’ve been noticing lately?

David Pierce - Thanks for having me on your blog, Steve. I really appreciate your friendship and I hope that what I have to say won’t be too irritating!

I first heard about the “global youth culture” when I heard an interview about a business woman who wanted to take her son on a trip around the world in order to see what young people in other countries were like. So they went to major cities around the world, like Tokyo, Paris, London, etc. and found that the youth in every part of the world were listening to the same music, playing the same video games, and watching the same movies.

More and more, especially in the urban areas, people in this “global youth culture” have more in common than they have differences. They are hungry for truth and are asking the same questions, but sadly they are also hearing the same lies.

One trend that I have seen is a continued decay in sexual morality among the “global youth”. For example, a few years ago, we had a No Longer Music concert in a popular up-scale club called “Oz” in Sao Paulo, Brazil. As we were performing, a pornographic video was playing on a screen behind the bar. Young girls were passed out on the couches and there was a room upstairs for people who wanted to have sex. Sadly, this is just one example of the sexual breakdown that is devouring a global generation and robbing them of their innocence.

Steve Knight - How have things changed among young people over the years that you’ve been reaching out? With the advent of the Internet, mobile phones, etc. I imagine you’ve been on the frontlines for witnessing quite a shift.

David Pierce - It’s ironic, because in one way the internet, mobile phone, etc. have made the world a much smaller place, but yet increasingly people are feeling isolated and alone. Online social networks (such as Facebook and MySpace), chat rooms, and online video games have created a virtual world that has replaced reality. They have virtual relationships instead of real relationships. Added to this is the fact that brokenness in families has become the rule and not the exception, which is leading to increased anger, hopelessness, and despair amongst the global youth.

Steve Knight - How are things for young people today around the world the same as they ever were? I’m guessing you’d give a Billy Graham-esque answer here about the “darkness of human hearts” (or something like that) …

David Pierce - As always, people have the sense that there is more to life than getting old and dying. I believe that people know that something is not right with the world, and they have a spiritual hunger that needs to be filled

Steve Knight - In your recent interviews with Andrew Jones and Luis Batista, I noticed you referring to “the emergent generation” and “the emergent youth culture.” How familiar are you with the “emergent church” movement (from the U.S., New Zealand perspective)? And what, if anything, would you say to those of us (myself included in this grouping because of my affiliation with Emergent Village) who are seeking to rethink “church” as something more missional in our culture/place/time? Are we being “too radical”? Or would you say we’re “not radical enough”?

David Pierce - I think that when you use terms like “emergent”, it can describe almost anything. I believe that there are emergent churches that are powerful and alive and there are emergent churches that have compromised the message and have become nothing more than social clubs. Just like there are traditional churches that are alive and traditional churches that have become nothing more the social clubs.

The important thing for any church, including emergent churches, is that yes, while Jesus did eat with people, understand their language, communicate in their symbols, and demonstrate true love, he also told them the truth. I think today there is what I would call, a social gospel cop-out.

Peter said that as a follower of Jesus that we need to look after the orphans and widows. However, if Peter only looked after the orphans and widows, they probably would have given him the Nobel peace price and made a statue to honor him in his village. But in addition to taking care of the orphans and widows, Peter preached Christ and Him crucified and because of that he died upside down on a cross.

I believe that a lot of churches today are selling out because they are afraid that they may offend someone. But Jesus said that you should beware when everyone speaks well of you, because that is how it was with the false prophets.

It’s as if you were on the sinking Titanic and someone is injured or hungry. It’s true that we need to bandage their leg and give them food, but you also have the responsibility — if you really love them — to tell them that the ship is sinking and that there are life boats. I believe that a lot of churches do not believe that the ship is sinking.