Over the past year or so, I have given a talk titled “Growing Up Like Jesus” at a number of churches, using the story of the boy Jesus in the Temple from St. Luke’s Gospel to describe the rites of passage through which adolescent boys are ushered into mature Christian manhood. (You can read a shorter version of that talk adapted here for Christianity Today.) We think all boys are best equipped to grow into thriving, healthy manhood by passing through rites of passage akin to that of our Lord at age 12 — through being removed temporarily from the family, initiated into manhood through challenge, and then assimilated into adulthood.
The Joshua Program at St. Dunstan’s Academy exists to extend this opportunity to high school graduates (ages 17-20) — to help them grow closer to Christ, grow in competence, and grow up. More precisely, we want to help them grow up like Joshua.
Joshua rises to prominence as Moses’ protege in the Book of Exodus, benefitting from a long and deep apprenticeship under Israel’s great leader beginning in his youth (Nb. 11:28; Ex. 17:9, 24:13). He also finds support from a like-minded peer, Caleb. The two young men are among a dozen sent to spy out the Promised Land, but they alone give a faithful and courageous report (Numbers 14:6). These relationships prepare him for the enormous challenge of taking the reins of leadership from Moses. After Moses’ death, God commissions Joshua a leader, exhorting him to “be strong and courageous” three times in quick succession (Joshua 1:6-9). Joshua then gives his opening speech to the assembled people of Israel, who accept his leadership with a key qualification: “Only be strong and courageous” (Joshua 1:18). As Joshua steps out from Moses’s shadow, he is confronted by a series of enormous challenges in the Promised Land, each requiring great strength and courage.
In the Joshua Program, we will welcome young men with the same exhortation for strength and courage. We will then present them with challenges requiring great strength and courage. They will not face these challenges alone but rather alongside their peers and “at the elbow” of mentors. They will then spend nine months immersed in meaningful work, formative prayer, and challenging adventures — all designed to help young men embrace their vocations in the family, the community, and the Church.
Eventually, as Joshua passes from the scene, he offers his own challenge and exhortation to the people: “Choose this day whom you will serve… But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” (Joshua 24:15). Having spent nine months growing into maturity alongside their peers and under the guidance of mentors, graduates from the Joshua Program will be sent out to serve the Lord — to sacrifice themselves for Christ for the life of the world.
If you know young men, ages 17-20, who might benefit from a year of work, prayer, and adventure on a 176-acre farm in the Blue Ridge Mountains, send them our way.
