Sarah Borders

11/29/2014
Daniel Poole
Sociology 1010
Final Essay

Young Life is difficult to describe. It is categorized by society as a Christian based

organization, but it is so much more than that. Its focuses in on the core of how kids and
young adults perceive themselves as well as the world surrounding them, individually.
Young Life was formed as a small group in Gainesville, Texas, 1941. Jim
Rayburn, a young minister, was challenged to invite high schoolers who had no interest
in religion, God or church and to come hear what it was all about. People in general are
wondering souls; we question often and sometimes need answers to get a grasp on our
own lives. Young Life has those answers. It was ultimately developed around a weekly
club with an emphasis on showing these kids another way to live life to the fullest.
Now club, is just a shorter way to say a get together that allows kids to go completely
bonkers and be real with one another about life. In welcoming, you come as you are.
Though, there are apparent social norms, even in this group.
Unlike typical society, Young Lifes norm is to be deviant. In a positive aspect, of
course. One of the norms in Young Life that you should expect is a lot of crazy. When I
say crazy, I mean complete arbitrary activities where you havent a clue of what to
anticipate. For example, the leaders are those who genuinely care about people and the
bible. They are essentially the speakers for the group. A popular activity is to have a

leader come on stage with two pillows. Theres usually a decent sized group, around 12
kids at the very least. The leader forcefully catapults one of the pillows at a random kid
and begins smashing that person with their pillow; beginning a pillow fight. Then at the
climax of the fight, the leader dips out, leaving the group hysterically laughing with
extreme confusion. Young Life likes breaking the ice in the most ridiculous ways.
Music is another social norm. One or more leaders has a guitar and conducts a group sing
along. The group must sing as loud as they possibly can. Another is to talk about God and
the Christian bible sometimes at the end. The behavior of the group is similar to new,
uncharted social gatherings. When I say that Young Lifes norm is to be deviant is
because the goal is to withdraw from the usual standards of society, intentionally, is not
necessarily what a person would see from a typical group. You never know what to
expect. Whos going to be there. Or thinking of how you should act to be accepted in a
certain way. Society always expects something from us. What we look like or how we
should perform our role. Young Life offers an alternate opportunity for kids to see
themselves not how the world views them, but provides them with the true, authentic self
that isnt always apparent to those individuals. Bottom line, youre allowed to do crazy
things without being ridiculed.
Its important to examine the perspective of the YL group because it really shows
that being deviant can be a very good thing. In the sense that you really dont have to
conform to how society tells you to act. Only when you defy society, can social norms
and pressure disappear allowing you to feel free in your own skin. Also, through a
theoretical lens, Young Life really only functions if the core of the members mental states
are being voiced and listened to intently. Therefore, behaviorism can be played into social

norms in the sense that if one does not reveal or demonstrate their emotional behavior
between two states of mind, it is not real. With that said, Young Life does constitute a
teens functional role when they open the doors to real communication and release of real
repressed emotions. It is most definitely comparable to society within the last
generations.
The age group of YL varies from beginning of middle school as you go on
through college. Theres the Wyldlife group which are middle schoolers. Young Life
are the high school age. Then Young Life College, which is the newest addition to the
group at a micro level. At a macro level, Young Life is essentially the foundation that
holds the three groups together. Within those ages, there is always some hint of defiance.
Its almost as if youre stretching your boundaries to see where your limitations are.
Which, in society, you are required to follow their rules. They want you to be an
individual but at the same time, youre limited because what you are and who you want
to be may not follow those set guidelines society has set in a particular way prior to your
existence. Yet they want you have your own individuality; to feel like you can be
distinguished away from societys set guidelines. But are you really an individual if
your kept in a box shaped by an organized set of rules like every other person? Different
races and ethnicities arent recognized. One way of looking at it is that their not
recognized because it doesnt matter of your