The Augsburg Youth Theology Institute is a week-long theological exploration program held at Augsburg University in Minneapolis each summer. The Institute was developed for high school students who have completed ninth-12th grade with a curiosity about vocational discernment. This event offers young people an environment with the freedom to discover who God has called them to be through building meaningful relationships, engaging in community, and practicing vocational discernment. This year’s Institute is called THE CONFLUENCE and is taking place Sunday, June 25 – Friday, June 30, 2023.

Participants can expect to experience:

• A diverse community of participants from a variety of faith communities and geographic locations around the United States.
• A place to build meaningful relationships with other high school students while spending time in small groups led by a college mentor.
• A chance to experience spiritual practices such as communal worship, contemplative prayer, journaling, and small group discussions that become useful tools for us to use in our vocational discernment during the week and beyond.
• An opportunity to explore community-based learning in the Twin Cities area by experiencing the richness of neighborhoods through meeting people and trying new foods, and hearing stories.
• A brave space to engage in academic inquiry shaped by ongoing engagement with a theological text and theological questions facilitated by a college or seminary professor and designed to help us make connections between what we are experiencing and God’s vision for our world.

Participants are led and mentored by a group of dedicated current Augsburg students. The mentors help with academic and theological study, community-based learning, small group facilitation, daily worship, and provide relational support for the participants.

Please reach out to your high school students and invite them to apply for the Augsburg Youth Theology Institute this summer.

The application, registration, and payment is due May 15! We would love to connect with you further either over the phone or email to answer any questions you may have about the program. I have dedicated student workers who will be happy to tell you more about this exciting event. You can email us at ayti@augsburg.edu or call us at 612-330-1403.