Teen Mania Ministries

Teen Mania International
Formation1986
Dissolved2015
TypeChristian missions
HeadquartersDallas, Texas
Location
  • Dallas, Texas
President/Founder
Ron Luce
Staff
3 on Board of Directors
Websiteteenmania.com

Teen Mania International was an Evangelical Christian youth organization located in Dallas, Texas (formerly Garden Valley, Texas).[1] Teen Mania focused primarily on four key programs, with a few additional smaller endeavors. It was one of the largest Christian youth organizations in the U.S.[2][3]

Its primary program included "Acquire the Fire" events, described by one writer as "a mix of pep rally, rock concert and church service,"[4] that were held in over 30 cities across the United States and Canada each year. The ministry focused much of its energy towards its domestic and overseas mission trips, operated under the title "Global Expeditions". Teen Mania operated a one-year-long residential leadership training program on its campus, titled the Honor Academy, aimed towards high school graduates, and college students.

The ministry faced criticism for its use of overtly militaristic symbolism, as well as techniques that have been compared as similar to military training. This aggressive element is reflected in the vision statement: "To build an engaged ensemble of young people that are: radical, passionate, resilient, informed revolutionaries that will take the Gospel to the nations and multiply by teaching others to do the same."[5] Teen Mania has also been criticized by some former interns and employees for what they characterize as spiritual abuse and financial mismanagement.[6][7] In its final years it faced significant financial difficulties, including a foreclosure on the campus, a lawsuit for breach of contract, and over $5.2 million in negative assets.[8][9][10]

In February 2014 the ministry changed its name to "Teen Mania International" as part of a move from Garden Valley to Dallas after defaulting on the mortgage on their campus.[7][11] In May 2014, Teen Mania announced that it would be expanding its work to include overseas churches.[12]

In December 2015, founder Ron Luce announced via Christianity Today that they "would cease operations," effectively shutting down all of its operations.[13] Teen Mania filed for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy on December 17, 2015, closing the ministry permanently.[14][15]

  1. ^ Teen Mania Pulling Up Roots
  2. ^ Derrick, J.C. (May 16, 2014). "Teen Mania turmoil continues". World magazine. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  3. ^ Martinez, Jessica (February 5, 2014). "Christian Youth Group in US Aims to Reach 1.5 Billion Teens Globally, Changes Name to 'Teen Mania International'". The Christian Post. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  4. ^ Kuruvila, Matthai Chakko (2007-03-10). "Christian teens flock to BattleCry". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2007-07-01.
  5. ^ Guidestar.org, 2015. Retrieved 13 Feb. 2017.
  6. ^ "Mind Over Mania". 2011-11-06. NBC News. Archived from the original on January 29, 2013. {{cite episode}}: Missing or empty |series= (help)
  7. ^ a b Derrick, J.C. (April 18, 2014). "Management Mania: Christian youth organization struggles to survive financial turmoil". World magazine. Archived from the original on April 29, 2015. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  8. ^ Derrick, J. C. (October 1, 2015). "Warrant issued for Teen Mania founder". World. Retrieved 2015-10-01.
  9. ^ Lee, Morgan (October 1, 2015). "Compassion International Sues Teen Mania over Acquire the Fire". Christianity Today. Retrieved 2015-10-05.
  10. ^ Kumar, Anugrah (October 5, 2015). "Arrest Warrant Issued for Teen Mania Founder Ron Luce in Compassion International's Lawsuit". Christian Post. Retrieved 2015-10-05.
  11. ^ Melanie Korb (2014-02-05). "Teen Mania's Youth Ministry Relocating to Dallas". Charisma News.
  12. ^ "Ron Luce Talks About Teen Mania Going International". Solutions Magazine.
  13. ^ "Teen Mania: Why We're Shutting Down After 30 Years of Acquire the Fire". Christianity Today. 17 December 2015.
  14. ^ Bill Sherman. "Financial woes force Teen Mania to shut down". Tulsa World. Retrieved 2016-04-22.
  15. ^ Derrick, J. C. (December 18, 2015). "Ron Luce admits Teen Mania is finished". World. Retrieved 2016-04-22.