Over the years I’ve known of many churches who have used the Orange curriculum. Friends of mine have attended the Orange Conference that promotes the curriculum and equips people to use it. Right now, I hope that most are questioning the wisdom of continuing with Orange and are doing their research to make the best decision.
For those who don’t know, Orange was birthed by North Point Church near Atlanta. North Point is pastored by Andy Stanley and has long been known as a very innovative and influential church. Hence it’s no surprise that they created a very comprehensive and user friendly curriculum that is super well resourced. Orange has since become it’s own ministry organization but North Point leadership are mainstay speakers at the conference.
Why is this on my mind at the moment? I’ve actually been aware of people with concerns about Orange for some time. It was a recent (fascinating) documentary on YouTube that got me thinking about this again and then Albert Mohler wrote an article about Andy Stanley that affirmed my concern. After the article, Andy addressed his congregation about the concerns raised. In doing so he referred to Mohler’s “version of biblical christianity” as being a “bad version”.
Orange explains its philosophy this way. “We create resources and experiences that promote the alignment of the church and the home. Two combined influences make a greater impact than just two influences. When the light of the church (yellow) combines with the heart of the home (red) you get a stronger, more vibrant impact in the life of a kid (orange).”
Having one source of curriculum for pre-school through high school that is well resourced, provides training, etc is very appealing. According to the Orange website, thinkorange.com, they have 10,000+ partner churches, influence over 1 million kids and teens per year, and serve over 80 denominations in more than 40 countries.
About 18 months ago, there was a “super stream” meaning a live stream of four podcasters coming together to discuss the curriculum. It featured Alisa Childers, Natasha Crain, Monique Duson, and Krista Bontrager in a conversation that lasted over 2 hours. Their concerns centered around the idea that Orange is more focused on moralistic teaching than proclaiming the gospel and it promotes progressive ideas. Some of those podcasts have addressed the subject since.
It’s not for me to answer the question of whether or not any particular church should abandon the Orange curriculum. However, more church leaders need to know that there are reasons to be concerned and that they need to examine whether or not the curriculum lines up to the theology of their church. Since Orange became a separate ministry several years back, it may not be even relevant to look for Stanley’s views coming into the curriculum any time soon.
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