When Australia introduced a ban on under-16s accessing social media in December 2025, reactions were swift and mixed. Some welcomed it as overdue protection. Others worried about enforcement, relevance, or unintended consequences. For those working in children’s and youth ministry, the question was less political and more pastoral: What does this mean for the young people in our care, and how do we respond faithfully?
Edward Sowden, Kids and Youth Pastor at Bathurst Presbyterian Church, has been thinking deeply about this moment, not just as a ministry leader, but as a disciple of Jesus, a parent, and someone shaped by grace.
“First and foremost I’m a child of God, saved by the Lord Jesus,” Ed says. “And because of his grace to me, I love sharing that grace with others, particularly young people.”
That gospel clarity frames how Ed approaches social media, the under-16 ban, and the conversations unfolding around it.
A generation that didn’t choose the tech
Ed describes his relationship with social media as conflicted and evolving.
“My generation, Millennials, adopted smartphones, adopted social media without much discernment,” he reflects. “It kind of became integrated into my life before I’d thought about whether I wanted it there.”
That unchosen integration matters when we think about teenagers today. Social media is not neutral ground. It is designed, expensively and intentionally, to capture attention, shape desire, and keep users scrolling.
“It’s this mega power of influence that it almost feels like you can’t do life without,” Ed says. “And yet I find myself sometimes wishing it wasn’t there.”
That tension, between usefulness and cost, connection and formation, sits at the heart of the current conversation.
The ban: Imperfect, but pastorally significant
Ed is broadly supportive of the under-16 ban, even while acknowledging its limitations.
“I think the intention behind it is really good,” he says. “I appreciate that our government is trying to protect young people from the threat and the dangers… of these major corporations that spend billions of dollars to keep you on their app.”
While enforcement is patchy and many teenagers remain online, Ed believes the ban does something important: it names reality.
“What the ban does is it makes a statement of the dangers that are involved,” he explains. “And I think it enables parents to hold the line… it says to parents, ‘Here’s a boundary, and we’re backing you up.’”
That shared boundary matters. It relieves parents from feeling like the lone hold-outs in a peer-driven digital culture and opens the door for clearer, (hopefully) calmer conversations at home.
Biblical convictions for a digital age
Rather than offering a single proof-text, Ed points to a framework for thinking Christianly about social media.
Some of the guiding principles that we might consider from Scripture are to submit to governing authorities (Romans 13), and to practice self control so that we are not mastered by anything (1 Corinthians 6:12). It also asks us to examine what fills our minds (Philippians 4), what stirs our hearts, and what shapes our loves.
“If I’ve spent three hours on social media and ten minutes in my Bible app,” Ed asks, “what does that say about my heart?”
Social media, he notes, often amplifies anger, polarisation, comparison, and self-promotion, patterns Scripture consistently calls us to put off.
“You could argue fairly strongly that social media is often not helping us live out the fruit of the Spirit,” he says.
And yet, Ed is careful not to frame this as a simplistic “tech bad, Jesus good” binary.
“There might be good or redeemable things about social media,” he says. “The question is, ‘How does Jesus fulfil those desires we feel in a better way?’”
The pastoral opportunity we shouldn’t miss
For Ed, the most hopeful outcome of the ban isn’t reduced screen time, it’s renewed focus on embodied discipleship.
“The best place for young teenagers is not Instagram,” he says. “The best place is them in the room—hanging out, reading the Bible, playing games, wrestling with the truth of God’s Word together in community.”
This moment presses ministry leaders to ask sharper questions: Are our digital platforms pointing towards real community? Are we entertaining young people, or forming them?
As Ed reflects, “My goal is to make our in-person meetings as good as they can be for the ministry context. My focus is to do a good and faithful job while they’re in my care in-person, and then equip parents for good conversations and good discipling when they go home.”
Where to from here? Ideas for communicating with young people
So in summary, how should churches adapt?
Keep social media in its place.
Ed has decided to keep their youth group Instagram account, but with adjusted expectations. “We’re going to keep it,” he says, “but I’m feeling less of a need to invest as much energy in it this year knowing that the audience is smaller.” Instead, Instagram functions as a window for parents and the wider church, “a nice space for people to come and peer in and see what’s happening”, rather than the primary communication channel.
Shift key communication to parents (if it wasn’t already).
Parents are the primary disciple-makers. “As youth leaders we’re seeing a child for two hours a week,” Ed says. “Parents have them every night.”
At Bathurst, this conviction plays out through regular parent communication, WhatsApp updates, shared resources, physical flyers, and ongoing conversations. Ed has also developed a practical parent resource to help families think Christianly about technology, boundaries, and discipleship at home, a tool for churches wanting to support parents rather than overwhelm them.
Ultimately, this is a moment to think more intentionally about digital structures and communication channels for youth ministry. A number of groups are exploring WhatsApp Communities, with clear channels for parents, leaders, and small groups, all monitored and above board for safe ministry. Used well, tools like this can support partnership with families, while keeping the focus where it belongs.
Prioritise in-person ministry.
If the ban pushes us back into rooms, relationships, and shared life, that’s a win.
Stay open-handed about the future.
New platforms will emerge. The goal isn’t panic or resistance, but discernment.
Invite young people to teach us.
“Let them be your teacher,” Ed says. “Ask questions. They can explain what’s going on in their world and you can help them see how to follow Jesus in the midst of it.”
Holding fast to what matters most
Ed’s final word is pastoral reassurance for leaders feeling stretched, behind, or unsure.
“It’s okay to ask questions or get it wrong sometimes,” he says. “Keep doing the things you know matter—gathering with God’s people, reading his word, preaching Jesus, loving people well.”
The under-16 ban won’t solve everything. But it may just be a gift: a pause, a prompt, a chance to hold the line on wisdom, and hold fast to Christ, who offers a better story than any news feed ever could.
[For those wanting to think further about the implications of the under-16 ban, Youthworks have recently released an article titled, Navigating the social media ban, and podcast episode titled, Youth Ministry and the Social Media Ban with Chris Jones, offering helpful insight for those working with children, teenagers, and their families.]
