Thread:Wazat/@comment-2600:6C40:1900:2F0:FD13:D396:AC2A:D83B-20180306043644/@comment-454133-20180306052414

Bah! No worries, religions are at the core of youth groups all the time. Even though I'm not religious myself, I'm not the least bit uncomfortable with it. :D  Let's see what suggestions I can offer.

Your friends from church may be interested in board & tabletop games, and it's a good idea to ask after church. Gathering a group is usually the laborious part; finding a date/time & getting together at someone's house may be easier, depending on everyone's schedule. So the simplest way is to start talking to friends from church and maybe start a game night with them.

One larger possibility to consider:

Some churches host regular (or semi-regular) board game nights at the chapel itself, or at homes, youth centers, etc; others would be open to doing so and interested in having help setting one up. You might even ask whoever leads your church (which is different from denomination to denomination, so I don't know who that would be) if it's okay to use a room at the church for board & tabletop games on fridays/saturdays or some other weekday, or if they want to help you organize something at a youth center, someone's home, a game store, etc -- which might involve printing fliers etc. More than just an event with a few friends, this could be a wider event for all the youth, with a variety of board games, and X-Wing is one of the games you bring each night. You could essentially start a regular board game youth social night for your church, taking the initiative to get the ball rolling.

I know some churches are totally comfortable with this for several reasons (as long as the game theme is appropriate -- maybe leave cthulhu at home). First, board & tabletop games tend to be a wholesome alternative to not knowing where kids are (keeps 'em off the street). Second, board games are great at getting people to socialize face-to-face, etc. And board games are considered better than going home to play video games or stare at teh facebooks and cat picures. Just be prepared to be told no to having it at any church property or even organizing a youth event for the church, and don't take it hard; for some churches that kind of recreation inside the chapel, or in the church's name, just wouldn't be appropriate, and it's important to respect that.

Certain churches also view board games themselves with some concern... I know a few people in my own area still think Dungeons&Dragons is devil worship (one friend warned me to not let his neighbor see me carrying board games or D&D books to my car or I'd get an earfull), and for some even Star Wars is considered vaguely nefarious. And to be fair, I suppose the notion of the Force may be seen as competing with and displacing faith in God. You'll have to gauge the culture before making any suggestions to church leaders. The landscape is so diverse, I'm cautious about making sweeping optimistic statements. ;)

If your church is gung-ho about starting a youth board/tabletop games night, that's fantastic. If it's a church event though, some rules are in order: be sure to always show respect in terms of language, tone & content of conversation, etc. Where I live, the joke is that Church Basketball is the only time you'll hear anyone swear. ;)  It's something that could get the event shut down too though.  Generally you want to make sure any church-run event maintains an appropriate atmosphere -- certainly not praying all the time, mind you, but find nicer ways to express your displeasure at abysmal dice rolls, haha.  Also I've found that when you're a guest (at a church, youth center, someone's home), putting away chairs and even sweeping & vacuuming the room at the end of each game night is a wonderful gesture -- basically leaving it nicer than you found it.

If that's sounding complicated and not the direction you want to go, then a few friends going to someone's home or a game store is a fine alternative, and so much simpler.

Either way... as a basic start, I'd recommend asking friends after church if they like Star Wars and would like to play a board game that lets them fly the ships around on the table. Each game takes about an hour, and it's a bit complex but easier to learn than a lot of Euro games, that's for sure. ;)  You may find some friends that are interested right off the bat.  And don't underestimate the power of cool Star Wars models -- getting to physically hold and look at a well-made Millennium Falcon, Slave-1, Lambda Shuttle, or TIE Fighter is pretty awesome.  Then being told there's a board game where you get to battle them against each other?  That's some people's dream, right there.

I hope that helps! And I hope you have a great time!