Soul Children choirs are an international phenomenon spreading gospel choir music to places where it is basically unknown.
The movement started in Chicago as an outlet for at-risk youth, but has spread to Norway and other parts of Europe and Asia, including Japan, Indonesia and Bangladesh. The participants often see their singing as a means of spiritual growth and worship, as well as, eventually, a route to evangelism.
The 80 Soul Children choirs that have started in Norway since 2001 have achieved national prominence and sponsorship by the Lutheran Church. Their success in such an un-churched nation as Norway—far more than in the United States—may be that the choirs can participate in a secular culture in a way that the church cannot.
(Christianity Today, July/August)