"Catechesis must help people to
MEET Jesus Christ, to converse with Him and to immerse themselves in Him.
Without the vibrance of this encounter, Christianity becomes a soulless
religious traditionalism which easily yields to the attacks of secularism or the
enticements of alternative religious offerings."
Pope John Paul II, September 17, 1999
As Catholic Christians, we are called to be living witnesses of Jesus Christ. In
saying this, it should be obvious to those around us - our peers, families,
coworkers, and teachers - that we carry the light of Christ within us. It
follows then that a youth ministry program must engage youth in their faith and
challenge them to grow by providing real experiences of the Almighty God through
prayer, retreats, evangelization, catechesis, leadership, service opportunities,
community celebrations, and sacramental life. The ultimate goal of Christian
ministry is to bring people into a more personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
Youth ministry does accomplishes this when it actively engages youth in their
faith formation process and provides them with opportunities to meet God face to
face. Therefore, our parish community has the responsibility to provide
youth with opportunities to meet their Lord and Savior face to face.
Junior high and senior high youth are entering/have entered a very special time
in their lives…ADOLESCENCE! This process of developing into young men and
women is often a very anxious time because of the many physical, intellectual
and emotional changes taking place. For these reasons it is crucial that youth
ministry be designed to purposely and sensitively minister to the whole person
by understanding, loving, guiding, challenging and being present to them where
they are.
As commissioned by the National Conference of Catholic Bishops, we will pay
special attention to the characteristics and needs of our youth in striving to
meet the three goals of youth ministry as outlined in NCCB’s document Renewing
the Vision:
-
To
empower young people to live as disciples of Jesus Christ in our world
today.
-
To
draw young people to responsible participation in the life, mission, and
work of the Catholic Faith community.
-
To
foster the total personal and spiritual growth of each young person.
Adolescents will be invited and encouraged to travel the following four avenues
to experience the traditions, explore the beliefs, and engage
in the practices of our Catholic Community.
-
Catechesis
(Teaching)
-
Community
Life
-
Prayer
and Worship
-
Justice
and Service
By offering a variety of activities and balancing these four areas, we can be
assured of having a well-rounded ministry and a comprehensive faith formation
process. Adolescents who choose to become more involved will be challenged
in four additional areas of Advocacy, Evangelization, Leadership Development and
Pastoral Care. If youth travel only one avenue, their faith journey will
be very limited. Please act as a "travel agent" and encourage your children to
venture beyond the older, traditional and formal educational road to the other
three avenues mapped out! The structure and form of the program will encompass
and reflect the characteristic traits of living as Catholic people of faith.
These traits include the sacramental life of the Church, the rich store of
Catholic Social Teaching, the rhythm and cycle of the liturgical year, and the
support received in being part of a caring community.
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