As both Youth Ministry and Youth Formation are facilitated by the Office
of Religious Formation, it is important to begin by delineating their unique
roles in the life of our community.
Youth Ministry - A multi-discipline approach to helping those in
6th to 12th grade understand their role in the faith community and the
universal
church.
It encompasses the areas of Social Justice, Worship, Fellowship, and
Religious Formation. Ideally, youth ministry would include all the youth
in our parish
regardless of whether or not they attend public, charter, private,
or parochial schools.
Youth Formation - One facet of youth ministry, Youth Formation focuses
strictly on helping youth to understand and apply the doctrines and teachings
of our church to their lives. While students attending parochial schools
explore
Church teachings as part of their studies, the content and approach
of
our
programs can be an effective supplement to academic studies.
Youth Formation
Youth Ministry
Youth Formation
While youth are often accused of being uninterested in faith or Church,
various studies have shown the opposite is true. Youth have a deeply
rooted desire
to understand their role in the world and what they are called to become.
The answers they seek are more effectively found in a mentor–mentee
rather than the traditional teacher-student relationship.
Inherent in the mid– and high school years is an intense desire to
fit in among peers; a blossoming sense of self importance tempered by fragile
self esteem; and a natural questioning/dismissing of the activities of parents.
Added to all of this is soaring levels of hormones and a maturing physicality.
Both of our youth formation programs are extensions of those offered for
the primary grades which have been re-designed to meet the unique needs of
this age range. As such additional information can be found in the Primary
Grade section of this site. The following descriptions are provided to help
parents understand what their youth will experience in these two programs.
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Faith In Life
Given the faith needs of youth, Faith In Life’s approach has been retooled
to be more ministerial than academic. Sessions will favor discussion over
lecture, facilitation over demands, and active participation over passive
listening. To the extent the particular age group can handle, the sessions
will look to case studies of everyday life in order to both evaluate the
presented outcome as well as explore different approaches which the youth
may have responded.
Faith in Life’s youth sessions support the community’s larger
mission of Youth Ministry in that they will strive to build peer relationships
encouraging them to share their daily challenges and experiences in a welcoming
and safe environment.
Youth Ministry
Youth ministry encourages the meaningful and active participation of mid– and
high school students in all aspects of parish life. Youth ministry both demonstrates
through word and example, the unique gifts which youth bring to the parish
and advocates for their meaningful involvement in all ministries of Aquinas
Newman Center. Youth Ministry is a four pronged approach including religious
formation, fellowship, social justice, and worship. By providing youth with
experiences in each of these areas, our goal is to provide an environment
which will help youth view the Catholic faith as relevant to their lives
and position the parish as an environment where they are comfortable hanging
out with their peers.
This year, Aquinas Newman Center will strive to offer one or two youth
ministry opportunities (in addition to the following faith formation
programs) each
month. These events will be designed to build fellowship among ANC youth
as well as provide the opportunity to experience the “Good News” in
action. These events are open to all ANC youth in mid- -and high school ,
including those in parochial schools. Our goal is to create a youth faith
community, on the same level of their school community, their sports community,
their neighborhood communities, etc. It is the sum total of these communities
which influence and form our youth into the adults they will become and ANC
hopes to be a part of the mix.
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High School Mission Trip
This year Aquinas Newman Center will be sponsoring a week-long mission
for students in grades 9-12. While logistics of the trip are still being
finalized,
the mission will allow high school students to experience first-hand
how people of other socio-economic levels and cultures live their faith.
Youth
will spend a week in a remote part of the southwest ministering to children
and improving the living condition of adults. Working alongside various
faith traditions will allow them to not only understand other faith models
but will allow them to share Catholicism with others.
The mission is tentatively scheduled for the summer of 2010. Students
participating in the mission will spend the nine months leading up
to the mission gathering
on a regular basis to build community, pray, and explore how they will
be living our faith’s social teachings.
There will be a special meeting for youth and their parents which will
present additional details of the mission in mid-September. Watch the
bulletin for
more details.
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