Our Lady of Mercy Catholic Community
Senior High Youth Ministry
Welcome to the Senior High Youth Ministry for Grades
9-12
Home Mission Leadership Team Confirmation
Service Retreats Journey Youth Group
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Upcoming Event Calendar for 2008: December 6, 2008 Bulletin
Stuffing for Marketday 8:30-9:30 AM December 7, 2008 -
Confirmation Small Groups 9:15-10:30 AM -
Peer Ministry Team 10:30-11:45 AM -
Confirmation Small Groups 6:45-8:00 PM -
Journey Sports Night-Whiffle Ball @ 8-9 PM December 9, 2008 Confirmation
Small groups 6:00-8:45 PM December 12, 2008 Christmas
Giving Tree Service Project December 13, 2008 -
Salvation Army -
Christmas Giving Tree Service Project December 14, 2008 -
Conf Level 1 Large Group 3-5 PM -
Conf Level 2 Large Group 6:45-8:15 PM December 17, 2008 Marketday
orders DUE December 20, 2008 -
Marketday 9:30-10:30 AM December 21, 2008 -
Peer Ministry Team 10:30-11:45 AM -
Retreat Team Meeting 12:00-1:30 PM -
Conf Level 1 Rite of Entrance & Youth Mass 5:30 PM -
Journey Sports Night-Dodge Ball @ 8-9 PM Full Calendar of Events for the year To Contact Us: Phone: (630) 851-3444 x232 OR 225 Fax: (630) 851-3468 Click here for
a map to Our Lady of Mercy E-Mail |
WELCOME!!! The Senior High Youth Ministry welcomes
you to its website! We hope you enjoy and find it useful! You will find
information on our active ministry for and with high school teens (Grades
9-12). There is also information on various leadership and service
opportunities for youth, calendar of events, our mission statement and
printable PDF permission forms and event information. You can also learn more about being
catholic and find other links to cool sites! Please let us know if you have
any questions.
Parent Tips: “How to Pass Your
Faith to Your Kids” Parent Tips: “Five Reasons why kids want
You to set Boundaries for them” Parent Tips: “The 10 building blocks for
a happy family” Parent Tips: “10 ways to build
relationships with your children” Protecting our
Children: Parent Guide for Preventing Abuse Pastoral Policy Regarding Sexual Abuse of
a Minor Standards of Behavior for those Working
with Minors |
Quick Links: Journey Sports Night Schedule
& Permission Form Information on the Peer Ministry
Team Full Calendar of Events for the year Order Marketday and Support Our Teens! Additional
Links: v Teen Challenge-Help for those on drugs v Disciples Now-find out
about being Catholic! Send us your cool links so we can let others see it too!
Email the Youth Minister at DaveM@olmercy.com You will
need Adobe Acrobat reader to view some of the pages on this website!
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Copyright 2001-2008.
Site Updated 12/03/08
Home Mission Leadership Team Confirmation
Service Retreats Journey Youth Group
What We Are About:
The primary focus of youth ministry is to draw teens into an
everlasting relationship with our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ! We do this
through actively living in view of eternity, thus becoming ALIVE! All high
school teens are invited to our many ministries. You don’t even have to be
catholic for some! Teens use their God-given gifts to grow this ministry. We
also have active adults who assist with this ministry Youth Ministry at Our
Lady of Mercy Catholic parish is concerned with the faith growth of young
people and their families! We are guided by 2 all-encompassing principles:
What is
Catholic Youth Ministry?
The
Catholic bishops of the
“What
is needed today is a church which knows how to respond to the expectations of
young people. Jesus wants to enter into dialogue with them and, through his
body, which is the church, to propose the possibility of a choice, which will
require a commitment of their lives. As Jesus with the disciples of Emmaus, so
the church must become the traveling companion of young people...”
(Pope
John Paul II, World Youth Day 1995, Philippines)
The
church must become the traveling companion of young people—and that is what we
mean by youth ministry. If, indeed, “it takes an entire village to raise a
child,” then it certainly takes an entire church to journey with young people
as they grapple with the Good News and respond in discipleship.
The
National Conference of Catholic Bishops, in their 1997 document, Renewing the Vision: A Framework for Catholic Youth
Ministry, identified three goals and eight components which provide
direction for this ministry. Youth ministry, at its best, is characterized by
the following five hallmarks:
- Discipleship
- Connection
- Giftedness
and growth
- Comprehensiveness
- Entire
church (parish) involvement
Goals of
Youth Ministry
Goal 1
Youth Ministry ... it’s about discipleship
The
first goal of youth ministry is “to empower young people to live as disciples
of Jesus Christ in our world today.” (RTV 9). Young people are “searching for a
noble adventure”, a compelling and challenging vision of life, and a cause
worth their commitment. They hunger to hear the Good News that finds response
in discipleship. As their companions on this spiritual journey, some of the
ways the Church fulfills this first goal of youth ministry is by...
- Proclaiming
the Good News of Jesus through witness and word to young people.
- Enabling
young people to live as disciples through their involvement in service,
ministry, and leadership opportunities.
- Providing
young people the faith skills for discipleship.
Goal 2
Youth Ministry ... it’s about connection
The
second goal is “to draw young people to responsible participation in the life,
mission, and work of the Catholic faith community.” (RTV 11). Young people have
a hunger for connection, to be in relationship, and to belong. Family, peers,
school, youth serving organizations, and church are primary connections for
young people. Some of the ways the church fulfills this second goal of youth
ministry is by...
- Being
a ‘youth friendly’ community that welcomes young people, values their
participation, and calls forth their gifts.
- Integrating
young people into the liturgical, pastoral, and ministerial life of the
parish community.
- Creating
opportunities for young people to enter into healthy relationships of
trust and respect with their peers and with adults.
- Promoting
Catholic identity and religious literacy through programs of adolescent
catechesis.
Goal 3
Youth Ministry ... it’s about gifts and growth
The
third goal of youth ministry is “to foster the total personal and spiritual
growth of each young person.” (RTV 15). Adolescence is an important time for
mental, spiritual, social, and physical growth. Their experiences and
relationships greatly influence their healthy and positive development. The
Church strives to surround young people with the best possible external
scaffolds—networks of caring relationships of family, school, peers, and other
adults—while young people are developing their internal psychological and
spiritual backbone—their values, life skills, commitments, and moral compass.
The Church fulfills this third goal of youth ministry by...
- Enabling
young people to develop a personal relationship with Jesus.
- Actively
supporting positive youth development and fostering healthy values and
life skills.
- Supporting
families of young people by providing resources, programs, and services.
- Providing
opportunities to experience and express caring, service, and compassion
for others.
Youth Ministry ... happens comprehensively
Youth
ministry is more than programs and events. It is “the response of the Christian
community to the needs of young people, and the sharing of the unique gifts of
youth with the larger community.” (A
Vision of Youth Ministry, p. 6, quoted in RTV 1). To be most
effective, this is a ministry to, with, by, and for young people that involves
their families, their parish community, and the larger community. At the heart
of ministry with young people is the presence of caring, supportive
relationships where youth experience the Good News in the flesh.
A
comprehensive approach to youth ministry utilizes the eight components
identified in Renewing the Vision
as a framework: advocacy, catechesis, community life, evangelization, justice
and service, leadership development, pastoral care, and prayer and worship.
These components guide our efforts in proclaiming the Good News, connecting
young people with the faith community, and calling our young people to the
challenge of discipleship.
- “The
Ministry of Advocacy engages the Church to examine its priorities and
practices to determine how well young people are integrated into the life,
mission, and work of the Catholic community” and within society. (RTV, p.
27) The ministry of advocacy includes protecting the sanctity of human
life, speaking with and on behalf of young people, empowering the voice of
young people, and developing partnerships in building a healthy community.
- “The
Ministry of Catechesis most effectively promotes the faith development of
young and older adolescents when the curriculum is focused on important
faith themes of the Church and on the developmental needs and life
experiences of adolescents.” (RTV, p. 30) It helps young people enrich and
expand their understanding of the Scriptures and the sacred tradition. It
provides a healthy future by encouraging youth to live faithfully in
providing real life applications so that they may grow as disciples of
Jesus Christ in their daily lives.
- “The
Ministry of Community Life builds an environment of love, support,
appreciation for diversity, and judicious acceptance that models Catholic
principles; develops meaningful relationships; and nurtures Catholic
faith.” (RTV, p. 34) This included relationships between youth and caring
adults, but not exclusively.
- “The
Ministry of Evangelization shares the good news of the reign of God and
invites young people to hear about the Word Made Flesh.” (RTV, p. 36)
Drawing from Jesus’ example, evangelization involves the community’s
pronouncements and living witnesses of adults and young people that the
reign of God is realized in and through Jesus. The ministry of
evangelization incorporates several essential elements: witness, outreach,
proclamation, invitation, conversion, and discipleship.
- “The
Ministry of Justice and Service nurtures in young people a social
consciousness and a commitment to a life of justice and service rooted in
their faith in Jesus Christ, in the Scriptures, and in Catholic social
teaching; empowers young people to work for justice by concrete efforts to
address the causes of human suffering; and infuses the concepts of
justice, peace, and human dignity into all ministry efforts.” (RTV, p. 38)
- “The
Ministry of Leadership Development calls forth, affirms, and empowers the
diverse gifts, talents, and abilities of adults and young people in our
faith communities.” (RTV, p. 40)
- “The
Ministry of Pastoral Care is a compassionate presence in imitation of
Jesus’ care for people, especially those who were hurting and in need.”
(RTV, p. 42) It involves promoting positive adolescent and family
development through a variety of positive adolescent and family
development through a variety of positive (preventive) strategies, caring
for adolescents and families in crisis through supports, counseling, and
referral to appropriate community agencies; providing guidance as young
people face life decisions and make moral choices, and challenging systems
that are obstacles to positive development.
- “The
Ministry of Prayer and Worship celebrates and deepens young people’s
relationship with Jesus Christ through the bestowal of grace, communal
prayer, and liturgical experiences; it awakens their awareness of the
Spirit at work in their lives, it incorporates young people more fully in
the sacramental life of the Church, especially Eucharist; it nurtures the
personal prayer life of young people, and it fosters family rituals and
prayer.” (RTV, p. 44)
Youth Ministry ... it takes an entire Church
“This
is what is needed: a Church for young people, which will know how to speak to
their heart and enkindle, comfort, and inspire enthusiasm in it with the joy of
the Gospel and the strength of the Eucharist; a Church which will know how to
invite and welcome the person who seeks a purpose for which to commit his whole
existence; a Church which is not afraid to require much, after having given
much; which does not fear asking from young people the effort of a noble and
authentic adventure, such as that of the following of the Gospel.”
(Pope John Paul II. 1995 World Day of Prayer for
Vocations)
