Great Young Adult Resource

We interrupt our regularly scheduled posting for a commercial break...

Seriously, this is just my opinion and something I want to share that I have found useful.  Young Adult Ministry in a Box is a great resource for those of you in the young adult ministry realm. Whether you are just starting a YA group or have on of long standing, there's information and resources to help you.

Take a minute to check it out - it is worth the subscription!

Friday Highlights

As I was up late with one of those phone calls you can get in the late night hours when you work in ministry, today's post is going to be pretty easy. Here are a few things for you to check out:

A great post with a bit of tongue-in-cheek humor on Philomena, The Greatest Saint Who Never Was. Love the takeaway points.

The USCCB's blog on Social Media and the Gospel.

For those in young adult ministry - check out the forum on young adult ministry sponsored by the National Catholic Young Adult Ministry Association (NCYAMA). You'll see me there!

What If

Letters to Juliet will probably never rank in the top 100 Films of All Time.  However, I do love the letter that is read aloud near the end.  The words "What If" are oh so powerful.  Hindsight, doubt, wishful thinking, rose colored glasses all come into play when we allow ourselves to mentally meander down the trail of our lives' "what ifs."

The Washington Post has an interesting slide show of "Things You Would Have Said."  It is very easy to imagine a discussion for either a youth or young adult group emerging from this. 

It would be easy to take a discussion of hindsight, fears, insecurities, judgements, and so on.  You could also talk of how we take people for granted or do not stand up for things that we later wish we would have.

You could easily speak about grief and not being able to have closure with a loved one or a lost relationship.  There is also the topic of heroes and people who have had a positive influence on our lives that we have not thanked.

Just an idea.  For what it is worth.

Lent and a Youth Minister

As odd as it may sound, I love Lent.  Particularly as the years I have been in ministry lengthen, it continues to grow as my favorite time in the Church calendar.

The reason is simple, it drives me to spend more time focusing on where my relationship with God is.  Through the focus on the prayer, fasting, and almsgiving I come to more closely examine my faith and spirituality and to spend more time with God.

There is also the added benefit that many of the programs in all the ministries I oversee have a more reflective tone to them.  The youth group focuses on reviewing the pillars of Lent, temptation, God's love, and the Triduum.  The young adult group spends time focusing on new ways to live Lent, usually by utilizing a text (this year it is Bridges to Contemplative Living with Thomas Merton: Lent and Holy Week).  Add to those experiences Taize prayer, the Living Way of the Cross (writing it and directing it), the communal penance service, the youth retreat, etc. and this time of year becomes a time of spiritual renewal for me and the ministris.

Without much fear, I can hazard the assumption that this time of year is busy for all in parish ministry.  Despite that, I challenge you to ensure this is also a time for you to enter into Lent and find the renewed right relationship with God that can sometimes be pushed aside in the chaos of day to day ministry.

To Texas and Back

Hello all!

Despite my intentions to the contrary, I went dark last week while I headed to the NCYAMA Executive Board meeting that occurs along with the NFCYM membership meeting.  Between delayed flights, lack of internet connection in various places and then coming down with a mild-yet-annoyingly-lingering cold, I have been remiss in getting all but the essentials covered.

NCYAMA has many great things in the works that you should keep an eye out for if you are in the field of young audlt ministry or have young adults in your ministry (YAs who volunteer with youth ministry, YAs in marriage preparation classes, YAs in RCIA, etc.).

First, there is the national forum in November.  Watch the NCYAMA website for more information.  Or drop me a comment or email as I'm the one on the website's contact for it!

Second, we are proud to have the incredible resource: Young Adult Ministry in a Box to offer.  This is great for anyone in young adult ministry whether you are looking at how to start your ministry or how to sustain your current ministry or revitalize a flagging one.

Well, I need to get back to preparing tonight's trivia game on St. Valentine's Day, the saints in general, and movies related to 'saints' for our young adult group.

May you have a happy Valentine's day!  And may Sts. Cyril and Methodius not feel too left out today.

Two-fer

Here's a two for the price of one.

One: a great online magazine is here.  Church Life: A Journal for the New Evangelization.  You can access it for free from...

Open publication - Free publishing - More spirituality

Two: ISSUU a publishing site.  Looks to be intreguing.  I  haven't snooped around it too much yet, but there could be things of interest.  I would hazard to say there will also be things that I will stay far away from, but I just wanted to put it on your radars.

Research

My sophomore year of high school I was in British and World Literature for my lit course. We had to do a research paper on a novel written by a non-American author. The intended length was 5-7 pages. After weeks of research, hundreds of index cards (all color coded, labeled, and hyper-organized), I turned in a 23 page paper on Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. To be honest, this novel was and remains my favorite novel. However, when I handed in that paper, my poor teacher looked at it and shook his head. He told me no one who wrote more than 10 pages has ever gotten an A, so I shouldn't get my hopes up.

A while later we got our papers back. I broke that track record.

I didn't write this to brag, but rather point out a rather annoying personal habit - the hyper research and over-achiever resides in me, aching for a project to be let loose upon.

I mentioned I was musing over the state of the youth ministry. Accordingly, I want food for thought. Thus, I have a reading list of books to read or re-read (listed merely in the order they happen to be stacked on my desk):

• Leadership for Catholic Youth Ministry: A Comprehensive Resource. By Thomas East, et. al.
• Sustainable Youth Ministry by Mark DeVries
• The Vision of Catholic Youth Ministry edited by Robert J. McCarty
• Bringing Catholic Youth and the Bible Together edited by Brian Singer-Towns
• Growing Teen Disciples by Frank Mercadante
• Renewing the Vision by the USCCB
• Positively Dangerous by Frank Mercadante
• The Godbearing Life: The Art and Soul Tending for Youth Ministry by Kenda Creasy Dean and Ron Foster
• Contemplative Youth Ministry: Practicing the Presence of Jesus by Mark Yaconelli

I'm also highlighting articles I find online and in Group Magazine and Youth Worker (thank you to Evernote for helping to make that more organized).

I'd be curious if anyone out there has recommendations on what to read, comments on what I already have on the list, or any other thoughts you might have to share.

I have realized it is far too easy to fall into the day to day work of youth ministry and allow ourselves to believe that doing the work is sufficient. We must also be equipped. Spiritually we need to connect with God in our own lives. Theologically we must be sound in our understanding. Scientifically we must have an understanding of the way people in our ministries think, feel, and act (following some psychology feeds and Tweets is a great way to get this in understandable, reasonable sized doses). Administratively we need to have the best tools possible in our hands, on our computers, and shared with our leaders.

This research project is a chance to really dive into the theology, philosophy, and best practices of youth ministry though several points of view. Now I just have to get started! Time to get a cup of tea, open up a new Evernote notebook, and keep my dog off my keyboard.

More Recent Musings

I have fallen terribly behind on my magazines. I just read one from July/August. I finally got to the November/December Youth Worker Journal and encountered the article "From Bondage to Freedom: A Journey Toward True Discipleship in Youth Ministry."

This article was very striking for me. It hit both on the personal and professional fronts.

As a certifiable type-A, having a list like the one in the article for what a "successful disciple" is, is inherently something I want to embrace. I want to be able to put the list in my little book or on my Toodledo account and know that I did my 'disciple thing' for the day. Oh boy, that is so not the way to live as a Christian. I know that, but some days I just don't know it. You know what I mean?

Then there's the youth ministry. I do have many people looking for the youth ministry 'product.' How many at that event? How many on the service trip? What events do you have? Numbers and action plans dictate much. And those are necessary, but they are not the be all and end all. It is so easy and so tempting to believe that if we do have the right numbers and complete the annual action plans we are doing 'good ministry' and making 'successful disciples.'

Now, it is entirely possible that we are if we do those things. But Clark's points about the freedom offered to live in the grace and love of God being the source of our relationship with God and not the legalistic check list is so crucial.

Over the next six months I am working with the teens, adult leaders, and parents to evaluate where the youth ministry is and where it should be going. I want to look at the how and why, not just what and how many. This article on true discipleship is now one of our readings. I really want to examine the concepts of evangelization and discipleship in our ministries.

What sort of disciples are you forming?

Perhaps more importantly, what sort of disciple are you? For people will follow your life more than your words.

Media

Just have a few moments before a staff meeting.

I've dropped a few things into Delicious, but for those not using that service, here are a few items of interest:

The Beloit Mindset (yet another great thing from my homestate of Wisconsin). A fascinating look at this year's freshman college class. Also, likely the only time that Ferris Bueller and altar servers will be on the same list.

A great article on Millennials and media.

And a way to address 9/11. I found this video as a great thing to use for youth group where most teens have no real memories of the day. A pilgrimage through Ground Zero with Fr. James Martin, S.J.

Prayers

Awhile ago now, I stumbled upon a great prayer resource: Worldprayers.org. I encourage you to explore it. Here is one that spoke to me today -

O great and powerful ocean,

I fear and respect your beauty.

I wish not to take away

nor leave anything behind.

I only wish to dance

with you a short while.

~A surfer's prayer

Interesting

In a recent article from Youth Worker magazine, Henri Nouwen pops up several times. Now as a huge fan of his, I'm not surprised that others appreciate his wisdom and grace. What does surprise me is these are not Catholics and how frequently various people brought his book, In the Name of Jesus: Reflections on Christian Leadership, to the discussion on leadership training and spirituality.

Check out the article "Best of the Best."There are some great ideas and resources to check up on. They cross over from youth to young adult ministries, including campus ministry.

And check out whatever Henri Nouwen writings you can get your hands on.

Another Confession

Well, actually two.

1. I love free stuff. Utterly love it. I also fall prey periodically to the buy this and you'll get all this free thing. But when it is just something gratis, even better.

2. I love Bibles. There are so many different kinds.

Guess what this post is about - yup, free Bibles.

First off, while it wasn't really free, I rediscovered the Catholic Women's Study Bible. I needed something to use for my daily prayer. This is a great resource for me. The variety of writers for the reflections is great and keeps me interested and gives me fresh perspectives. A friend had her copy on the youth retreat (lucky girl not only volunteers for another church's youth ministry but her good friend is a youth minister). That got me thinking I should get a copy. As her cover was a red and orange cover, it did not look familiar. Luckily I was going through my book cases on Monday and ran across my paperback copy which is blue and purple.

Second, I got a copy of World Vision's Poverty & Justice Bible. I ordered it, but it wasn't too pricy on Amazon. I haven't really gone through it yet, but there are some interesting parts of it that I will likely pull for reflections when we cover social justice issues or are preparing prayers for our service trips.

What I am most excited about is the free copy of the new edition of St. Mary Press' Catholic Youth Bible. I've been a fan of their youth Bible for some time. This one is great in my opinion. There are more articles and reflections. The charts and graphs are great to help the visual learners with biblical literacy issues. My only mild dislike is the switch to the use of green. I preferred the purple, but that's just me. The content, lay-out, and overall product is great. I look forward to giving this to the kids in our high school RCIA program and slowly replacing the older Bibles as they need replacement.

The World

In the coming weeks I have no doubt many of us will be looking beyond the shores of the United States.

Perhaps this resource will be helpful. The map gives a visual for global statistics. Particularly for those in your ministry (or you) that may learn visually, it is very interesting and helpful.

Haiti

Like many, all I wish to put forth at this time is a call to aid (and aide) for Haiti.

To donate through Catholic Relief Services, just click here and you'll be taken to their donation page.

Archbishop Joseph Serge Miot, 65, was killed. He was found in the rubble of the bishop's residence. The Cathedral's roof collapsed. The seminaries in Port-au-Prince are mere rubble. With a country that is 80% Catholic, they are not only suffering profoundly from the very necessary human needs, but also from a spiritual leader. Please, give what you can to assist them and also offer your prayers for this, the poorest country in this hemisphere.

If you are looking for materials to help you in your youth or young adult ministry, NFCYM has a few things already posted. I am guessing we will see more available on other sites soon.

Always Learning

When I migrated from political science/law into ministry following graduation, I never thought those random elective courses I took would become some of the most useful. I also didn't think I'd be reading some of the same journals and books to polish up my understanding of psychology, communication, etc with such dedication.

I've found thus far that some of my most useful classes from college are:

• Communicative Disorders - this has helped me to understand various disabilities, how people hear and process aural stimuli, etc. As it also talked about normal communication there were tons of pointers.
• Psychology 201. Yup, of course I took psych. What college (liberal arts major) freshman doesn't? Though it is seriously helpful.
• Philosophy of Moral Education - Hands down winner. This elective was cross listed with Educational Policy Studies, Philosophy, and (I think) Religious Studies. To Know As We Are Known is a book I continuously pick up to reflect on and apply. Stages of Faith is up there too. The other education philosophers we focused on helped me to figure out the impact of the physical set up of the space I minister in, the tone and words I use, etc.
• My 3 Astronomy classes - just because the bishop from Australia at one of our catechetical sessions studied with my prof and the kids thought it was cool to have that link. Plus it makes star gazing more fun when we've got bonfires and overnight events.

Now I find myself scrambling to improve my understanding of autism, Asperger's, and the autism spectrum. I have a couple of kids that fall somewhere on that spectrum. With a small space, many individuals, and the normal chaos of youth group, I want to make sure we can incorporate these kids smoothly. So far it means I really do need to get the lighting worked on (find floor lamps to use instead of the bright overhead lights) since lower lighting can help kids with autism. It also means adding a new topic to the formation of our leadership.

So we begin!

Sunday was our first Sunday Night Youth Group (as opposed to our summer Wednesday nights). It was fantastic - lots of excited freshmen, some new mid & upper classmen. We had some fun with ice breakers, creating our Wall of Fame (quote board meets year book page idea), and prayer time. I'm looking forward to hitting our stride in the coming weeks. On the downside, the kids were super talkative and given a larger number and the small space, it was noisy! As I had spent Saturday giving workshops, by 8 pm on Sunday (halfway through youth group) my voice was disappearing. If this keeps up, the year could be interesting.

The annual survey of ideas and open discussion that follows fielded some good topics and activities. The suggestion to do a night on my personal life was not put on the board.

Today has been busy with the cleaning up of paperwork and the youth room. Plus I've been on the phone and email for some time working on WYD.

To further the recommendation previously posted - make sure that you read Souls in Transition. Excellent resource and I have a hunch we'll hear even more about it at all the national conferences in the coming year or two.

Under the Radar Lately

With the major kick-off of just about everything this Sunday, things at the parish have been hectic to say the very least. Plus I'm heading out of town (again) for about 30 hours to give a workshop at a conference.

What I wanted to highlight for those in YA ministry, well it has implications for youth ministry too, is that Souls in Transition: the Religious and Spiritual Lives of Emerging Adults is out. I hope that I can at least get through a significant portion before Saturday. I'll have two flights and some airport time to make that happen. It is the follow up to Soul Searching: The Religious and Spiritual Lives of American Teenagers.

Pope & Web 2.0

The Pope has now more fully entered Web 2.0.

With the launch of Pope2you.net, there is a much more cohesive and useful foray into the tangle of young people and their web use.

I've only just started to play with it a bit, but there's good stuff on the site already and it obviously recognizes the major items in young people's use of the internet - iPhone, iTouch, Facebook, wiki, etc.

The WikiCath is a nice touch. Some Italian still shows up for the buttons to turn pages and such, though they are fairly intuitive so it doesn't make a huge difference. I am sure some of these hiccups will be repaired.

All in all, after a couple of minutes of playing with it, I like it. Can't wait to see what else they do with it.

The Plague and Lent

Cheery title, yes?

Well, I had several ideas for what I imagined to be spectacular posts.  Then...the plague.  Two Sundays ago I started feeling quite tired and out of it.  By Wednesday my head was congested. By Thursday I had no voice and was coughing up a storm with chest congestion.  Friday and Saturday were, well, disgusting.  Finally this past Sunday I started to feel better.  Still congested a bit and have a lingering cough today, but with the warm weather and sunshine it is good to be on the mend.  Of course, I think I've exhausted my dog who was quite content sleeping 23 1/2 hours each day last week.  Now that I'm better and spring has hit, I took her on her first long walk yesterday.  She slept later than me and is now sleeping soundly again.

Much as I could carry on about my pup.  The novelty is still there.  Please, any of you considering a pet - get one from a rescue.  Now that my Bob Barker moment is done, I'll carry on.

I want to pitch a resource I'm using with the young adult ministry.  It is one of those that not only has it led to a great series with the group, but I've found to be fruitful for myself.  It is Praying All Ways by Caroljean Willie, SC, Ph. D.  The group has found it to be enjoyable and challenging.  The basic concept is that if there are multiple intelligences, then couldn't that be applied to prayer?  After offering a simple self-evaluation to see where your preferred prayer 'intelligences' lie, there are chapters on each of the different intelligences.  We started with math and logic.  The engineers in the group felt quite at home with this one.   It was interesting to see how the more artistic individuals dealt with this.  In turn, last week when we did the linguistic intelligence, the more logic minded individuals were a bit intimidated by the prospect of writing poetry.  However, the book is prepared in a very practical manner with prompts, guides, and examples.  Even the most hesitant individual found the ability to create some lovely poems and reflections.  Tomorrow we will do a session on the artistic intelligence.  One individual is quite excited for the opportunity to use crayons and markers.

On a personal side, this series and the resource in particular have helped me.  Lent is a time where there is more to do at work.  Not only for the season itself, but the looming retreats in April and the summer service trip are creating additional administrative work.  To realize that despite, or perhaps because of, all this I need to ensure I still personally fully enter into Lent is a challenge.  The book has offered me new ways to not just talk to God about my litany of intentions or frustrations, but to quiet my voice and seek new ways to listen to God and the world around me.  

If you are interested in the book, it is published by Harcourt.  It is one of their titles for adults.