Conversion Friendly Youth Ministry

Conversion Friendly Youth Ministry

In this article, Mark Bercham, Executive Director of NET Ministries in the U.S.A. addresses the vital question “what is the ultimate goal of youth ministry?”

"I found his practical approach both refreshing and helpful" - Charles Whitehead

Mark Over the past 30 years of working with youth, I have had innumerable conversations with parents, youth workers, and priests who were all lamenting the high number of young people who seem to disappear from the Church. The teen years seem to be a time of decision for many young people, and although many parishes have active youth programs, many are in need of something that will help their young people stay involved in their faith beyond high school.

Why do so many young people seem to lose interest in their faith? How can we lead and keep them close to Christ? What can we do in our parishes to assist our young people in awakening to the reality of God’s tremendous love for them?

My observation is that many parish youth programs are unclear about the ultimate goal of youth ministry. Many youth programs appear to focus on having fun, learning basic doctrine, and doing service projects to help others. Obviously all these things are good and should be part of a viable youth program, but there is a more fundamental goal that must be present: We must bring our young people into a committed relationship with Jesus Christ. Conversion must be THE goal of our youth ministry efforts. We must help our young people encounter the love of Christ and respond to his call to follow him and become his disciple.

NET ministries

We know that conversion is a spiritual matter. We can’t force someone to convert, but we can create a “conversion-friendly” environment that will increase the chances of a young person experiencing the grace of the Holy Spirit through conversion. Helping a young person come to a deeper conversion to Christ must be the central focus of our youth efforts.

But before we all clamor for our youth workers to do more, let’s ask the question—whose job is it anyway? Who is responsible to share our faith with young people? Certainly parents, priests, youth ministers, and catechists are on the list. But the truth is, all of us, each in a manner suited to our place in life, can help our young people come to know Jesus Christ.Faith is caught, not taught. Being around people of faith helps young people be more open to entrusting themselves to Christ. Young people listen with their eyes, and seeing faith lived out is so important. Young people need to see living witnesses—men and women living their faith in daily life. All of us have a part to play. Today’s teenagers are getting involved in Church activities, but it is incumbent on all of us to do what we can to help them meet Jesus Christ, experience his love, and choose to follow him. Your witness of faith makes an impact. Look around at Mass on Sunday. Notice how many adults seem to ignore any young people. Smile! Be welcoming. Introduce yourself at the greeting of peace if appropriate. Let them know you are glad they came. If you know their name, go out of your way to say hello every week. What kind of change could we affect, if every adult in our parish paid even a minute’s worth of attention to the young people of our parishes? Let’s be more eager to help out at youth events, masses, and religious education classes. Sponsor a young person on a mission trip or retreat and then get together and let them share about their experience.

Be willing to share about your love for Christ with others as appropriate. Be a good example. Live a virtuous life. Pray! Pray for specific young people you know or meet who seem distant from God. Many people have experienced conversion because someone was praying for them. Organize a group of intercessors. We all know that conversion is a spiritual work. Let’s get a set of people praying specifically for our youth.

What about those who are working directly with our young people? What can the parish youth team do to help awaken faith in the younger generation? I’ve already addressed the importance of a faith-filled community, but let me identify five more characteristics of a conversion-friendly environment that I believe increase the chances of a young person experiencing the grace of conversion.

Explicit proclamation

Don’t presume that young people have heard the basic gospel message. Regularly share about God’s love and mercy, recount the significant events of Christ’s life, and the foundational tenets of our faith. Have a variety of people share about how Christ has made a difference in their life. Young people really want to hear the truth that will set them free. The sharing doesn’t have to be spectacular! Genuine and honest sharing about your struggles and openness to God will draw young people in.

Regular invitation to respond to Christ’s invitation

Young people need to be invited to respond to the invitation of Christ. Too often we present the call of Christ without inviting young people to respond. Regular encouragement to turn to the Lord, to decide to follow Jesus, to entrust oneself to Christ, can provide the necessary “push” a person needs to move closer to God. Including moments of quiet prayer gives God an opportunity to speak to the hearts of our young people.

Good worship

Worship puts us directly in contact with God. Uplifting music, preferably taken directly from sacred scripture, helps young people become more aware of being in God’s presence. Having a talented musician who can lead praise and worship during a prayer meeting or liturgy should be a high priority for any youth program.

Conversion opportunities

Conversion doesn’t usually just happen. Few of us are “zapped” by God. Rather, conversion more likely happens during moments when a person’s heart is more disposed to God. We don’t know when conversion will happen, but we do know when it is more likely to happen. Some of these moments for young people include Reconciliation services, Eucharistic Adoration, retreats, mission trips, youth rallies, praise and worship times, bible studies and conversations with a faith mentor. If we are intent on helping our young people experience a deeper conversion in their life, we should be sure to include these types of conversion opportunities in our youth programs.

Discipleship

Young people also need discipleship—formation regarding how to live as a disciple of Christ. As young people experience an awakening of faith, we must provide them with the basic tools needed to sustain the newfound faith. Learning how to pray, how to actively participate at Mass and how to live a chaste life when confronted with other options are a few of the key tools a young person needs in order to have a sustainable faith that endures beyond high school. Yes, it is important to understand the major tenets of our faith, but even more important is knowing how to live one’s faith. I can’t tell you how many times I have heard a young adult bemoan that, although they attended Catholic schools or religious education for years, no one ever taught them how to pray.

Helping a young person come to a deeper conversion to Christ is a great honor. The two most important actors are God and the young person. God provides grace and invitation. The young person must receive grace and entrust themselves to Christ. As a youth worker, whether paid or volunteer, we can be a bridge that connects our youth to Christ. Creating an environment in which conversion is the aim, is one of our most important and rewarding tasks.

Note: Mark Bercham and his staff have successfully trained and sent out over 1500 young adults to share the Gospel with over a million youth

Reprinted with permission from Pentecost Today, January/February/March 2008, volume 33 number 1

See www.netusa.org for more info

<< Top Home >>

Over the past 30 years of working with youth, I have had innumerable conversations with parents, youth workers, and priests who were all lamenting the high number of young people who seem to disappear from the Church. The teen years seem to be a time of decision for many young people, and although many parishes have active youth programs, many are in need of something that will help their young people stay involved in their faith beyond high school. Why do so many young people seem to lose interest in their faith? How can we lead and keep them close to Christ? What can we do in our parishes to assist our young people in awakening to the reality of God’s tremendous love for them? My observation is that many parish youth programs are unclear about the ultimate goal of youth ministry. Many youth programs appear to focus on having fun, learning basic doctrine, and doing service projects to help others. Obviously all these things are good and should be part of a viable youth program, but there is a more fundamental goal that must be present: We must bring our young people into a committed relationship with Jesus Christ. Conversion must be THE goal of our youth ministry efforts. We must help our young people encounter the love of Christ and respond to his call to follow him and become his disciple. We know that conversion is a spiritual matter. We can’t force someone to convert, but we can create a “conversion-friendly” environment that will increase the chances of a young person experiencing the grace of the Holy Spirit through conversion. Helping a young person come to a deeper conversion to Christ must be the central focus of our youth efforts. But before we all clamor for our youth workers to do more, let’s ask the question—whose job is it anyway? Who is responsible to share our faith with young people? Certainly parents, priests, youth ministers, and catechists are on the list. But the truth is, all of us, each in a manner suited to our place in life, can help our young people come to know Jesus Christ.Faith is caught, not taught. Being around people of faith helps young people be more open to entrusting themselves to Christ. Young people listen with their eyes, and seeing faith lived out is so important. Young people need to see living witnesses—men and women living their faith in daily life. All of us have a part to play. Today’s teenagers are getting involved in Church activities, but it is incumbent on all of us to do what we can to help them meet Jesus Christ, experience his love, and choose to follow him. Your witness of faith makes an impact. Look around at Mass on Sunday. Notice how many adults seem to ignore any young people. Smile! Be welcoming. Introduce yourself at the greeting of peace if appropriate. Let them know you are glad they came. If you know their name, go out of your way to say hello every week. What kind of change could we affect, if every adult in our parish paid even a minute’s worth of attention to the young people of our parishes? Let’s be more eager to help out at youth events, masses, and religious education classes. Sponsor a young person on a mission trip or retreat and then get together and let them share about their experience. Be willing to share about your love for Christ with others as appropriate. Be a good example. Live a virtuous life. Pray! Pray for specific young people you know or meet who seem distant from God. Many people have experienced conversion because someone was praying for them. Organize a group of intercessors. We all know that conversion is a spiritual work. Let’s get a set of people praying specifically for our youth. What about those who are working directly with our young people? What can the parish youth team do to help awaken faith in the younger generation? I’ve already addressed the importance of a faith-filled community, but let me identify five more characteristics of a conversion-friendly environment that I believe increase the chances of a young person experiencing the grace of conversion. Explicit proclamation Don’t presume that young people have heard the basic gospel message. Regularly share about God’s love and mercy, recount the significant events of Christ’s life, and the foundational tenets of our faith. Have a variety of people share about how Christ has made a difference in their life. Young people really want to hear the truth that will set them free. The sharing doesn’t have to be spectacular! Genuine and honest sharing about your struggles and openness to God will draw young people in. Regular invitation to respond to Christ’s invitation Young people need to be invited to respond to the invitation of Christ. Too often we present the call of Christ without inviting young people to respond. Regular encouragement to turn to the Lord, to decide to follow Jesus, to entrust oneself to Christ, can provide the necessary “push” a person needs to move closer to God. Including moments of quiet prayer gives God an opportunity to speak to the hearts of our young people. Good worship Worship puts us directly in contact with God. Uplifting music, preferably taken directly from sacred scripture, helps young people become more aware of being in God’s presence. Having a talented musician who can lead praise and worship during a prayer meeting or liturgy should be a high priority for any youth program. Conversion opportunities Conversion doesn’t usually just happen. Few of us are “zapped” by God. Rather, conversion more likely happens during moments when a person’s heart is more disposed to God. We don’t know when conversion will happen, but we do know when it is more likely to happen. Some of these moments for young people include Reconciliation services, Eucharistic Adoration, retreats, mission trips, youth rallies, praise and worship times, bible studies and conversations with a faith mentor. If we are intent on helping our young people experience a deeper conversion in their life, we should be sure to include these types of conversion opportunities in our youth programs. Discipleship Young people also need discipleship—formation regarding how to live as a disciple of Christ. As young people experience an awakening of faith, we must provide them with the basic tools needed to sustain the newfound faith. Learning how to pray, how to actively participate at Mass and how to live a chaste life when confronted with other options are a few of the key tools a young person needs in order to have a sustainable faith that endures beyond high school. Yes, it is important to understand the major tenets of our faith, but even more important is knowing how to live one’s faith. I can’t tell you how many times I have heard a young adult bemoan that, although they attended Catholic schools or religious education for years, no one ever taught them how to pray. Helping a young person come to a deeper conversion to Christ is a great honor. The two most important actors are God and the young person. God provides grace and invitation. The young person must receive grace and entrust themselves to Christ. As a youth worker, whether paid or volunteer, we can be a bridge that connects our youth to Christ. Creating an environment in which conversion is the aim, is one of our most important and rewarding tasks. Note: Mark Bercham and his staff have successfully trained and sent out over 1500 young adults to share the Gospel with over a million youth Reprinted with permission from Pentecost Today, January/February/March 2008, volume 33 number 1 See www.netusa.org for more info << Top Home >>