We have spent a lot of time claiming that young people belong as part of the church of today, rejecting their full membership to an undetermined time in the future.  And we are right.

Sorta.

When we are ministering with young people, we need to remain aware that this generation will not only will be the adults of the future church, but the parents of the next generation as well. If you have taken to bemoaning today’s parents, then you certainly should (beyond, of course, improving your own outreach and programming towards parents) work like crazy to best prepare and equip our young people to be the faith-filled parents that we desire for the future.

In the words of Fleetwood Mac… Don’t Stop Thinking ’bout Tomorrow. 

Find all the Caffeine postings here.

Youth Ministry students from Franciscan University of Steubenville came to the ArchBalt for the weekend.  They met the many faces of the church, toured our historical basilica and lovely harbor, met with parish youth ministers, volunteered with some Sunday evening programming, and met with the division staff. They are pictured here with their professor, Bob Rice (Back row, second from  right, wearing an ArchBalt Division Of Youth and Young Adult Ministry sweatshirt)

Here’s what you need to know: They love Jesus.  They love the Church.  They love young people.

I know, I know, that might not seem enough… But you should also know – -  They are concerned about discerning the right parish fit, finding professional mentors, and developing collaborative relationships with their dioceses.  They are anxious about making mistakes over those first years.  They want to be able to develop strong adult core team.

If one of these faces shows up at your door with a resume, they deserve an opportunity.  We were honored to host such a good group.  God bless them all throughout their future studies and their future ministries.

Signed, Dashing Debonair David

When training (as I did again this weekend), I often ask participants to take a look at the character of John Keating in the movie Dead Poets’ Society.  Keating teaches his students about Carpe Diem / Seize the Day; but that, in no way, was Keating’s own teaching philosophy.  He was about seizing tomorrow / Carpe Mañana.  (This is a concept I picked up from Leonard Sweet.)

So often our talk regarding adolescent faith formation revolves around “meeting them where they are at.”  That implies that our young people are not in constant motion – physcially, emotionally, spiritually.  Watch a little football.  When the quarterback fades back to throw to a wide receiver streaking down the side line for the “long bomb…”; where does he throw the ball.  When I ask this in a workshop (with a little animated powerpoint magic going on the screen,) the answer is invariably to point to “where the receive is at” during exactly the same moment the QB releases the pass.  And, my friends, that answer is . . . wrong.

We need to recognize where they are at, but throw to where we want them to be, encouraging them forward so they they / we might continue to advance.

Find all the Caffeine postings here.

It was not another day on the hamster wheel.  It was a cool way to roll with the folks at the Methodology class in Bradshaw.

A perfect day for a fall Saturday of training – - – cold and rainy!  Enjoyed the day with the fine folks of Harford County.

Powerpoints from yesterday: Session One and Session Two. 

Videos from yesterday included: Kaplan Professor, Kia Soul, Where’s the Beef, and Woman at the Well.

Bless me, Father Chaplain of the Blog, it’s been so long since my last confession… actually, I’ve never tried confessing on the blog before (and I’m pretty sure it doesn’t count anyway.)

Anyway, I think I might have sinned.  I’m worried that this blog might have contributed to others suffering from “Information Overload Syndrome”  And, for this, I am heartily sorry.

Really, the interweb should only be used for updating Farmville and Mafia Wars on facebook and nothing else…  I don’t know what I was thinking.

Pray for me, Father Austin, I’m so weak!

And, hey, go easy on the penance, I’m watching reruns on Hulu!

Norman Vincent Peale believed in the Power of Positive Thinking. I was reminded of a quote of his recently, “Empty pockets never held anyone back. Only empty heads and empty hearts can do that.”

Local youth minister Wayne Hipley presented on Youth Ministry on a Limited Budget at last weekend’s Institute.  He then posted on his blog a wide range of resources to help do just that.  Take a moment and check the list! Please note Wayne’s disclaimer: Not all of these sites are Catholic or faith-based, and you should always use discernment (and caution) when preparing to use ANY resource.

Let’s allow our rich heads and full hearts to fund our ministry.

(The Caffeine series continues.  Catch it all here.)

“Evangel” means “good news” or “gospel.” To evangelize means to share, or proclaim the good news of the gospel.

In Go and Make Disciples: A National Plan and Strategy for Catholic Evangelization in the United States, the US Bishops say that:

The simplest way to say what evangelization means is to follow Pope Paul VI, whose message Evangelii Nuntiandi (On Evangelization in the Modern World) has inspired so much recent thought and activity in the Church. We can rephrase his words to say that evangelizing means bringing the Good News of Jesus into every human situation and seeking to convert individuals and society by the divine power of the Gospel itself. At its essence are the proclamation of salvation in Jesus Christ and the response of a person in faith, which are both works of the Spirit of God.

Evangelization must always be directly connected to the Lord Jesus Christ. “There is no true evangelization if the name, the teaching, the life, the promises, the Kingdom and the mystery of Jesus of Nazareth, the Son of God are not proclaimed.”

Let’s review:  Evangelization. Catechesis.   It’s all about Jesus.

Bill Allison contributed a series on Why Volunteers Won’t Show Up for your Training over on the Life in Student Ministry blog.

Lecturing tends to kill the attendance of any of your future volunteer training efforts — and ultimately destroys your ability to create a true culture of training volunteers in your church. The training you offer volunteers in your church should be facilitated by a “guide-on-the-side” and not a “sage-on-the-stage.”

Bill suggests that you should never under-estimate your volunteers and give them puffy cotton-candy content when they are actually seeking something meaty.

Finally, training adults fails when training opportunities are not planned with the life, ministry, and schedule of the average church volunteer in mind. Poor scheduling and communication are two ways that we don’t help our own cause.  The series is a worthwhile read; check out Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3.

(We are sharing a series on Adolescent Faith Formation.  Catch up on the whole series.)

The term “catechesis” comes from the Greek verb katechein, which means “to resound” or “to echo.”  The Catechism of the Catholic Church (1994) states, “At the heart of catechesis we find, in essence, a person, the Person of Jesus of Nazareth . . . Catechesis aims at putting ‘people. . . in communion with Jesus Christ’” (n. 426).  The National Directory for Catechesis (2005) states that catechesis should present Christ as: the Son of God, friend, guide, and model who can be not only admired, but also imitated” (p. 199).

Renewing the Vision: A Framework for Catholic Youth Ministry  describes and situates adolescent catechesis within Catholic comprehensive youth ministry.  “The Ministry of catechesis helps adolescents develop a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ and the Christian community, and increase their knowledge of the core content of the Catholic faith.  The ministry of catechesis also helps young people enrich and expand their understanding of the Scriptures and the sacred tradition and their application to life today, and live more faithfully as disciples of Jesus Christ in their daily lives, especially through a life of prayer, justice, and loving service.  (p. 29).

Catechesis leads us into a life long relationship.

This video is so simple and lovely.

Yes, we adults far too often under-estimate the ability of young people to understand love as a free, total, faithful, fruitful gift of self

Over the weekend, Robert Feducia reminded us of Augustine’s prayer to the Lord that “Our heart is restless until it rests in You.”

Our catechesis regarding chaste living must revolve around an understanding that our intimacy with one another must hint towards or desire for intimacy with the Lord.