Get up to the starting line. Here are some of the fundamentals that you will need.

It is important for the team to look at the past history and the current reality of the parish’s efforts with adolescent catechesis and youth ministry. How does your parish love and care for its young people? How is that love and caring expressed in specific ways that invites adolescents into the fabric of who you are and what you do? Please note that the lead question is not, “Do we have enough money and the necessary resources to hire a full time youth minister/ coordinator of adolescent faith formation?”

This assessment step brings together the critical realities of your identified parish priorities and your parish resources and how they relate. This assessment can foster healthy discussion about intentionally using your parish’s resources to reflect your parish’s vision, values, and priorities. As your team reviews the conditions, it is important to avoid a “politics of scarcity” approach. Having vital adolescent catechesis does not mean taking parish financial support away from the senior group in the parish or siphoning off badly needed monies for the food pantry.