By Jose Canales
Young Adult Ministry reaches out to Catholics from 18 to 39 years of age. Generally speaking, this covers Catholics in their 20s and 30s married and single. It is the largest demographic (40%) in the entire Catholic Church today. However, young adults consider themselves spiritual, but not religious: 98% pray to God, but only 8% of them are parish involved. The role of Young Adult Ministry is to bring together a spiritual yearning with a religious practice through community. These generalities and statistics are according to Fr. Dave Dwyer, a Paulist priest who spearheads young adult ministry in New York at www.bustedhalo.com.
Some other generalities facing young adults today is that they are uncatechized, meaning they do not know their faith. They live in a culture of choice, which does not promote a Christian lifestyle. They are busy, but will make time for things that are a priority to them. Finally, they are mobile and make only short-term commitments. What young adults want most from their church is to feel welcomed! They want relevant preaching that will help them make a connection between the Gospel and their lives. Young adults appreciate good, familiar, singable music and they want to see others in their age involved.
One of the basic issues facing young adult ministry is the absence of young adults at weekly Mass. One of the main reasons for this issue is that young adults are not included or involved in the life and mission of the Church today. Individual churches have to make a concerted effort to invite young adults to become involved in specific ministries, such as Eucharistic ministry, Hospitality, and Lectures. Parishes need to give a preferential option to young adults in order to have this large portion of its population active and involved.
The United States Catholic Conference of Bishops (USCCB) in the National Directory of Catechesis has described what needs to take place in our parishes in order to involve young adults in the life and mission of our Church today. Dioceses and parishes are challenged to develop new and creative ways to provide significant points of contact for young adults with the Church[They] should actively seek out young adults, enthusiastically welcome them, and facilitate their homecoming (2005), n. 48.
Young Adult Ministry has two equally important dimensions:
1.across the board integration into the life and ministries of the faith community
2.activities specifically for young adults led by their peers.
Some ways that we should integrate young adults into the life of the community is to be easy to find. In this day and age, the easiest way to reach young adults is via the Internet. When people working in a church community cross the path of a young adult, the best way to react is with hospitality and graciousness. Young adults need to be represented in all ministries and this may mean a CHANGE in routine. As scary as this word may seem, it may be a simple as a change in scheduling to accommodate a young adults busy life style. Perhaps instead of scheduling the Eucharistic ministry schedule with an assignment every other week, a young adult may be able to handle an assignment every few months. Young adults should receive special consideration as they search for meaning in their lives, during a time in which they are often making important life decisions.As much as possible, catechesis should be developed in consultation with them so that it can better help them respond to Gods uniquely personal lovewithin the context of their situation (NDC, 2005), p. 29-30.
Other ways to integrate young adults into the life of the community is to be present to them during the three moments of the sacrament. For instance, during their Sacrament of Marriage, be present to them during the preparation, the actual sacrament, and after the sacrament has been celebrated. Young adults will continue to return to the church they were married at if they feel there is a community that wants and needs them to be there. Let young adults use their uniquely specific gifts and let them contribute in any way they can. This contribution may be in the area of developing a parish web site or Internet communications resource. Please do not waste the precious time that young adults have to give by calling several meetings, when the same can be accomplished in mere moments over the Internet.
Young adult ministry is activity-centered (such as Theology on Tap) it is not a club with members. When inviting a young adult to engage in an activity or ministry, use the Jesus method. Jesus did not post a sign on the nearest palm tree inviting young adults to an event. Jesus went up to and personally invited others to follow him. Begin a young adult ministry with good leadership. You do not necessarily want the person with nothing else better to do to initiate young adult events. You want a popular, friendly young adult to coordinate events and activities because people naturally want to be around these types of people. With gracious hospitality, you will find the key to the hearts of young adults.
Feed their intellect, their spirituality and their faith and you will nourish a young adult for a lifetime. Effective ministry will assist young adults in examining their lives and engaging in dialogue about the great questions they face.They need a non-threatening place where they can freely express their questions, doubts, and even disagreements with the Church and where the teachings of the Church can be clearly articulated and related to their experience.
Tell a Friend
0 Responses to “The Basics of Young Adult Ministry”