To Teach a Youth Group

                This time around, as a part of this series of posts, we’ll take a look at some specific things youth ministry programs can focus on to retain their students. Last time we talked about how the structure of the program can be more conducive to a high retention, this time we’ll delve into what each night should look like.

              

And that’s point number one. Pick a night, any night. One thing my home parish is EXCELLENT at doing is providing an opportunity to join the youth group on Monday nights, for Bible Study, Thursday nights for our youth group meetings, and Saturday nights for an hour of Adoration. Note the days chosen. Monday, Thursday, Saturday. Monday and Thursday are typically nights that are free for just about every student, with the exception of homework. Many students will have plans on Saturday nights, but most of the time, those plans can be shifted to spend an hour with our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament, provided the students are motivated enough. I’m also personally of the opinion that simply meeting one night a week isn’t enough, let alone once a month, as I know some parishes near me to do.

                Why is only one night a week not enough? Because, first off, it allows for some flexibility with the students. Remember, the entire ministry is all about the students. The Church has 2,000 years of tradition built up in the past that should be passed on to these students somehow. And that brings me to the next point, what the actual content of these meetings should be.

                Catechesis, catechesis, catechesis. Cool, most of these kids made it through the parish CCD/PRE classes/ whatever religious instruction they’ve had. Now it’s time to treat them like it. There’s no longer really any need to teach them the “what” of major Catholic truths. It’s now time to teach them “why” we believe what we believe. This means it’s time for some form of apologetics instruction. No, it doesn’t have to be Jimmy Akin/Patrick Madrid/Trent Horn level apologetics. They just need a basic understanding of what the Catholic Church teaches. And no, the YouCat is NOT a good source for this.

DON'T use this to teach high school students

                This is the one time I would advocate looking around at the local non-Catholic Christian churches, ESPECIALLY the Baptists. Why? Because that’s one thing these groups somehow do well. They have an uncanny tendency to go rather in-depth in teaching students how to counter Catholic claims, which means that the students at the same high schools and colleges as these non-Catholic kids will be faced with people questioning their beliefs.

                If you need a primer in what specifically in apologetics to instruct the students in, here are a few of the basic topics every Catholic should be able to give at least a rudimentary defense for: the Eucharist, Papal authority, Confession to a priest, Mary stuff, and a few of the less fun social teachings, like Abortion and Same-Sex Marriage.

                And that brings me to my next point. Youth ministry programs CANNOT be afraid to talk about hot-button issues. The Church’s stance on Abortion and Same-Sex Marriage is non-negotiable. It will not change. Get over it. However, the world has a very large number of convincing apologists for these two issues, especially the second one. Convince a student to disagree with the Church on one topic, and it won’t take long for the rest to follow. (I know, slippery slope argument, but it’s a pretty universal experience). These two topics are not popular topics, but they are topics that NEED to be discussed.

             

Damasus

   One last thing that I think every youth ministry program should include is a Bible study. Why? Because the Bible is OUR book. It was assembled by the Catholic Church. The first list of books in it was published in 374 by Pope St. Damasus I. By 397, it was standardized throughout the Catholic world. This is 1,120 years before Martin Luther posted his 95 theses. That means there is more than 1,000 years of Catholic Scriptural scholarship to draw from BEFORE Protestants even entered the picture. Maybe it’s time to look at what these people thought about the Bible before they had to defend what they believed from the Protestants. Besides, a good Bible study will be able to showcase biblical support for all Church teachings.
These are some of the necessary things to focus on while building a youth group. Next time, we’ll talk about how things should logistically be set up for a successful youth group.