Salesian Youth Ministry Office composed by Kenny Wodzanowski

Salesian Youth Ministry Office, composed by Kenny Wodzanowski

Keeping it REAL • • Relational Experiential Applicable Learner based

Approaches to SYM • • A unique View of the Young person A Community based Approach A Process Approach to the Mission Praxis and Planning ( 4 areas) – Group Experience and Relational Commitment – Evangelization and Catechesis – Education and Culture – Vocational Choices

Salesian Youth Spirituality • • • Spirituality of Ordinary Life Spirituality of Joy and Optimism Spirituality of Friendship with the Lord Jesus Spirituality of Communion in the church Spirituality of Responsible Service Spirituality of Remembering death

Preventive System • • • Assistance versus Supervision Presence Corrective but not repressive Building relationships Journeying with the young Reason, Religion and Kindness

Simple Beginnings • Create opportunities for youth and youth ministers to share, to know and to get to know each other, where individual differences may arise along with commonalities. – Don Bosco’s first meeting with Bartholomew Garelli. Can you whistle? – Commonalities hold things and people together, at the same time honor and celebrate uniqueness.

How do you do this? A Home that Welcomes

A Home that Welcomes • One must create a home -like atmosphere, where security, acceptance and comfortability are prevalent. • Give them the Hand of Hospitality! “Young People do not care how much you know, until they know how much you care!”

The Hand of Hospitality! 1) Fun! Both for the kids and the adults with, games, music, things youth like! Everyone likes some FUNK! 2) Food! Feed them and they will come! 3) Friendship! A sense of belonging, where they get attention, feel listened to and a chance to share their stories. 4) Family! Building relationships, discovering what you have in common, and celebrating our differences, all under one father, one church! 5) Faith! Faith is brought into everything, it is what gives everything deeper meaning. Faith is apposition to Fun, Food, Friendship and Family!

Hospitality • First absolute necessity for people to believe they belong to the group in order for them to open up and begin a relationship with others. • What is Hospitality? – Doing all you can to make the gathering place warm and inviting so that the youth and adults become warm and inviting! – An attitude of little things that help people feel more welcome, affirmed and important. – What can we do to be more hospitable?

The Playground Where Friends come to Meet each other • • • Youth needs Youth Interests Youth need to belong On the Fringe Teaching opportunities Building relationship, building church

Go where the youth are? • • • Physically Socially Emotionally Relationally Spiritually – Listen, Appreciate and Respect their needs. “Deeper relationships are formed where the helping and healing of hearts takes place. ”

Youth Needs • Maslow’s hierarchy of • Every human being uses human needs starts with whatever they have at Physical, to Security, to their disposal to make Belonging and then to sense out of life? So Meaning? We never what do we give as lose one, but place Youth Ministers to the greater importance on youth? one! How are we meeting the youth’s • In almost all we do, we needs? use to make sense out of life. • Who is competing to meet these same needs?

Empowering Leaders • Pushing People Up, so that you are on the bottom, instead of passing down power. • Need to encourage and call forth “the image and likeness of God” which is within each person.

A School That Prepares for Life • Balance of knowledge, experiences, and faith development. • Values and morals • “To become Honest Citizens and Good Christians. • Preparing and equipping youth to take a proactive and responsible approach to the world. • Jesus is the Master Teacher. • Living My life to the full

Self Esteem Spirituality • Bringing life to a deeper dimension, bringing out the radiant light that is at the core of every soul! • The Law of the Mind: What you think and believe about yourself, about others and about life becomes your experience. (Self-Fulfilling Prophesy. ) • Law of the Heart: What is your level of desire and what are your values? Where you heart lies that is what you will receive! (Reap what you sow. ) • Law of Action: Moving forward using and acknowledging the “I am” of God’s name in your affirmations and actions will bring you at the results you seek.

The parish That Evangelizes • Meeting Jesus (Encounters) • “Educate by Evangelizing and Evangelize by Educating” • Eucharist and Reconciliation ( 2 pillars) • Trust in Mary

Baptismal Commitment • To share in being prophet, priest and king with Jesus Christ, to be church for others. • Struggling and answering 3 spiritual needs! 1) The need to believe that life is meaningful and has a purpose. 2) The need for community and deeper relationships in which we are listened to, appreciated, and respected. 3) The need for practical help in developing the awareness of God’s presence in our lives.

Meeting Jesus • Our faith grows as well as those we minister to. (As Salesians we believe we encounter Jesus in the youth. ) • Mutual respect can grow out of affirming and serving the goodness we find in those we encounter, which can transform individuals and the world.

Living the Eucharist • To become transformed ourselves into the body and blood of Jesus. • To nurture, feed and care for one another. • To take special interest in helping someone with a problem or question.

5 Key Components – Based on the Salesian Province Pastoral Plan • Education and Culture • Evangelization and Catechesis • Group Experiences and Relational Growth • Vocational Orientation • Formation and Animation of the EPC

Education and Culture • Intending to help the local young people achieve greater human maturity. • In the Salesian Journey of Faith, we call this Living My Life to the Fullest. • In the Oratory Criteria this is the dimension of A School that Prepares for Life. Providing Constant opportunities and experiences that lead to growth, and discovery. Don Bosco called us to make “Honest Citizens and Good Christians. ” Preparing and equipping youth to take a proactive and responsible approach to the real world.

Evangelization and Catechesis • Intending to help move the youth from wherever they are in relationship with God. • In the Salesian Journey of Faith this is the stage in Meeting Jesus. • In the Oratory Criteria this is the Parish that Evangelizes. Opportunities of different forms of prayer and reflection, Eucharist, Scripture, retreats and reconciliation are some ways to meet Jesus In all that we do, try to integrate faith, that Jesus is present in all we do! “Educate by Evangelizing and Evangelize by Educating. ”

Group Experience and Relational Growth • Leading youth to form healthy relationships, to manage group interactions, and to develop “Communion”. • In the Salesian Journey of Faith, this is committing to building relationships and belonging to the church. • In the Oratory Criteria this is the Playground Where Friends Come to Meet each Other. Leading youth to grow in commitment to relationships, which also makes the basis of the church. Basis of SYM is relationships, the kids want to meet people, make friends, and when they are doing what they like, they tend to commit more.

Vocational Orientation • Guiding youth to own the values of the Gospel, and to act in ways to bring upon a social transformation. • In the Salesian Journey of Faith this is Transforming the World. Seeing each person as being Co-Creators with God, using ones gifts and looking for opportunities to share your divine calling in whatever life role one feels called to.

We are called • It is our obligation and opportunity as Youth Ministers to uncover the deepest mysteries, meanings and purpose with and for them by celebrating rituals of timeless value and making myth of truth and life. • We strive to empower and build a healthy self esteem, leading youth to discover and experience the deeper meaning to their life.

To do it requires: • A Change in Thinking • Believing Beyond Appearances • Dedicated action • Patience and Prayer

Need to be on same page • Sense of Purpose! – Why do we do what we do? • A Clear focus! – What is our vision? • Confidence of being prepared for the task at hand. – Formation! – Affirmation and Animation It all comes down to becoming aware of our attitudes and planning an approach. (It is a mentality and a spirituality!)

Create a Story • Collectively we make a book. • Individually we are all authors. • The Story becomes ours! – – – The story gives life. A memory of love. Hopefully the story continues and expands into the youth’s college, married and occupational futures. All are questioning, searching and being challenged by life!