Don’t get me wrong, Catholics pray with their body. We lie prostrate, we kneel, we sit, and we fold our hands in a posture of prayer. Sometimes we even extend our hands over our head in an open posture of worship.
All of these postures, even the hands over the head, are rooted in Scripture and the Tradition of the Church. They reflect the interior disposition of the soul and it’s receptivity to Christ. So what about hand motions? Why do I say it is not prayer?
One of the keys to inviting people to sing is simply that – to invite. Don’t scold the congregation and don’t show your frustration and start saying how you come here week after week to lead them in song and no one sings! This is the wrong approach! Simply invite and affirm them. Remind them that our role at the Liturgy is to practice full, active, conscious, participation as Vatican II tells us. Tell them that it sounds so beautiful to hear their voices singing God’s praise together.
By now, anyone who has, or who works closely with teens has undoubtedly heard about the “Why I hate religion but love Jesus” video that has gone viral on YouTube. Forgive me for not linking to it… my Mom taught me to keep gasoline away from matches (after my brothers and I almost launched our riding mower into outer space in 1982). Incidentally, my mother also taught me not to use the word “hate,” but that’s a different story for another day.
As a Youth Minister, you are the leader, the captain of your Core Team. They look to you for direction, guidance, and inspiration when it comes to leading teens closer to Christ. They want training and clear communication so that they can effectively fulfill their role, and yet, as I talk with Youth Ministers around the country, arguably their biggest frustration is with their Core Team. Perhaps the Core Team isn’t the problem. Maybe it’s the captain.
2012 is here! If we look back on 2011 I think we can all say it was a busy year. Most of us spent this last year preparing for the implementation of the New Roman Missal that we received on November 27th of 2011. Now that the Missal has been implemented and our Christmas preparation has come to an end, we can focus on the things that we may need to change in our personal lives or our ministries.
You just signed up for that big summer trip, collected deposits, made parents sign their life away and that they promise to pay the trip amount – now how do you fundraise for it? First of all, you did collect deposits, right?
Big events, mission trips and camps can be expensive and not all of your teens and/or youth can pay directly out of pocket. So we turn to fundraising. I can tell you, there are hundreds of ideas for fundraisers (and variations of those fundraisers) and I’ll address those in another blog soon. However, I also want to share some lessons I’ve learned about fundraisers.
What are your hopes for youth ministry?
I want to help change the perspective of teenagers. When teenagers get involved in their faith in a youth group or when they come to an event like this, they think that they’re seeking God. They think they’re going out of their way for God, but very seldom do they pause to realize that God is already at work. God is seeking them. What God desires from them is that encounter, that sacramental encounter, which really is rooted in intimacy.
Across the board as I talk with many of you and listen to your joys and struggles, I hear consistently of a deep desire to have a vibrant, effective youth ministry in your parishes. Often in that same conversation I hear the difficulties of working with “volunteers” and the challenges that that brings. More often than not at the heart of the problem is not having spent the time properly “recruiting” Core Members and adequately preparing them for the ministry they are about to undertake.
If you’re really honest with yourself, you probably have more time in your days and weeks than you think. Imagine if you took that time you spend each day mindlessly surfing your TV or the Internet and used it to do relational ministry, plan more creative Life Nights or connect with fellow staff members. How would that change the way your life and your ministry looks?
Cutting cable wasn’t easy, especially for this sports-loving, ESPN-addicted man. But believe it or not, I’ve managed to live without it, and it’s transformed my life.
You see, in ministry, when we throw things together at the last minute we’re basically telling those we serve, “My time is more important than yours.” And I don’t think any of us want to communicate that to teens. So, if you’re a youth minister who’s struggling with leaving things to the last minute, here are some tips to help you get things done (before the last minute).