The Final Four

Goal

The goal of this night is to grow in our understanding of the “last things” (death, purgatory, heaven and hell), so we understand what everlasting life means. People have a lot of misconceptions about death, heaven, hell, and purgatory; by the end of this night the misconceptions will be discussed and clarified. Ultimately,
the goal is to empower each middle school youth to desire heaven more at the end of this night.

Edge Night at a Glance

The four last things are death, purgatory, hell and heaven. Christians proclaim in the Creed that, “We believe in Life Everlasting” and everlasting life includes two options: heaven and hell. After death a person will either spend eternity in heaven or hell. Heaven is for those who die in the friendship of God and have been completely purified. Hell is for those people who have rejected God and die with mortal sin on their souls. There is Catholic belief in purgatory, which is a place of final purification. Purgatory is for those who die in God’s friendship but have not yet been perfectly purified.

This night will begin with a video that shows the common opinions that people hold on heaven and hell. The video will be a fun way to clarify many misconceptions that people have. The room will be divided into four for the night; death, hell, purgatory, and heaven. The Proclaim will be given in each area of the room that coincides with that portion of the talk. At the end of the rotating talk the middle school youth will go to small group to discuss the four last things. After a time of small group questions, there will be an activity that the each group will work on and then present to the larger group. After the large group sharing, the Send will move into a quieter, more reflective time. The youth minister will read a story on a “Teen’s View of Heaven,” leading into Adoration. The night will wrap up after Adoration.