Youth and Young Adult Ministry Leaders Seek New Horizons
On February 26 and 27 over 60 people gathered at St. Mary’s College in Adelaide for the annual youth ministry leaders’ conference, New Horizons. Organised by the Catholic Office for Youth and Young Adults (COYYA) , New Horizons provides formation, planning, networking and training opportunities for leaders of ministries for young people including youth ministers, parish youth leaders, youth movement new ecclesial community leaders, social justice coordinators, APRIMs/RECs, teachers, parents, parish workers and clergy.
The conference began with Mass, celebrated with Archbishop O’Regan. In his homily, the Archbishop talked about the importance of “travelling hopefully” through lent and the practice of seeking reconciliation with each other just as God continually seeks to “mend what is broken.”
The evening’s program included dinner and a keynote presentation from James Camden, Director of Catholic Youth Parramatta in the Diocese of Parramatta. James explored “Anointed & Sent”, the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference vision for Catholic youth ministry. He explained preference for comprehensive youth ministry and walked the group through the three goals of the document: 1) To foster the total personal and spiritual growth of each young person, 2) To draw young people into responsible participation in the life and mission of the Catholic community, 3) to empower young people to live as disciples of Jesus Christ in today’s world.
The participants explored the eight focus areas of Anointed and Sent (prayer and worship, evangelisation, catechesis, pastoral care, community life, justice and service, leadership development and advocacy) through an activity that got everyone up and moving, identifying each the strengths and areas of growth for each own’s ministry. Important questions were raised during the activity such as, “which focus areas are you most passionate about?” and “Which area do you focus on most in your ministry with young people?” There was a wide variety of responses demonstrating the rich diversity of youth ministries in the Archdiocese of Adelaide. James stressed the importance of the focus areas. “These eight focus areas allow us to see what our strengths and weaknesses in youth ministry are. They have indispensable dimensions of ministry and we really do actually need them all. That’s what our ultimate goal should be.”
Saturday began with morning prayer, featuring music provided by Alyse de Souza, a musician and leader from the Hectorville Parish. Ellen Hales, Diocesan Youth Coordinator for the Diocese of Lismore (Proclaim Lismore), gave the morning keynote on accompaniment with young people. Sharing stories from her life, Ellen described the way others accompanied her as a young people. It was through this kind of relationship that she was able to learn the skills of accompaniment and apply them to her own ministry with young people. Participants engaged in a listening activity where they had to find someone they did not know, sit facing one another and listen to the other’s life story without interruption. Ellen encouraged participants to listen with their whole body and pay attention to everything the other was sharing with them. At the end, Ellen informed the participants that they had just successfully done youth ministry! “Relationship is the foundation of dialogue. In accompaniment what we are doing is building a relationship in order for us to dialogue… and evangelisation is a dialogue… we walk at the pace of the young person but also lead by example.”
Northeast Catholic Collective youth leader Vishal Youhanna commented, “I really loved the accompaniment session led by Ellen. It showed the importance of listening to each other with practical examples.” The room was buzzing with excitement by the end of the activity as everyone felt a greater connection with the people around them.
Four workshops were offered on Saturday, each exploring an aspect or skill of ministry with young people. James Camden led a workshop on leadership skills and applications for different contexts of ministry. Peter Bierer, the Coordinator of COYYA, ran a workshop on Christus Vivit, Pope Francis’ post-synodal apostolic exhortation on young people, and talked about its call to revolutionary action and change. Ellen Hales guided participants to reflect on the culture and context of Catholic schools and to consider ways to use their unique personality to accompany students. “The Bible in an hour” was presented by Alison Gore, a Religious Education and Faith Formation Adviser for Catholic Education South Australia. Alison explained Catholic methods for reading and understanding scripture and provided practical tips for assisting young people’s engagement with the Bible.
New Horizons provides COYYA with an opportunity to share the archdiocesan vision and plan for ministry with young people in 2021. COYYA introduced the team for this year, its events, programs, and resources, and stressed the importance of building collegiality and support among youth ministry leaders. The conference concluded with a blessing for those in leadership with young people in the archdiocese.
Peter Bierer also led an inspiring session on strategic planning for ministry with young people. He asked the ministry leaders big questions like: “What is your ultimate dream for your work and ministry with young people? What do you want to accomplish by the end of this year? Three years? Or in Five years?” He provided a planning resource and encouraged participants to develop a vision and tangible goals for their ministries with young people.
New Horizons met its own goals, giving youth ministry leaders the opportunity to network with each other, learn from some incredible speakers and go back to their fields of work with practical skills. COYYA is grateful to all the presenters, St Mary’s College, and the Archbishop for helping make the event a success. The COYYA team would especially like to thank all the participants for coming to the conference. We are excited to accompany these leaders throughout the year and into the future!
Conference resources, videos, and materials can be found on our website at www.cathyouthadelaide.org.au/new-horizons
