Catholic Youth Ministry or CYM is everything that a parish community does to engage young people into the life and mission of the Church. It is a ministry for, by, with, and to young people in grades six through twelve.

Components of youth ministry

A comprehensive approach to youth ministry employs the eight components identified in Renewing the Vision: A Framework for Catholic Youth Ministry as a framework: advocacy, catechesis, community life, evangelization, justice and service, leadership development, pastoral care, and prayer and worship.

These components guide our efforts in proclaiming the Good News, connecting young people with the faith community, and calling them to the challenge of discipleship.

Ministry of advocacy

• Affirming and protecting the sanctity of human life as a gift from God and building societal respect for those who most need protection and support
• Standing with and speaking on behalf of young people and their families on public issues that affect their families
• Empowering young people, giving them a voice, and calling them to responsibility
• Developing partnerships and initiatives for building a healthy community

Ministry of catechesis

• Recognizes that faith development is lifelong and provides appropriate content and processes related to key themes
• Teaches the core content of the Catholic faith in order to provide a solid foundation for growth
• Utilizes the life experience of adolescents, fostering a shared dialogue between the life of the adolescent—with its joys, struggles, questions, concerns, and hopes—and the wisdom of the Catholic faith
• Provides for real-life application of learning by helping adolescents apply their learning by living more faithfully

Ministry of community life

• Creates an environment that nurtures meaningful relationships among young people and between adolescents and adults
• Develops friendship-making and friendship-maintaining skills
• Provides avenues for young people to participate as members of the faith community and opportunities for the faith community to acknowledge, celebrate, and value its teens

Ministry of evangelization

• Proclaims Jesus Christ and the Good News to young people will come to see Jesus and his message
• Witnesses to our faith in Jesus Christ in all aspects of our life
• Invites young people personally into the life and mission of the Catholic community
• Challenges young people to follow Jesus in a life of discipleship
• Calls young people to be evangelizers of other young people, their families, and their community

Ministry of justice and service

• Engages young people in discovering the call to justice and service in the Scriptures, in the life of Jesus, and in Catholic social teaching
• Develops young people’s assets, skills, and faith by promoting Gospel values in their lifestyle choices; increasing their discovery of their gifts and talents; and helping them realize they can make a difference in the world
• Incorporates doing the right thing, with a focus on why and how we do what we do

Ministry of leadership development

• Utilizes adult and adolescent leaders in a variety of leadership roles necessary for comprehensive ministry: program leaders planning teams, coordinating teams, etc.
• Develops a leadership system that invites, trains, supports and nourishes adult and adolescent leaders
• Empowers young people for leadership and ministry with peers
• Develops and nurtures adult leaders with relational and ministry skills to their roles with adolescents

Ministry of pastoral care

• Develops adolescents’ life skills, such as relationship building, assertiveness, nonviolent conflict resolution, planning, and decision making
• Guides young people in making important life decisions, such as career and college choices, and discerning their vocation
• Fosters the spiritual development of young people and the healthy interaction of their sexuality and spirituality

Ministry of prayer and worship

• Promotes authentic participation in the liturgy in ways appropriate to the rites
• Provides opportunities for young people to be trained as liturgical ministers
• Schedule periodic youth liturgies
• Attends to the diversity of cultures and ages in the assembly

For more information please call the Parish Office, (850) 837-0357.

Are you interested in becoming involved with our Youth Ministry? We are searching for a new Youth Director to help involve our young people in the Church. To apply, please contact the Parish Office.