Our Programs
7th and 8th GRADE T.Y.M.E.:
This comprehensive youth ministry program seeks to foster the awareness of God in the lives of teens, encourage their participation in the larger Catholic community, and build a strong sense of self-respect and service. 7th and 8th grade meet at St. Stephen School, October-April. Sessions are held on Wednesday evenings, from 6:30-8 p.m. Grades 7 and 8 will begin together in the gymnasium and then be divided into small groups to further discuss the weekly lesson. In the 2014-2015 school year, we adopted the LifeTeen Edge program to use with our teens. It is laid out to encourage more discussion and thoughtfulness on the part of the teens, as opposed to a normal classroom session. They will begin with a Gather, which includes prayer, an introduction to the topic, as well as an ice breaker to get them interacting. Next is the Proclaim portion, which only lasts about 10-20 minutes, where the Youth Minister or other adult leader talks to them about the focus for the evening. Then, there will be a Break, where teens assemble in small groups to reflect on the lesson with adult and/or teen leaders. Jesus truly wanted each one of his disciples to contemplate and discover their faith, to truly make it a personal journey, that is the purpose of the break. Classes will end with the Send portion where we wrap up, have closing thoughts and end in prayer. It's a more fun and challenging way to learn that teens love! CONFIRMATION Confirmation is a time of discernment for today's teens, where they explore their faith and listen for their own calling in the church. Teens will work in large groups, share their own faith in small groups, perform community service within the parish, as well as their community and journey closer to Christ. Their experience includes a mini-retreat with their sponsors, several area retreat opportunities, and a class retreat. Confirmation classes this year are in store for an exciting change. We will kick off the year with a one week Confirmation Boot Camp. The week will be filled with prayer, bible study, community service and faith sharing. They will have a strong foundation as they begin their Confirmation year with once a month meetings that will be held from 6:00-8:30 on either the second Wednesday or the fourth Wednesday of the month October -April (with the 3rd Wednesday in November and December). They will kick off the October meeting with their parents and a meal. Parents from last year's class will be on hand to fix the meal and hand on the wisdom they gained from their teens in the past year. We will share food, fellowship and faith, as we focus on the first church these teens belonged to...their family church. We'll talk about ways to keep the faith alive and in the forefront when society pushes it aside. God created parents to foster love for their children and teach parents to love as He did when He sent His only son to die on a cross for us! Teens will also have a mini-retreat in September with their sponsors and an evening of reflection with them in April throughout their journey together, closer to Christ. The role of the sponsor is invaluable to teens. They can be an additional faith and moral sounding board for teens who are bombarded with social media, a relativistic society and the many confusing messages that overwhelm them! In January, we will hold a day long retreat for teens to reflect on their faith journey thus far and enter into deeper relationship with Christ. There will be monthly assignments that will help encourage the spiritual growth of the entire family, as well as encourage a more interactive relationship between candidates and sponsors. If teens are looking for more ways to be involved, feel free to contact Jodi Moss at 920-655-2458, e-mail her or check out the St. Joseph and St. Stephen Parish Youth Facebook page |