A Vision of Ministry of Who are Young Adults

Jesus Meets Us

 Woman at the well (John 4-42)  Jesus and Zacchaeus (Luke 19: 1-10)

Meet words from JP II to young adults

The Church needs your energies, your enthusiasm, your ideals, in order to make the Gospel of life penetrate the fabric of society, transforming people’s hearts and the structures of society in order to create a civilization of true justice and love.

World Youth Day 1993 Denver

Meet Young Adults

 ages 18 – 35  single  engaged  married  married with children  single-again  in & out of college  professionals  and more….

Meet Young Adults

 25 Million young adult Catholics in the US  40 % of our US Catholic Population are young adults  Vatican II – “What’s that?” 50 % of those confirmed young adult Catholics recently surveyed did not know what Vatican II was.

 Vatican II is no longer the frame of reference for a large number of Catholic young adults

Meet the Milieu

 Generation X (older young adults)  Born between 1965 – 1979   Formative events: Watergate, Fall of Berlin Wall, Challenger explosion, Gulf War, PC boom In the workplace/life, Gen Xers:  shun the hard-core, super-motivated, do-or-die boomer work ethic     Want open communication, regardless of position, title or tenure Respect production over tenure Value control of their time Look for a person in whom they can invest loyalty, not a company

Meet the Milieu

 Millennials (also called Generation Y)  Born 1980 – 2000  Formative events: Oklahoma City bombing, 9/11, The Internet boom  In the workplace/life: Search for the individual who will help them achieve their goals  Want open, constant communication and positive reinforcement from their boss  Search for a job that provides great personal fulfillment  Are searching for ways to shed the stress from their lives

Meet the Milieu

 Millennials (also called Generation Y)  Seeking truth & meaning in their life  Protected & scheduled  It’s all about the time  Grew up in an entertainment culture

Meet the Milieu

 Not a cookie cutter approach  Examples:    rosary generosity of service cultural differences

Meet the Milieu

Good News

• High Catholic affiliation 90% of surveyed confirmed young adult Catholics identify themselves as CATHOLIC!

• What else did they say: • Sacraments and devotion to Mary are essential to Catholic faith • Most consider themselves spiritual, pray regularly, and support the Church’s social mission

Meet them where they are?

 Eclipsed – other things are more important This group is not angry but disengaged Theology on Tap Model World Wide Web  Private- intentional about prayer alone Go out in nature Adoration  Ecumenical- differences make no sense Go to local big box church Marriage issues Questions about salvation

Bacik & Reese Classifications

Meet them where they are?



Evangelical –

“Zeal for your house will consume me” –Psalm 69  Strong, challenging & relevant preaching  good music – praise & worship  Mix of community & contemplation 

Sacramental –

important Sacraments are  Christ Centered tradition

Meet them where they are?

 Prophetic – Social Justice & Service are key  Mission trips – Alternative Spring Break  JVC, AmeriCorps and more  Communal – Party people in young adult circles  Social networking for dating  Retreats, socials, parties, prayer groups

Meet a need

 To connect young adults with Jesus Christ  To connect young adults to the Church  To connect young adults to the Mission of the Church  To connect young adults with their Peer Community (From Sons and Daughters of the Light)

Meet the vision



Parishes need to be young adult responsive in all their ministries. Every parish ministry—

Liturgy Education Justice Sacraments Baptismal Preparation Service Faith formation Pastoral care RCIA Marriage preparation

—needs to welcome young adults and address their spiritual hungers

( Young Adult Works, Center for Ministry Development )

In the walls

• Young adults at Mass, but not registered • Marriage Preparation • Baptismal Classes • Lectors • Extra-ordinary Ministers of Holy Communion • Sports teams • RCIA • Adult Confirmation • Parents of younger children in parish or public school



Starbucks, Spot, Happy Hour



Gyms



Looking to volunteer

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Connected on the web



In College or not in college



Young moms

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Brides to be

What are young adults looking for?

Spiritual direction To learn more about the faith Retreats Service Mission Trips A place to call home A chance to meet other Catholics

Brainstorm, Assess, Name Brainstorm: Who are the young adults known to you?

Assess: Successes & Growing Edges Name: How can we move forward?

Meeting Jesus continues…

Choose Christ so that in each moment of your life -- whether happy or difficult - you will have the interior certainty that he sustains you with the grace and power of the Holy Spirit.” – Benedict XVI to youth pilgrims to Lednica (June 2009)

Acknowledgements

Catholics on Call, www.catholicsoncall.org

Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate, http://cara.georgetown.edu

“Young Adult Catholics in the Context of Other Generations: Living with Diversity, Seeking Service, Waiting to be Welcomed,” 2000 Hayes, Mike. Googling God: Landscapes of People in their 20’s & 30’s, Mahwah, Paulist Press, 2007.

Marston, Carm . Founder and president of Generational Insight (www.marstoncomm.com) and author of Motivating the “What’s In It For Me?” Workforce: Manage Across the Generational Divide and Increase Profits (Wiley, 2007) Resources for Young Adults, Archdiocese of Baltimore www.archbalt.org

Young Adult Works, Center for Ministry Development, 1997 Sons and Daughters of the Light, 1997.

Questions, Comments, Resources

Gregory Coogan Young Adult Ministry Coordinator The Diocese of Buffalo Department of Youth & Young Adult Ministry w. 716-847-8789 [email protected]