On January 8, I attended a Youth Minister meeting with 10 youth ministers from different parishes in the San Francisco Archdiocese. The purpose of this meeting was to check in with different youth groups to share new ideas and create solutions for problems that one youth minister might be facing. First, we discussed whether the confirmation program should be two years or one year. The ministers came to a consensus that the youth should be in the program for two years to experience and learn more about their faith to hopefully have them continue their faith journey after they are confirmed. I also inputted that, through my experience, having confirmation in 7th and 8th grade gave me more years to be involved in youth group after I was confirmed. Next, one of the minster said she was struggling with growing her youth group. The group and I came up with a number of solutions, such as having an involved support group of adults to help the youth minister nurture the talents of the youth, encourage the parents to continue their faith to guide their children to do the same, and empower the youth that are willing to join youth group so that they can invite other youth to join. The main message the group discussed was having the support of people in the church, such as the pastor, parents, and other adults to nurture and encourage the youth. Finally, we talked about different activities and ideas to teach the youth about the Catholic faith. They talked about how interactive activities that connect to religion work the best to get youth out of their comfort and learn about faith in unexpected ways. This meeting gave me great information on the work of a youth minister.
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