Catholic Youth Weekend

Welcome to the CATHOLIC YOUTH WEEKEND 2008

 

This year marks a new venture for youth ministry in the Diocese of Springfield. In the past, two annual gatherings of Catholic youth from Western Massachusetts have been held at different times of the year – the Middle School Youth Rally (held for the first time last December) and Diocese Youth Day (held in the spring shortly after Easter). Now both events come together on one weekend that will gather and truly celebrate the young Church of our diocese. HOW EXCITING!!!

Coordinating your local participation in these events is a big job – THANK YOU for taking it on. The information in the CYW Guides and the CYW Materials and Forms will assist you and your parish in taking full advantage of this great opportunity for your young people. Be sure you read through the CYW Guides before you do anything else – there’s nothing worse than being in the middle of something and realize that it could have been done much easier or, worse yet, discovering that you did it the wrong way. Your diligence and attention to detail is especially appreciated in the Registration Process. As always, if you’re confused about any of this, don’t hesitate to contact either Don Boucher (413-452-0822 or donbym@diospringfield.org) or Angel Delgado (413-452-0698 or a.delgado@diospringfield.org) and we’ll be happy to assist you.

One suggestion right up front is to get a small team of people to help you with this. Divide up the responsibilities: planning the publicity, printing of flyers and registration forms, processing registrations, finances, transportation, chaperones, etc. If you do this, you’ll have a much easier and less stressful time with the entire process which, unfortunately, is one of those necessary evils associated with events like this. Again, many hands, coordinated well, make for light work.

Before you get to the materials, here’s a little information on the Middle School Youth Rally, Diocesan Youth Day, the adult-to-youth ratio, and a little bit about the weekend’s theme.

MIDDLE SCHOOL YOUTH RALLY

A great event for 6th-8th graders on Saturday, November 22, 10 AM – 3 PM, at St. Joseph Central Catholic High School, 22 Maplewood Ave., Pittsfield. The day includes great ice breaker games; a great band playing some of the best in contemporary Catholic/Christian youth-focused praise and worship music; two general sessions with Anna Scally, our keynote speaker; lunch; and a great Mass celebrated by Bishop Timothy McDonnell. BONUS: The Mass to be used is the Mass for that Sunday – the feast of Christ, the King. Even though this Mass will take place before 4 PM, Bishop McDonnell has graciously given his permission for this Mass to count for the participants’ Sunday Mass obligation. (In other words, if it helps, you can tell your middle school students that they don’t have to go to Mass again on Sunday.)

Please note that the program begins at 10 AM, and that on-site check-in begins at 9:30 AM (not before). So please plan on arriving between 9:30 and 9:50 AM. Also, be sure that your youth have had something to eat before they arrive as no food is planned for as they arrive.

DIOCESAN YOUTH DAY

A great event for 9th-12th graders on Sunday, November 23, 10 AM – 4 PM, at St. Joseph Central Catholic High School, 22 Maplewood Ave., Pittsfield. The day includes: great ice breaker games; a great band playing some of the best in contemporary Catholic/Christian youth-focused praise and worship music; two general sessions with Anna Scally, our keynote speaker; workshops for youth on issues important to young people; a workshop for adult leaders presented by Anna Scally; lunch; and a great Mass celebrated by Fr. Warren Savage.

Please note that the program begins at 10 AM, and that on-site check-in begins at 9:30 AM (not before). So please plan on arriving between 9:30 and 9:50 AM. Also, be sure that your youth have had something to eat before they arrive as no food is planned for as they arrive.

ADULT TO YOUTH RATIO

An important note right up front about adult chaperones/leaders: The adult to youth ratio for both the Middle School Youth Rally and Diocesan Youth Day is 1 adult for every 8 youth, with a 2 adult minimum. If you’re bringing both male and female teens, you must have at least one male adult and one female adult chaperone. All adults must be in compliance with the diocesan Safe Environment requirements (CORI’ed, trained using the diocesan video, and signed the Diocesan Code of Conduct). For adults that will accompany your teens that are not yet CORI’ed, their CORI’s must be submitted to the diocesan Human Resource Office by October 20th to allow for adequate processing time. Adults who are not in full compliance with diocesan Safe Environment requirements cannot be allowed to attend.

To obtain a CORI Request Form, contact your parish/school/center’s child advocate or go directly to www.diospringfield.org/victimandprev and download the form and instructions.

THE WEEKEND’S THEME

This year’s theme – Return to the King – flows from the readings for the feast of Christ the King. The gospel of the day finds Jesus talking about judgment day. Here we hear the criteria for gaining entrance into heaven to live with God for eternity: feeding the hungry, giving shelter to the homeless, clothing the naked, visiting the sick and imprisoned. We are told that when we did this for the least of our brothers and sisters, we did it for Jesus. Doing this, caring for those who need it the most, is what allows us to attain our eternal reward.

This generation of young people are socially conscious, and they want to make a difference in the world. They are engaged in service, and, for the most part, they enjoy doing it. It makes them feel good about themselves, and many of them feel that this is what human beings are supposed to do for one another. And, to a certain degree, they feel that this is what God wants us to do as well.

But the world in which they – and we – live is filled with conflicting messages. While there are signs of hope all around us, they are often obscured by the evil that is in our world. Sex, drugs, violence, cruelty, war, poverty, greed, and so much more makes it difficult to put first things first in our lives. Societal and cultural messages with which we are bombarded seemingly every moment of the day present us with an image of what it means to be successful, happy, with it, and “in.” Most of these images and messages are totally contrary to the message of Jesus. If believed and followed, they turn us away from the vision Jesus and the Father have of this world. The more we buy in to these, the more we turn away from Jesus who desires nothing more than to be the King of our lives – to keep us safe, protected, holy, pure, and living as the we were created to be.
The Gospel for the feast of Christ the King not only presents us with the criteria by which we will be judged, but also with the vision of the Father for the world. By feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, sheltering the homeless, visiting the sick and imprisoned, we work our way back to and help create the God’s Kingdom – the Reign of God – here on earth. The day’s Gospel calls us to return to the King, to put Him first, to reclaim Jesus as the King of our lives.

This is what we explore throughout each event of Catholic Youth Weekend. Through music, community building, song, prayer, Eucharist, fun and learning, we seek to reclaim, to celebrate and to return to the King of our lives.