Florida Catholic | Catholic Youth Ministers Face Challenges In Protestant Region

Catholic connections

Catholic youth ministers face special challenges in a predominantly Protestant region.

AMY FERRARA SMITH | FLORIDA CATHOLIC STAFF

Published: 03.07.08

Larryssa Grimm, Steven Rannals and Joshua Rugnitz of the St. Sylvester youth group in Gulf Breeze call bingo numbers with the assistance of a young helper at a Feb. 23 spaghetti supper at the parish.
AMY FERRARA SMITH | FC

Some of my Catholic friends go to other churches’ youth events because they say they’re more upbeat, but they’re missing out on the biggest part of being Catholic: the Eucharist.” - Molly McCormick

NICEVILLE | Molly McCormick, a youth group member at Christ Our Redeemer Church in Niceville, is responsible for an evangelization chain at the parish. Because of her own passion for Catholicism, she guided a friend and her family back into the church. She then extended her enthusiasm for religion to yet another friend, who also revived her Catholic roots.

Youth minister Sue Marco said this sophomore’s desire to welcome others into the church caught the attention of the teen’s peers. One youth told her, ‘There’s a whole lot of evangelizing going on here.’”

In this way and in numerous other ways, many middle and high schoolers from various parishes have established themselves as integral parts of parish life. The challenge now for youth ministers is to encourage them to continue to live and share their Catholic faith.

Within the diocese, Catholic churches are a minority compared to the large number of Protestant and nondenominational Christian churches, which often host glamorous youth nights at least once weekly.

“Some of my Catholic friends go to other churches’ youth events because they say they’re more upbeat,” said Molly. “But they’re missing out on the biggest part of being Catholic: the Eucharist.”

Diocese of Pensacola-Tallahassee youth director Lisa Kurnik said because Catholics are a minority, local churches should “come together to show the kids that there are other Catholic kids out there.”

Kurnik and Youth Department administrative assistant Cynthia Crisp recently planned, with the help of the youth ministers, the annual Diocesan High School Youth Conference in Sandestin. There, about 450 teenagers from many parishes met to re-energize their faith.

“When the youths attend events such as Youth Rally, National Catholic Youth Conference, Diocesan Youth Conference, Annual Camp Out or the Christian Leadership Institute, they attend with hundreds of thousands of youths who are all on common ground,” said Linda Allen, youth minister at St. Peter Parish in Mary Esther.

Kurnik emphasized, however, that if the local Catholic churches in specific areas would work together to plan regular events for their youth groups, it would be a remarkable opportunity to reach those who may not be keen on attending a national youth event or an all-encompassing diocesan event.

Msgr. Michael Reed, rector of the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart in Pensacola, is proposing just that. Msgr. Reed and other Pensacola-area pastors are working to bring their parish youth groups together at least twice a year for joint activities.

“Some of our youths are going to other Christian churches where they’re experiencing these wonderful things,” said Msgr. Reed. “Why aren’t they experiencing these things here?”

In organizing these citywide parish youth events, the churches would share the costs, including contracting someone to oversee the production.

“A lot of the youths are looking to learn why … we believe what we believe. They are in the development stage and are trying to own their faith for themselves,” said Kurnik. “We have to provide them with a venue. Youth ministry should be that place to search and question. We need to help them search for the answers themselves. … We also need to provide things for the families so (the parents and children) can work together.”

This passion for religion that many young people share today isn’t lost on Marco at Christ Our Redeemer.

“Their desire to be active inspires me,” she said. “They’re asking for more: more knowledge of faith; more spiritual moments. They want to be involved in every aspect of parish life.”

Marco tries to satisfy this yearning by offering youths activities that both teach the faith and promote community awareness. In November, the group participated in a homeless retreat, where high school students slept outside in cardboard boxes to get a sense for how the homeless live. The following day, 35 of them served at a soup kitchen in Fort Walton Beach. There they spent their lunch break hearing homeless persons’ stories and listening to their advice to “stay with this group.”

Under the direction of Youth Minister Colette Moffo, the youth group at St. Sylvester Parish near Tiger Point in Gulf Breeze worked together Feb. 23 to give its community a spaghetti dinner and bingo night. In return, the parish supported the group’s endeavor to raise money for Cove Crest Summer Camp by purchasing 350 dinner tickets.

“Youth group keeps me in touch with Christ,” said 15-year-old Michael Peterson, one of many teenagers helping to serve parishioners at St. Sylvester.

Christian Gorhoske, 13, scanned the crowded room. “We make others happy, so it makes us happy,” he said.

Derek Brown, 13, smiled and jabbed his friend in jest. Then, still smiling, he began to bounce on his feet. “And some of the teachers are pretty cool,” he added.

Barbara Younger at St. Mary Parish in Fort Walton Beach knows how influential youth group can be for preteens and teenagers.

“Jesus didn’t want us to do it alone,” she said.

The size of the parish’s youth group is a testament to this belief. There are 35 middle school students and 100 high schoolers who participate in youth activities, each laying down a foundation for faith and fellowship. Younger knows that when her youth group members eventually graduate, they enter a world where their faith and morals can be challenged by others rather than encouraged. One of her former youth members did “stray and fall down.” But, she said, he realized that his youth group had laid a foundation for his faith. He told Younger that he knew he could come back.

“I tell the kids, if you learn nothing else from me, you better learn to pray,” she said. “You can take that with you.” Then she added, “They really have the power of making a difference.”

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