Youth and Young Adult Ministry Office
8421 - 101 Avenue, Edmonton, AB, T6A 0L1
ph. 469-1010 ext.238 fax (780) 465-3003

Contact - Andrew Papenbrock
email: youth@edmontoncatholic-church.com
email: yam@edmontoncatholic-church.com
YAM Website - http://yam.edmontoncatholic-church.com/

Youth ministry is as old as the teachings of Christ. Paul knew of the special gifts Timothy possessed, and how he would use them for the glory of God. Although Timothy was young, he was none-the-less called by God to serve God's people and build a community of believers.

Just as Paul was called to minister to Timothy, and serve as an advocate for him, so are we called to minister to, and advocate on behalf of the youth in our parishes today. Young people are not the Church of Tomorrow. Youth are essential members of the church today.

The vision of Youth Ministry is that it is the response of the Christian community to the needs of young people. Youth Ministry attempts to foster their development as Catholic Christians and to draw them into responsible participation in the life, mission and ministry of the Church. To fulfill this vision, Comprehensive Youth Ministry has 3 goals:

• To foster the total personal and spiritual growth of each person.
• To draw young people to responsible participation in the life, mission and work of the faith community.
• Empowers young people to become disciples of Jesus Christ who witness to their faith and work for justice, peace and human dignity.

Using 8 components of Youth Ministry to achieve these goals and the to meet the needs of young people. These components are:

• Advocacy - recognizing the need of young people and working on their behalf to change policies or to change ways of thinking while also empowering young people to speak out
• Catechesis - directing and helping young people to actively better understand their Catholic faith, the teachings of the church and the scriptures
• Community Life - offering social activities, in various settings, young people can develop relationships that will help them in their faith journey and their life journey. Promotes greater involvement in parish life
• Evangelization - encouraging young people to develop a unique relationship with Jesus and to continue to proclaim His message
• Justice and Service - giving an opportunity for young people to become aware of the needs in their communities and to build a social consciousness and empowers them to act
• Leadership Development - preparing young people (and adults) to lead in schools, the community and in the church by connecting with families and schools to produce responsible members of the community
• Pastoral Care - promoting the idea of prevention in the lives of young people and offering guidance to those people in need and providing support and guidance for young people and families in need while drawing from the strengths of the members of the community
• Prayer and Worship - giving the opportunity for young people to develop a strong and meaningful prayer life through youth ministered masses, prayer services, reflection, and by participating in the sacraments

The Youth Ministry Office

This office is a resource centre where youth ministry materials can be accessed to help develop and maintain youth ministry in your parish or setting. We offer training for people who minister to youth.

We supplement your parish ministry by organizing Archdiocesan-wide events like the Archdiocesan Youth Rally, which are open to all young people.

We are a member of the Western Canadian Association of Youth Ministers (WCACYM) to remain in contact with many other ministry coordinators across Western Canada and also to share ideas and resources

We work with you to organize an event you may want to put on.

We will come to your parish or organization to promote youth ministry and to do presentations on youth ministry to Pastoral Councils, parishioners, etc.