Being a Catholic youth is more than just attending Mass and participating in formal prayers. Youth, like all Catholics, are challenged to make time for God in their lives. And like VanBerkum, finding creative ways to make time for God can make it easier for youth to fit Him into their busy lives.

The Internet can be one useful tool for this cause, said Friar Rick Riccioli, pastor at Toronto’s St. Bonaventure Church.

Riccioli suggests prayer-focused web sites to help youth pray. His favourite is a blog called Sacred Space, run by the Jesuits of Ireland.

“We invite you to make a ‘Sacred Space’ in your day, and spend 10 minutes, praying here and now, as you sit at your computer, with the help of on-screen guidance and Scripture chosen specially every day,” reads the web site’s homepage.

“It’s a great place to go, not so much to learn about prayer, but to pray,” said Riccioli. “This is especially useful when we are so busy. We so often can make time for Facebook, e-mails and text messages and this site makes it possible to pray at work, at school or even on the bus.”

Although the Internet can be useful, Riccioli urges individuals to exercise caution.

“One of the saddest aspects of Catholic blogs and sites online is that they… sometimes reflect extremes of either liberal or conservative visions of the Church.”

Riccioli said to keep in mind that just because a blog claims to be Catholic, it doesn’t always mean it is.

Youth can also make time for God by listening to music, such as praise and worship music and Gregorian chant, but also contemporary music, said John Dawson, program co-ordinator and music director at the Office of Catholic Youth of the archdiocese of Toronto.

“It’s a fun search,” said Dawson with regard to finding music that orients oneself towards God. “Any music can point you there. It’s really what you do with it.”

Dawson said that listening to music can be a way to get into a prayerful state and out of the madness of the day, but to keep in mind that music is not a substitute for prayer or for God.

Recognizing God’s presence in creation by exploring nature is another way that youth can fit God into their daily routine.

Faith Connections, a ministry for young adults run by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Toronto, holds a Hike and Prayer series that allows young people to find God through physical and spiritual activity. It provides youth with the opportunity to get away from the noise of society and to reflect, just like getting into nature on your own.

Kelly Bourke, the interim program director of Faith Connections, said, “The (Hike and Prayer) series is an attempt to enjoy the gifts of hiking, the outdoors, the activity and the relaxed social setting, but also to create a greater depth in the experience of these things through integrated prayer and reflection.”

Elizabeth Pietrantonio, founder of the youth group at St. Francis of Assisi parish in Mississauga, Ont., said that regardless of the way youth make time for God, they must recognize God’s presence in their lives and the lives of others.

“I think the most important way is to make time to experience Jesus: those moments of reflection before you go on the Internet, before you explore nature and before you listen to music. If you don’t have the reflection, you are just exploring and just listening,” said Pietrantonio. “If you reflect, then you explore and hear with your heart. Jesus sits right down beside you and you can hear His whispers.”

(Gagliano, 20, is a life sciences student at the University of Toronto.)