Youth Speak News

Editor’s note: This is the winning entry for the Friars’ essay contest.

Acts tells the story of the early Christian Church. However alien the circumstances and cultural milieu were, the example set by the early churches in the second chapter of Acts remains a source of principles for the building of effective Christian communities. Acts 2:42 explains perhaps the most vital of those founding principles: that of spiritual and temporal Christian unity. Both forms of unity are plainly displayed in the verse, and each is a unique expression of Christ’s apparent desire for the communion of all who follow Him on this planet.

Spiritual unity in the Church is an intangible connection between different believers, the basic foundation of the Church’s existence as an institution meant to foster and develop the spiritual connections between its pieces or members.

TORONTO - A group of young adult skaters waited patiently as the Zamboni finished cleaning the ice of the new Colonel Sam Smith Skating Trail in Toronto. It was a mix of sun and cloud with very little wind on this winter day, ideal weather for skating — and also for outdoor reflection.

On Feb. 5, Faith Connections, a ministry for young adults run by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Toronto, held its first ever Skate and Prayer event to provide young adults with the opportunity to slow down with God and enjoy the beauty of winter.

Kelly Bourke, the interim program director with Faith Connections, said the Skate and Prayer event was a spin on Faith Connections’ Hike and Prayer event.

As with Hike and Prayer, it provided young adults with a social, active and reflective or prayer component, said Bourke.

TORONTO - Faith Connections “Soul Food” continues the adventure in food and faith for young adults.

The sequel to the faith-based ecumenical group “Eat, Pray, Share,” which took place last fall, its first of eight sessions begins Feb. 23 and wraps up May 14.  

“I still felt called to offer some kind of group experience where we could continue to grow in faith and also take the group in some new direction based on the feedback,” said facilitator Genevieve Anderson, a high school chaplain with the Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board and former Faith Connections co-ordinator.

Partnering with Faith Connections, the young adult ministry of the Sisters of St. Joseph, Anderson said Soul Food offers participants a chance to understand how food and spirituality are related.  

At each session, different participants will take turns preparing a meal for the group. Cooking teams will be expected to arrive early to arrange each meal. Each session will be based on a spiritual theme, including “solidarity of incarnation” and “social justice.” The group will gather for the main course and will then discuss the session’s topic through prayer and reflection on various Scripture passages, books and articles. After dessert, the session will end with a call to action, in which a particular spiritual or food-related task to complete will be suggested to the group.

As Valentine’s Day approaches, my friends ask me what I’m doing on Feb. 14. They usually ask because they want to share their own plans which usually involve chocolates, small gifts and a romantic dinner with their significant other.

Although this day is exaggerated by retailers, it is safe to say that many young people — Catholics included — put great significance on finding their true love and being in a relationship. Yet how much significance must we put on the relationship we are in as Catholics? How can we put our Catholic faith first?

Nowadays, relationships are too often associated with sex. The media portrays sex as an exciting and fun activity. The more promiscuous you are, the sexier and more wanted you become is the basic message. The modern world seems to have mistaken romance and sex as something that come in a package. Some people justify their actions by saying sex is just part of a healthy relationship.

Toronto - On a cold winter morning, a group of student volunteers from the University of Toronto gathers in the kitchen of St. Basil’s Church to prepare platters of deli meat and cheese sandwiches for those in need. Along with the sandwiches, the soup of the day is red lentil.

These students come from diverse faiths and ethnic backgrounds, but they are all here for the same reason: to help with the Out of the Cold program run by campus ministry at the University of St. Michael’s College, the Catholic college at the University of Toronto.

Every Tuesday, from the beginning of November to the end of March, the Out of the Cold volunteers gather in the parish hall at St. Basil’s, located on campus at St. Michael’s College.

Amanda Mastrocola, one of the head co-ordinators, said the program is possible through the efforts of the volunteers.

“Whatever personal reasons that drive (the student volunteers), they come in every week . . . They work so hard,” said Mastrocola, a fifth-year Christianity and culture and philosophy student. “And getting to know these people is inspiring.”

We all have role models, albeit some more positive than others.  Maybe we strive to be just like our favourite athlete or singer. Others may be inspired by someone who has a career in a field that they’re hoping to get into one day. But we also have spiritual role models: people who live out what it means to be Catholic in their everyday lives.

The lives of the saints are excellent examples. Yet, there are other examples too. For me, one of my most influential spiritual role models is my grandmother.  She was the one who introduced me to the rosary, the saints and even The Catholic Register. She is also an excellent role model in the way she acts because she is proud of her faith. She is friendly, cheerful and always willing to lend an ear when I need it. She does not judge.

WASHINGTON - Students from Our Lady Seat of Wisdom Academy in Barry’s Bay, Ont., joined an estimated 400,000 American pro-lifers at the annual March for Life in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 24.

Organized by the pro-life group at the Catholic liberal arts college, 20 students and three staff attended the march and opening prayer vigil Mass held at the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception.

“We walked, prayed the Rosary, prayed the Divine Mercy Chaplet and sang chants,” said second-year student Kathleen Dunn, president of the school’s pro-life group. “It was really amazing to be a part of it.”

The annual march marks the anniversary of the Roe vs. Wade decision on Jan. 22, 1973, which legalized abortion in the United States.

MONTREAL - Planning a weekend trip to Montreal, there was one place I really wanted to visit: Notre Dame Basilica. While I had been to St. Joseph’s Oratory before, I never had the opportunity to visit the world famous Notre Dame in Old Montreal. I was expecting it to be beautiful.

But stepping through the doors, what I saw surpassed all my expectations.

The high altar, a very tall backdrop, looked like a small city itself — an intricate structure which seemed to wind all the way up to the ceiling.

Blue and yellow lights illuminated various parts of its magnificent construction, with statues of saints surrounding Jesus, along with built-in choir stalls designed in the 1870s by Montreal architect Victor Bourgeau.

As Catholics, we are called to understand and respect different religious beliefs and practices. Throughout my life, I have been immersed in my Catholic faith but knew very little about other religions in our society. That’s why I was excited about the world religions class that every Grade 11 student at a Catholic high school in Ontario must take.

In class, we learned about the practices, customs and beliefs of Hinduism, Sikhism, Buddhism, Islam and Judaism. The more I learned about other religions, the more I started to see the social misconceptions about different religions, such as the social stigma of baptized Sikhs wearing a kirpan at all times. Many people are concerned about Sikhs wearing this ceremonial dagger, when in reality kirpans are a symbol of non-violence and are only to be used in emergency situations to defend victims of crime.

Mississauga, Ont. - Most Catholic youth would agree that church is the place to be on Sunday mornings. But for more than a dozen Catholic teens at Merciful Redeemer parish in Mississauga, Ont., church is the place to be on Friday and Saturday nights.

The parish is one of 1,200 around the world that offers the Life Teen program and one of 500 parishes offering a program called Edge.

Both are parish-based youth ministry programs designed to help youth learn more about their Catholic faith and develop a deeper relationship with God.

Life Teen is for students in Grades 9 to 12 while the Edge program targets students in Grades 6 to 8.

Similar programs, Life Teen discusses more mature topics and has more of a focus on discussion and activities as opposed to games and skits.

Jobin Puthuparampil, a Grade 12 student at St Aloysius Gonzaga Secondary School, attends Life Teen because it is a place to ask and discuss a wide range of topics, including the core philosophical teachings of the Church.