Youth Ministry

For information contact ccox@lwangacenter.org

Confirmation
Preparation classes for the Sacrament of Confirmation are conducted from October to May of each year. In accordance with Archdiocesan guidelines, students in grades 7 through 12 are eligible. The experience is offered to any youth who is a member of our sponsoring parishes. Through this collaboration, the teens build community while sharing in their spiritual journey toward a personal faith commitment to the Church and exploring God’s word for themselves. This gives teens an opportunity to work together “outside the box” with their peers. Upon completion of the sessions, bonds are formed that encourage them to participate in future activities both within and beyond their parish boundaries.

Living the Life is the process of preparation for the Sacrament of Confirmation. Candidates journey through the following periods:

During the Period of Invitation, one reviews their past and current experience of faith and various beliefs and practices.

During the Period of Formation, one carefully considers Jesus, who he was and is, his proclamation of the Kingdom of God, his central teachings and values, his death on the cross and the event that made sense of it, his Resurrection.

During the Period of Reflection, one grapples with and explores the implications of: Am I ready to make a commitment to Jesus and his Gospel as a fully initiated member of the Catholic Christian Community? This period provides the information and a solid foundation on which to finally decide to embrace Confirmation.

During the Period of Mission one lives out their life as a fully committed member of the Catholic Christian Community.

Fallible Human Beings
Fallible Human Beings (FHB) was created as a direct response to a group of high school teens that were seeking a strengthening of their spirituality. Many were looking for a greater understanding of how they could cope with the pressures of their teenage years and keep God as their center. This is a collaborative venture with the Sisters of St. Joseph and the St. Charles Lwanga Center. The teens explore their faith monthly through retreat experiences, field trips that expose them to lay and vocational possibilities, personal sharing of the heart, community service projects and prayer experiences.

KUJENGA
KUJENGA is an African American Catholic Youth Leadership Conference. It is a weekend experience designed specifically to meet the needs of African American high school youth. It helps develop them into viable and productive members of their families, schools, churches and communities. Throughout the weekend, participants learn and practice leadership skills and express their motivation to achieve their goals. Methods of training include presentations, personal and spiritual experiences, professional training techniques, and small and large group activities and workshops. The Lwanga KUJENGA Scholarship Fund was established in Oct. 4, 2002 by our original facilitator, Mr. Andrew Thuita, in memory of his wife, Mrs. Donna Thuita.

KUJENGA VII was held September 26-28, 2008 at the Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows in Belleville, Illinois. For more information on KUJENGA VIII contact Corliss Cox at 314.367.7929, ext. 14 or ccox@lwangacenter.org.

The photos displayed are moments captured during the St. Charles Lwanga Center KUJENGA VII African American Catholic Youth Leadership Conference. The conference was held at the Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows on the weekend of September 26 - 28, 2008. This year's theme was I Am the Image of God. The primary focus of the conference is leadership, spirituality and self-identity.

During the conference the teens

identified how God is present is in their daily lives. The photo on the right shows the teens brainstorming who and what are/are not their Images of God in their community, family, schools, and lives. The photo on the lower left shows the teens serving as the Image of God for a friend. They learn to ask another for what they need to make it through difficult times. Responsibilities do come with being the Image of God for another.

Nine Shining Light Honorees were chosen. This recognition is presented to individuals that exemplified outstanding leadership qualities throughout the conference and their peers choose them. The honorees are: Brianna Isom-Brummer, Martilla Davis, Kendall Goodwin, Elysha Kellin, Daija Loggins, DeAnna Nash, Krista Pulley, Candace White and Floyd Wilson.