St. John Bosco Parish

Life Teen Youth Ministry 2015-2016

Fall Semester Themes:

Into the Deep Guys/Girls Only

Life Teen Fall Kickoff

  • Life Teen Girls Kickoff "Ladies Afternoon Tea"

Tea at the Poage home. Dress it up with "fascinators" for everyone! Women need Christian fellowship with one another, both as peers and mentors. We can choose to use femininity to build one another up or tear each other down. Scripture provides strong models of loving and healthy friendships between women. Ex. Leah/Rachel, Naomi/Ruth, Mary/Martha, Mary/Elizabeth

  • Life Teen Guys Kickoff "Challenge Accepted"

Lake games at the Michalak home. Boys and boats; friends, food, and fellowship. Virtuous men not only pursue what is good, their virtuous actions lead toward holiness. All human virtues are grouped around the four cardinal virtues: prudence, temperance, fortitude, and justice. Men of prudence keep eternity in mind with every decision they make. We support each other and hold each other accountable.

Life Teen Life Nights(First half Fall semester, 4 sessions each)

  • Curriculum Guide:Into the Deep: Girls Only explores the four different relationships that a woman experiences: the relationship with God, with other women, with men, and with society and culture.

Micro book by Kyle Heimann: A Manly Perspective: A Lady's Guide To Guys

  1. Men and women are different. Our physical bodies are obviously different. Our testosterone and estrogen levels are different. Even the way we communicate is different.
  2. Equal in dignity? Yes. The same? Hardly.
  • Curriculum Guide:Into the Deep Guys Only explores the four cardinal virtues. Each session offers a teaching on how the virtues of prudence, justice, fortitude, and temperance help strengthen authentic masculinity.

Micro book by Kyle Heimann: Choosing the Right Urinal: A Man's Guide to Life

  1. Men, imagine that you are in a stadium and you go to the restroom. When you walk in the door, you are faced with an important decision and you have to act quickly. The challenge is choosing the right urinal.
  2. Designed to question the decisions you make on a daily basis, this micro book uses metaphors like this to explain vocations.

Holy Heroes: The Saints (2nd half Fall semester, 6 sessions)

Life Night "Wholly Yours: The Church is Holy"

Create Super Hero Masks & watch video clip from the movie Wreck It Ralph "Bad-Anon." What does it mean to be 'holy.' This Night helps teens gain a better understanding of what we mean, in the Nicene Creed, when we profess the Church as Holy (One, Holy, Catholic, Apostolic). God is the source of all holiness and is perfectly holy. We are all called to a life of holiness, and we have been given the Church as a means to become saints!

Life Night "Extended Family: Feast of All Saints"

Saint Trivia Game. The saints have an important role in our Church. Their lives give us examples of living holiness and their prayers constantly care for us on earth. All Saints' Day and other memorials of saints remind us that the Church on earth is linked with the Church in heaven. Everyone is called to be a saint. Saints aren't 'boring'; they lived incredible lives of heroism, adventure, and joy!

Life Night "One Direction: Communion of Saints"

Play the game 'Birdie on a Perch.'What do we mean when we profess that we believe in the 'Communion of Saints' in the Apostles' Creed? The teens will discover the role they play in the Communion of Saints and how we can call upon our brothers and sisters in heaven to intercede for us. The Communion of Saints includes the saints already in heaven, but it also includes those who are on their way to heaven and are in Purgatory, and those of us still on earth. There are 3 states of the Church. We on earth arePilgrims or The Church Militant, those in Purgatory are The Church Suffering, and those in heaven are The Church Triumphant. We are called to follow Jesus through the Church which He has established.

Life Night "Heroes: the Witness of Saints and Martyrs & the Purpose of Sacrifice and Suffering"

Show the video clip Ordinary Sainthood; the first-person perspective of two teenage saints. This Night helps teens understand why suffering, sacrifice, and even death is an important part of the lives of saints. Saints are ordinary people who have accepted the extraordinary call of following Christ. Small groups rotate through 5 teaching tables - The Rebel (St. Augustine), The Super-Mom (St. Gianna Molla), Mamma's Boy (St. Maximilian Kolbe), The Scholar (St. Thomas Aquinas), and The Tomboy (St. Joan of Arc).

Life Night "Top of the Mornin': Saint Patrick"

Saint Patrick Trivia Game. The teens will better understand the life of Saint Patrick; born in Scotland to a wealthy family, Roman citizens, and living in Britain. At age 14, he was kidnapped by pirates, brought to Ireland, and forced into slavery. Through constant prayer and extreme trust in God's plan, Saint Patrick escaped, returned to Britain, studied theology, became a bishop, and returned to Ireland to convert the pagans. Saint Patrick is a perfect example of how to live a saintly life, through a commitment to prayer, participation in the sacraments, and trust/obedience to God and His Church. With God's help, our own sainthood is possible!

Life Night "Sanctified: HOLY - One of the Four Marks of the Church"

The teens explore the reality that the Church is 'holy;' not because of the members of the Church, but because of Christ. Sanctifying Grace heals human nature that has been wounded by sin and gives us a share in God's life. It IS what makes us 'perfect;' makes us 'holy.' How do we get Sanctifying Grace? By cooperating with the grace found in the sacraments of the Church. The saints are examples of those who allowed God's grace to transform their lives into something great. The Virgin Mary is the ultimate example because she was totally open to God's plan for her life. She said, "Yes." Will you?

Spring Semester Theme:

"Victorious" Curriculum Guide on Spiritual Warfare

Life Night "The Alpha & the Omega: Victory in Christ"

VIP 'All Access Passes' are given to teens as they enter the Oscar Victory Party! Play "Name That Movie" guessing the movie after a quotation from the movie is read. This Life Night expresses the incredible victory that Christ won over sin and death. Teens will celebrate this victory and be challenged to view suffering in their lives through the lens of Christ’s Resurrection. No matter what our semester topics reveal this spring, on the Reality of Evil or the Spiritual Battle, we know that Christ has already won heaven for us.

Life Night "Battle Lines: the Fall of Humanity"

Apple foods for an Apple-themed Life Night. Play an Apple Matching Game. Our world is fallen and we feel the effects of original sin when we experience conflict, sin, suffering, and evil. God did not abandon us, but He saved us through Jesus Christ. Jesus has won the ultimate victory over sin and death, but we still face a battle where we must choose to follow Christ or disobey God through our sins. Our hearts are a battleground between good and evil, sin and grace. There is mercy to help us when we stumble and fall. Jesus is the divine physician. We can be healed and made whole. "We should be able to decide what we think is right and wrong" is the oldest lie in the history of the world and the "wages of sin is death." (Romans 6:23)

Life Night "The Fallen Ones: Satan and Demons"

Enter the Darkness and Despair Room; a.k.a. the storage room, for a video clip depicting a dramatization of one story from C.S. Lewis' The Screwtape Letters. "The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he doesn't exist." (Charles Baudelaireparaphrased). Many think Satan and demonic beings are merely concepts or outdated doctrine. In fact, Satan and demonic beings are part of invisible creation, are in the modern world today, and these spiritual entities desire our destruction and death. They work to steal us away from Christ by causing us to sin. We must always avoid 'doorways' to sin. God loves us, wants to make us NEW, and works for our good so that we will live eternally with Him. We are powerfully protected in Christ by the angels, especially our guardian angels, and the saints.

Life Night "Armor and Angels: Sacraments, Angels, & St. Michael"

Warrior Games: Noodle jousting, Spear Throwing, and Archery practice. The sacraments, especially the sacraments of Eucharist and Reconciliation, are our armor against the attacks of the devil. Teens are challenged to begin a routine of prayer. Demons tremble at the presence of Christ; this regularly happened throughout Sacred Scripture. Jesus cast out demons, and so when we receive the Eucharist frequently we bring the presence of Christ with us. A person who does not receive the Eucharist at least once each week, in a state of grace, is not as well protected as they should be. Saint Michael the Archangel (Matthew Brennen) visits our youth group to tell us in person about his role as warrior and protector for God.

Life Night "The Battlefield: Forming a Battle Plan for Spiritual Warfare"

Boot Camp Games: Prayer Preparedness, Strength in Numbers, Find Your Enemy. This battle began when our first parents, deceived by the devil, disobeyed God. Christ redeemed the world and offers us mercy and grace. Even though the war is decided, there are battles still being fought. The devil, envious of humanity, seeks to destroy and ruin as many lives as he can. His goal is to keep us from heaven.When formulating a spiritual plan for engaging in this battle we must know our battlefields. These are the places where we are likely to be open to spiritual attack, where temptation exists, or where our faith is challenged. By having a good plan – knowing where we will encounter attack, and preparing for it in prayer – we will be ready when the opportunity to be courageous presents itself.

Life Night "Love Wins: Evangelization"

Play the Evangelism Game and watch the video clip The Love Mission ( How can we live out love in between Sundays?Evangelizing is not just a suggestion for the extraverts in the world, it's a MANDATE from Jesus for all of us; an order, a commission, a directive with the authority to carry out the action! Look at it this way, if there was a war going on in your town, and YOU knew how your family and friends could be protected from the enemy, wouldn't you want to tell everyone?! We are in a spiritual war! Christ will return, there will be a final judgment, and a new heaven and earth. How can a teen evangelize? Go in numbers, be bold, be authentic, share the reason for your hope (1 Peter 3:15), and love people better.

Life Night "King: Christ the King"

Royal Pictionary Competition & Oxymoron Guessing Game. Paradoxes are found throughout Scripture. Christ is not the typical king who uses His power for His own interests, but a good king who cares for the needs of others. Following our own will is a 'comfortable prison.' The teens are challenged to find true freedom in obedience to His authority. We sacrifice our will out of love for God. In fact, obedience is our obligation and duty; a moral virtue that inclines our will to comply with the will of another who has the right to command it. Giving honor, respect, and gratitude is easier when we follow the 10 Commandments and the Precepts of the Church. Jesus was the ultimate example of obedience unto death.

Life Teen "Graduation Mass"

We celebrate seven of our seniors at the Graduation Mass this year. This fall, all 7 of our graduates will attend college. We are reminded of three things:

1) Ask Difficult Questions

  • Asking the toughest questions about the Church, in a spirit of charity, is not an act of defiance, but an act of love. You will never be able to own your faith until you explore the difficult questions for yourself and find the satisfying explanations that resonate with you personally. Find a knowledgeable Catholic mentor in the faith and plug into a Catholic community on your campus.

2) Don't Miss Mass

  • Jesus intends for us to encounter Him in an amazing sunset, in our relationships with friends and family, in the face of the poor, and in other ways we find listed in the Scriptures. But there is one way that He calls us to encounter Him that is above all others and that is through the Eucharist. The Mass prepares us to encounter Christ, reveals Him uniquely to us, and transforms our lives by giving us the grace to face all of the challenging temptations, life decisions, and emotional ups and downs that go along with the college experience. Missing Mass is a slippery slope.

3) Be Intentional

  • Campus environments are saturated with things to keep students busy: organizations, athletics, concerts, parties, and - well - studying. These can crowd the sacraments right out of your schedule. And, guess what? Did you know one-in-three couples meet their spouses in college? If you prioritize the sacraments, that will put you in contact with others who share your values and your goals in life. Being intentional increases the likelihood of meeting someone without mixed priorities that can cause tension later on?

Life Teen "Annual End of Year Bonfire" Games, friends, and grilled hot dogs; isn't that what summertime is all about? Our retreat space is the best place to celebrate the end of the school year. We now look forward to the summer programming events.