Preliminary Considerations:
Youth and Young Adult Ministry includes all those from 13-35.  Over a
ten-year period this includes a large segment of our population.  In
2011, those at the older end of this group today will then be 45 years
old.  Those entering their teens in 2011 are only 3 years old at the
present moment.  This population includes, the Hispanic,
English-speaking, Native America, Black and Asian-Pacific communities,
but many subdivisions as well.  In the next ten years these groups and
their specific needs may vary.  This population includes rsidents,
migrants, and those here temporarily as students, military personnel and
their dependents, tourists and those incarcerated within our diocesan
department and many ecumenical or secular organizations as well.

The basic vision we share is that articulated in A Vision of Youth
Ministry (USCC, 1976) Sons and Daughters of the Light:  A Pastoral Plan
for Ministry with Young Adults (NCCB, 1996) and Renewing the Vision:
A Framework for Catholic Youth Ministry (NCCB, 1997).  These documents
are key to understanding current youth and young adult ministry in the
United States.  The bishops' documents on specific groups (immigrants,
the handicapped, the poor, ethnic minorities, etc.) with members in this
age range should also be considered as valuable resources.

We do not view youth and young adult ministry as a church within a
church or a parish within a parish.  We do see it as an integrated
response of the parish and diocese to needs of its young.  We see it as
a team of youth and adults working at integrating the young people in
their geographic area into all aspects of parish and diocesan life.
What makes for good youth and young adult ministry, makes for a vibrant
parish and diocese as well.  We are looking for healthy youth and young
adult ministry within healthy parishes, deaneries and the diocese at
large.

The diocese recognizes that youth are best served at the level closest
to their real life situations.  The primary focus of youth and young
adult ministry is within the parish setting (or in exceptional cases, on
an inter-parish basis).  The diocese supports the efforts of those
working in the local churches through opportunities for professional
training and certification, mutual support and networking, mentoring and
spiritual development.

Vision for Youth and Young Adults in the Diocese of Monterey in 2011:

There will be a wide variety of joyful, vibrant parish based, age
appropriate youth and young adult programs, for the diverse linguistic
and ethnic groups in the diocese.  These comprehensive programs will
serve youth from their early teens through mid thirties, and be staffed
by teams of competent, trained local adults who have gone through our
own parish youth and young adult programs.  These teams will be a
combination of salaried, stipended, and volunteer staff.

The programs offered will address the whole person:  intellectually,
spiritually, psychologically, physically, morally, socially, in age
appropriate ways.  They will be rooted in the local parish community,
and enable the youth and young adults to grow in leadership and service
within the parish and wider community.

The programs will enable the young people to be incorporated into the
full life of the local church, to put down roots in the parish and its
various ministries, rather than as a segregated entity.  Through
cooperation and collaboration with intergeneration parish groups, the
youth and young adults will feel an integral part of the parish
community, and see their contribuation of time and effort appreciated
and acknowledged by the larger parish community.

The youth and young adults of our diocese will be dedicated to living
for others.  Their care and concern will be fostered by service
components in our confirmation program and high school social justice
classes.  These meaningful experieneces will lead our young people to
long term involvement in address the needs of the elderly, the infirmed,
the homeless, the poor, the new arrivals, the migrants, the Native
American population and others.  Rather than putting in hours, there
will be mentoring opportunities for them with trained, committed adults.

There will be age apporpriate spiritual retreats for both our junior and
senior high school students as well as for various segments of the 18-35
year old bracket.  The young people themselves will be an active part in
the planning and evaluation of these experiences, as well as part of the
well-trained teams making them possible to parish or inter-parish
groups.

The parish youth ministry teams will work in close collaboration with
clergy, religious and other lay parish leaders who have also grown up in
the diocese and been part of the various parish programs.

There will be parish junior and senior high school youth ministry in
every parish of the diocese.  There will be centers of young adult
ministry in each deanery, as well as on each of our college campuses.

Our young adults parents need safe, healthy, nurturing environments for
their children and our teens places where they can practice and grow in
their own leadership skills.  After school programs supervised by
qualified adults in our centers answer the needs of parents, teens, and
smaller children.  These programs will offer artistic, athletic, social
and spiritual components.

The various parishes will network with each other on both the deanery
and diocesan level, sharing their experiences and enriching one another.

The youth and young adults will be visibly present in the various
liturgical ministries of the parish at large, as well as in diocesan
funcations and celebrations.

The youth and young adults will be active members of the parish and
diocesan governance, not only adding input and perspecitve, but also
accepting ownership and committing to the furtherance of our common
mission.

There will be advisory boards of youth and young adults actively
involved in the planning and assessment of parish, deanery and diocesan
programs.

The young adults who have gone through our youth and young adult
programs will be active in the life and governance of both the parishes
and the diocese.  Child-care will also be available for those wishing to
take part in parish life and ministry, especially those involving
specific training.

The young adults, who have been or are a part of our programs will be
involved in knowledgeable ecumenical dialogue, championing Catholic
concerns in the media, and involved in joint service ventures with other
faiths.

The young adults who have been or are a part of our programs will be
outstanding Christian witnesses in education, politics, medicine, law,
business, and labor.

The youth and young adults of our diocese will raise a strong Catholic
voice advocating for the needs of youth in the cities and counties of
the diocese, as well as on a state and national level.

The underlying spirit of these programs will be that of Francis de Sales
who championed the spirituality of the everyday person in everyday
life.  The age appropriate approach of John Bosco will guide us in
implementing this.

Vision for the Diocesan Office of Faith Formation of Youth and Young
Adults in 2011:

The diocesan office is primarily the "keeper of the dream," keeping this
vision alive with the clergy, the parish youth and young adult ministry
teams, and the other departments of the diocese.

The diocesan office will offer members of parish youth and young adult
ministry teams opportunities for professional training and
certification, mutual support and networking, mentoring and spiritual
development.

The diocesan office will advocate for various issues that may arise
effecting youth and young adults.  The office will network with other
groups and organizations in the church and the community in addressing
these issues and marking resources available to those working on the
parish level.

The diocesan office will have a part-time "special events coordinator"
to handle deanery and diocesan wide events as well as the National
Catholic Youth Conference and World Youth Day, both of which will be
heavily attended by our parish youth and young adults.

Plan for the First Year:

Sharing the Vision

The first step in making thise vision a reality is to share this
vision.  For it to succeed it needs the backing and support of the
pastors, diocesan directors, parish councils, and especially the young
people themselves.

Networking

There are already individuals and groups working well in the diocese, in
social action, spiritual formation, liturgical training, vocation
awareness, faith sharing, and the like.  It is important to create an
intergeneration bridge between these programs and the youth and young
adults.

Training

Training for the youth and young adult ministry teams is always
important.

In Youth Ministry:
The entry-level training will be quarterly, both north and south, using
the "Youth Ministry Training Veideos" series.  Core team training
(YouthLeader) will be held in July, for both youth and adult parish
leaders.  A two-year, eight-weekend certification program in youth
ministry studies will be offered as advanced training for adult youth
leaders.

In Young Adult Ministry:
The diocese will explore a national pilot project in young adult
ministry training.

In Hispanic Ministry:
On going leadership development by the Associate Director for Hispanic
Youth and Young Adult Ministry will continue.  Links to RECOSS (Region
Eleven Committee of Spanish Speaking) and "Fe y Vida" as a training
tools will be explored.

Other commitments:

The diocese will cosponsor a retreat for adults involved in youth
ministry at Villa Maria del Mar, Santa Cruz, January 18-20, 2002.

The diocese will send youth and young adults to the National Catholic
Youth Congress "Hope at the Crossroads" in Indianapolis, Indiana,
December 2001, and to World Youth Day in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, July
2002.

These three steps, sharing the vision, networking with other parish and
diocesan groups, and training personnel, should be reviewed by May 24,
2002.  At that time, adaptations will be made and new priorities
addressed.

(revised April 6, 2001; approved April 30, 2001)