Seminarians’ summer assignment involves outreach

Eight seminarians from the Diocese of Corpus Christi are living out their pastoral summer assignments by accompanying parish youth ministers, volunteers, and teens in growing a personal relationship with Christ. The assignment includes hands-on small group ministry to teens.

Bishop Michael Mulvey sent seminarians (two-by-two) to serve four local parishes, some on the periphery of the diocese, based on the example set by Jesus with his apostles. The seminarians, youth ministers, and volunteers have been implementing a diocesan program, “Evangelizing Young People, Formation & Practicum for Seminarians” initiated by the diocese and crafted by former Youth Director Zachary Everett. 

During these ten weeks, which began June 1 and will end July 31, the eight seminarians meet with youth ministers and volunteers every Wednesday using GoToMeeting. They are presented with a topic and participate in open dialogue. They are essentially running a small group in relational ministry. 

The seminarians and parishes participating in this diocesan program are: Michael Golla and Raymond Pendleton assigned to Father Paul Hesse at St. Pius X Parish; Luis Lozano, Jr. and Jim Craig assigned to Father Bill Marquis at Our Lady of Refuge Parish in Refugio; Ruben Riojas and Matthew Perales assigned to Father Chris Becerra at St. Joseph Parish in Alice; and Carlos De La Rosa and Javier Palacios, Jr. assigned to Father Raju Thottankara at St. Peter the Apostle Parish in Calallen.

The first topic for discussion was: “The importance of prayer. Praying with and for your teens,” presented by St. Philip the Apostle Youth Minister Mary Maldonado. Maldonado defined prayer as “a response to the Holy Spirit prompting. I keep it very simple,” she said. Giving her testimony, she spoke on the different ways she learned to pray and her own experience with different prayer groups. “Any good formation must include prayer,” Everett added.

The second topic, “How to conduct a small group,” presented by Birgit Oberhofer, a campus youth minister from Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi, offered many insights and related her experiences working in small groups. Her talk included the origin of small group ministry based on Christian theology, psychological benefits of small groups in relational ministry, and Pope Francis’ call in “Joy of the Gospel,” to accompany people, become close, and offer friendship. 

The third topic, “Who are we called to minister to and what is their lived reality?” was presented by Everett. His talk described generational differences in today’s youth versus that of his generation, the millennials. One example includes the rise of ‘nones’ – those who consider themselves unaffiliated with any religion. “Youth ministry is hard; it’s difficult; it is challenging. We have to push each other out of our comfort zone,” he said. “We need to meet them [youth] where they’re at.”

In addition to these topics, future summer topics for small group ministry formation include: “How to proclaim the Gospel to teens and adults;” “The art of not answering questions;” “Common difficulties for small groups;” “Integrating service and community into your small group;” and “Beyond small groups.”

Also, in the adult small group formation, each seminarian, accompanied by an adult volunteer, is responsible for conducting his own small group of four to six high school teens. Part of their ministry is to help recruit, train, and mentor these adult leaders from the parish, who will hopefully continue this small-group youth ministry after the men have returned to seminary. 

Each parish will choose the curriculum they prefer (i.e., Life teen, Focus, ALPHA, etc.). With the help of the volunteer adults, they will prepare the sessions, including questions, for the teens. 

Depending on the situation of the pandemic and the comfort level of the parents and pastor, each group may decide to meet either in person or virtually – it’s up to the parish. 

Besides the youth ministry practicum, the eight seminarians also participate in weekly on-line formation in the areas of evangelization and discipleship. The seminarians meet virtually with Vocation Director Bob Cummings using Sherry Weddell’s “Forming Intentional Disciples.” Topics include “How to Evangelize” and “How to help people have a relationship with Christ.”