YOUTH SERVICES
12December2011


Youth Services

YOUTH MINISTRY IN THE PROVINCE
A Brief Report by the Provincial Youth Pastoral Team (PYPT)

INTRODUCTION

The Provincial Youth Pastoral Team of the Salesian Province of New Delhi consists of the following members.

1. Youth Pastoral Delegate – (Fr. Joe Arimpoor)
2. Coordinator of Education and Culture (Fr. Michael Peedikayil)
3. Coordinator for Evangelization and Catechesis (Fr. A.U. Thomas)
4. Coordinator for Vocation Orientation and Guidance (Fr. Bijoy Parackal)
5. Coordinator for Groups and Movements (Fr. Davis Maniparamben).

This core team had five meetings during the past academic year. Each meeting had a special focus for reflection and study in addition to the regular topics of the agenda. The special themes were

1.  Vocation Discernment Policy (July 2007)
2.  PAL’s Meet (September)
3.  a.) World Youth Day b.) Evangelization & Catechesis (November)
4.  Review of the functioning of the EPCC and SEPP in the communities (February 2008)
5.  Proposals for the coming year to enhance the functioning of Youth Ministry in the Province (May 2008)

INSIGHTS FROM OUR STUDY AND REFELCTION

1. The coordination between the Provincial Youth Pastoral Team (PYPT) and the Provincial Council has to be enhanced.
2. Planning and functioning of the sub-commissions of the Youth Pastoral and the Youth Pastoral Team. Eg. Study and review of the various themes and issues of the sub commissions and their regular reporting. The results of such studies made available to the Provincial council for better planning of Youth Ministry in the Province.
3. The communities need further help for forming and setting up of EPCCs and drawing up EPPs.
4. Vocations to Religious/Priestly/Salesian life to be the fruit of our youth ministry in our various settings of the communities of our province.
5. Youth Ministry really achieves its goal when every young person discovers and develops his/her “vocation” in life. (a culture of vocation)
6. To strengthen our YAR settings and our outreach ministries with adequate Youth Pastoral Planning and ministry.
7. There is an urgent need for making our Salesian Youth Spirituality available to the young of our settings and the Salesians accompanying the youth in living it out in their daily lives.
8. We need a new mind set and new initiatives in furthering the idea of Salesian Voluntary Service in our province.
9. Giving a more specific Salesian slant to our Parish ministry, where we pay greater attention to the Youth and accompany them specially in their Christian growth.

PROPOSALS

Based on these insights we have made a few proposals for the coming year.

1. To assist the local communities in forming and setting up of EPCCs and their effective functioning.
2. To accompany the communities in drawing up the SEPP for the year.
3. To organize workshops for “Group Growers” to promote Groups in the Province especially ‘Bosco Kids, Bosco Teens and Bosco Youth’.
4. To organize workshops on “Counselling and Guidance” in view of strengthening this ministry/service in our settings.
5. To organize a seminar on Evangelization both to study the Word of God (Year of the Word of God -2008) and to search for more creative and relevant ways of re-launching this charismatic ministry of ours.
6. To conduct a workshop on translating the CBCI – Catholic Education Policy into action in our Educational Institutions academic and technical.

Fr. Joe Arimpoor sdb
Youth Pastoral Delegate
Presented to Meeting of the Rectors and Leaders of Communities
Province of New Delhi. 20th July, 2008


Provincial Speaks

The Province of Good Shepherd, New Delhi, has completed just 11 years. Our strength is 14 regular houses and 10 presences with 160 confreres. The geographical area under our care is very vast : 12 states and one Union Territory, where the youth in significant numbers are illiterate and poor, and the total Catholic population is a mere 0.4% that is 2 million.

We are aware that, with our present limited human and material resources, we may not be able to reach out to big numbers, but, as mother Teresa would say, we believe that, though we are but a drop in the ocean, still, if that drop is not there, the ocean is not full. We do wish to make a difference where we are present by being ‘Salt and Light’. We interpret the location of the Provincial House in the capital of the nation as a God-given exposure demanding great vocational responsibility. We feel indeed like the biblical ‘city on the mountain tip’ called to bear witness to Don Bosco and his spirit in an authentic way.