YouFra Team Brings Youthful Exuberance
This article originally appeared in the TAU-USA Winter 2019 Issue 99.
By MARY STRONACH, OFS
Ramcy Calleberos, YouFra team member
The afternoon began with an upbeat, music video portraying famous dancers from all generations – all dancing to the pop music, “Uptown Funk,” by Bruno Mars.
Suddenly, the hall exploded in dance which culminated in a congaline with regional ministers, national council, spiritual assistants, observers and guests.
The session, appropriately focusing on youth, maintained the upbeat tone. Br. Scott Slattum, OFM, director of Faith Formation at St. Mary’s Basilica in Phoenix, AZ and spiritual assistant for the recently formed YouFra fraternity at St. Mary’s, announced emphatically, “Youth and Young Adults are not aproblem to be solved, but rather an opportunity to be exposed to the gifts they bring us.”
He addressed obstacles on the “path to faith-sharing” – a neighborhood community of faith-sharing which no longer exists, a “fragmented and mobile” family structure with little or “no religious ethos,” social life that is no longer centered in the church, religious media that has gone out of business as a popular form of entertainment. And “now, CCD is left alone to do everything in at most two hours a week.”
The reality is that “the school instruc- tional model does not work,” he said. But, “the good news is that the church has given us a renewed path,” which, “integrated into a comprehensive of pastoral care,” will address the needs, developmental needs, life transitions and questions being asked.
He described it as the “Emmaus Model,” which is based on building a trusting relationship.
1. To be effective, first, join the people in their daily concerns and walk side- by-side … and listen as we walk.
2. Ask questions and listen as we walk.
3. Share the living word of God.
4. Trust the capacity of prayer and the sacraments.
5. Invite them to live and share the Good News.
Ramcy Caballeros, a YouFra member from the newly formed YouFra Group in Phoenix, emphasized the importance of listening to our youth. We need to learn who are our young adults and what are their needs.
She summarized: Our youth range in age from 12 to 18 and Young Adults from their late teens to 39. At this stage, they are focused on “developing their personal identity”, she said. They want to “develop relationships, how to accul- turate to other cultures” around them, to “develop a meaning of work …and a spiritual life.”
Brother Scott reminded the ministers and guests that YouFra “has to be done in partnership – the animator, the church, the friars and youth – walking side-by-side.”
https://secularfranciscansusa.org/2020/03/09/youfra-team-brings-youthful-exuberance/
New Formation Initiative in the Limelight – National Chapter 2019 Highlights
(This article originally appeared in the Winter 2019 Issue #99 of the TAU-USA and was Highlights of the National Chapter 2019)
National Formation Commission Chair, Diane Menditto, OFS, announced the launching of an “exciting, new” initiative in the USA.
She began by explaining the visioning processes that occurred with formation directors and spiritual assistants from around the country. “Our two Visioning Workshops were part of the listening process and were guided by the Holy Spirit. We are now ready to go further in sharing the outcomes of our visioning.”
“Merely editing and reformatting our formation materials, principally the FUN Manual, was not enough,” she explained. “Essential topics such as prayer, Scripture, our Catholic Faith as expressed in the Creed, Franciscan sources, and chapters dedicated exclusively to the role the Rule and Constitutions play in our daily lives were not included in our current formation texts or manuals.”
While all material used in the past, including the FUN Manual, are the inspiration, resource and background for the new initiative, the new Formation Program would offer comprehensive, fresh and easy-to-read material in easily accessible and manageable bites of information, she said.
The program will consist of:
- Two student manuals, one for the Orientation and Inquiry Stage and one for the Candidacy Stage. Individual chapters will be short, engaging and appropriate for those who are new to our Franciscan family. They will be in color and downloadable by chapter. Chapters will include reflection/discussion questions, activities and ideas for practical application, frequent references to the Rule and Constitutions, and opportunities for deepening one’s spirituality.
- A Formator’s Guide, which will correspond to each chapter and will have tips and ideas for presenting the material and suggestions of other resources.
- A General Guide for Formators at all levels, which will give insights on how to present material, work with adults, and help those in formation to discern their journey and deepen their spirituality.
As the Program develops, the Commission also intends to supply audio visual material to supplement the initial formation experience.
The material will be translated into the major languages spoken by fraternities in the United States.
Many of the chapters from the FUN Manual will be re-written (some by the original authors) to ensure conformity to the new rubrics. The material will be clear and concise.
“Since we are dealing with persons in initial formation, we want the material to INITIATE them into and INTRODUCE them to the Order,” she emphasized. “Rather than filling our candidates with information, our goal is to provide a resource that will assist them in the transformative process and the discernment of their vocation.”
She expects the project to be completed within the next three years.
“We know that good formation is the answer to many of our challenges and will bring strength and joy to the Order.”
(Note: The complete FUN Manual will continue to be available as one of our formation resources.)
— Mary Stronach, OFS
https://secularfranciscansusa.org/2020/03/06/new-formation-initiative-in-the-limelight-national-chapter-2019-highlights/