National Catholic Young Adult Ministry Association
The mission of the National Catholic Young Adult Ministry Association (NCYAMA)
is to drive excellence and growth in the ministry to and evangelization
of young adults in their late teens, twenties, and thirties, married and
single, in the Catholic Church. They help parishes and dioceses
create a bridge from an adolescent appreciation of the Church to a
fully-integrated adult experience of faith. They do this by developing
resources for, providing ministry training of, and networking those who
minister to and work with young adults in parishes, dioceses, and
Catholic organizations across the country.. Web:
www.ncyama.org
Busted Halo
BustedHalo is a Catholic-influenced online magazine for spiritual
seekers with articles, podcasts and blogs on entertainment, politics,
culture, relationships and more. Find some great resources for prayer,
relationship help, or just faith-based perspectives on the hottest thing
in culture or entertainment. If you haven't given it a look (or a
look lately), check it out! Web:
www.bustedhalo.com
Pray-As-You-Go
Pray-as-you-go is a free daily prayer
session designed for use on your portable MP3 players, to help you pray
while traveling to and from work, study, etc. It is not a 'Thought for
the Day', a sermon or a bible-study, but rather a framework for your own
prayer. Lasting between 10 and 13 minutes, it combines music, scripture
and some questions for reflection. The aim is to help you to
become more
aware of God's presence in your life
listen to and reflect on God's word
grow in your relationship with God.
It is produced by
Jesuit Media Initiatives, with material written by a number of British
Jesuits and other experts in the spirituality of St. Ignatius of Loyola.
Although the content is different every day, it keeps the same basic
format. Visit pray-as-you-go.org for more information and to get started
today!
Web:
pray-as-you-go.org/
U.S. Catholic Magazine Online
Published by the Claretians, U.S. Catholic
Magazine has a website that often contains articles of interest to young
lay peoplem including comtemporary issues on the Church and culture.
Web:
www.uscatholic.org
Creighton University Online Ministries
This is the online ministry of the Jesuits at Creighton
University. At this site, you can make an entire 9-month Ignatian
retreat online with different helps to prayer for each week (including a
meditative photo to set as your "wallpaper of the week"). Or you can
pray the Stations of the Cross, read daily reflections, or consult
resources on spirituality and justice, or go through an audio retreat to
download to your i-pod or MP3 player. Web:
www.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/online.html
Once Catholic
This site is run by St. Anthony Messenger Press as an outreach to those
who grew up Catholic and may have drifted away or left in hurt or anger.
The site is divided into rooms for those with different experiences
(divorce, post-abortion, felt excluded). You can send your own comments,
stories and questions to the room, and a pastoral minister will respond
by posting your message on the site and writing back to you. This is a
chance to gain some guidance, prayer, resources and understanding from
pastoral ministers and others on the journey. Webwww.oncecatholic.org
VisionGuide
This is the online site of the annual
religious discernment guide, Vision. At this site you will find help on
how to discern a religious vocation, information on various options and
links to virtually every religious order in existence. Web:
www.visionguide.org (also
see our vocations page)
BOOKS
Sons and Daughters of the Light: A Pastoral
Plan for Ministry with Young Adults, USCCB (1996), available
from Archdiocese Office of Youth and Young Adult Ministry for $10.00.
Virtual Faith: The Irreverent
Spiritual Quest of Generation X by Tom Beaudoin (New York:
Jossey-Bass, 1998).
The Basic Guide to Young Adult
Ministry by John C. Cusick and Katherine DeVries (Maryknoll,
N.Y.: Orbis Books, 2000
Young Adult Catholics: Religion
in a Culture of Choice by Dean R. Hoge et al. (Notre Dame,
IN: University of Notre Dame Press, 2001).
Millennials Rising: The Next
Great Generation by Neil Howe and William Strauss (New York,
Vintage Books, 2000).
Doing What Comes Naturally:
Jobs, Career and Vocation (part of the Crossings Series for
Young Adults) by Mary Anne Reese (Denver: Living the Good News, 1998).
God Moments : Why Faith Really
Matters to a New Generation by Jeremy Langford (Maryknoll:
Orbis Books, 2001).
Leadership for Life:
Discovering Your Gifts for Christian Leadership (a practical
guide for young adults) by Michael Paulin, et al. (Naugatuck: Center for
Ministry Development, 1997).
Young Adult Works
(Naugatuck: Center for Ministry Development, 1997). 4-volume binders
with programming resources and bibliography for young adult ministry.
The New Faithful: Why Young
Adults Are Embracing Christian Orthodoxy by Colleen Carroll
(Chicago: Loyola Press, 2002).
American Catholics: Gender,
Generation, and Commitment by William D’Antonio, James D.
Davidson, Dean Hoge, Katherine Meyer. (Alta Mira Books, 2001).
Stages of Faith: The Psychology of Human
Development and the Quest for Meaning by James W. Fowler
(New York: Harper Collins, 1981).
Losing Your Religion, Finding Your Faith:
Spirituality for Young Adults by Brett C. Hoover (Mahwah,
NJ: Paulist Press, 1998).
Reconstructing Catholicism by Robert Ludwig
(New York: Crossroad, 1995).
The Critical Years: The Young Adult Search for
a Faith to Live By by Sharon Parks (San Francisco: Harper &
Row, 1986).
Baby Busters: The
Disilliusioned Generation by George Barna (Northfield Pub.,
1994).
ARTICLES
"Refracting the Light: The Broad Spectrum of Young Adult Catholics"
by Mary Anne Reese in Sept. 22, 2003 issue of America (at
www.americamagazine.org)
"ELIMI-DATED:
Why Can't the Church and Young Singles Hook Up" by Renee M.
LaReau, U.S.Catholic, Feb. 2003 (at
www.uscatholic.org)
“Beginning Afresh: Gen-X Catholics” by Tom Beaudoin, America,
Nov. 21, 1998.
“Why
Young Adults Need Ignatian Spirituality” by Timothy P. Muldoon,
America, February 26, 2001.
“Young
Adult Catholics: Conservative? Alienated? Suspicious?” by Dean
Hoge et. al, America, March 27, 1999.
“Young
Adult Ministry: A Pastor’s Take” by Rev. Daniel Danielson,
Initiative Report (Catholic Common Ground Initiative), Vol. 5, No. 3,
September, 2001.
"Young
Adult Ministry" by Brett C. Hoover, Church, Vol. 18, No. 1
(Spring 2002): 48-53.
New Theology Review, Vol. 11, No. 1 (Feb 1998). Entire issue devoted to
Young Adults in the Church. See especially James D. Davidson,
"The Post Vatican II Catholics" and Allen
M. Gustafson, "Generation X: Its Challenges and
Possibilities."
VOLUNTEERING INFORMATION
(see also our volunteer page
for local opportunities)
Catholic Network of Volunteer Service
Catholic Network of Volunteer Service: Connecting Full-time Volunteers
with Christian Member Programs. The website boasts that "Opportunities
abound to share your talents and gifts for a week, a month, a year or
more - in the U.S. or in over 80 countries worldwide.
Web: www.cnvs.org
Mercy Volunteers
Mercy Volunteer Corps is a program of the
Sisters of Mercy of the Americas that invites women and men to a year or
two of full-time service with people who are economically poor or
marginalized. Volunteers commit to compassionate service, a simple
lifestyle in community, and spiritual growth. Web:
www.mercyvolunteers.org
Pallotti Center
This site provides information about lay volunteer service opportunities
in Church-based programs through colleges, campus ministry centers, high
schools, parishes, and other groups interested in lay ministry. They
distribute free of charge copies of Connections to anyone interested in
opportunities to serve actively in Church ministry. The Connections
directory guides prospective volunteers through a series of discernment
questions and evaluation as to which volunteer program may be best for
them. Staff members at the Pallotti Center work with prospective
volunteers to explore their personal strengths and weaknesses, talents,
interests, personal and professional goals and objectives. Referrals to
volunteer programs are made based on an individual's preference and the
criteria of the programs. Staff members work with potential volunteers
as much as possible to provide information and answer questions.
Web:
www.pallotticenter.org
