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spring 2010

Demystifying the Acronyms of Youth Formation:
What is Rite 13? What is J2A? What is YAC?

by John Herring

There was a time the Episcopal Church, and we at All Saints’, understood Confirmation as the final act of baptism, after which children who had reached the alleged “age of reason” were admitted to communion. Under this rationale, 6th graders were taught the church year, the creeds and Lord’s Prayer, parts of the catechism and were duly presented to the bishop. Often this became, in effect, graduation from Sunday school and for many, the end of faith development. With liturgical renewal in the second half of the 20th century we began to see confirmation being offered at more developmentally appropriate ages and taught at All Saints’ and elsewhere as “ordination to the laity.” Baptism admits us to communion. Confirmation is the sacramental empowering of the Holy Spirit for ministry.

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Even after liturgical renewal many churches continued to use dated materials and courses, and continued to confirm their youth at an early age. This continued the cycle of diminishing involvement in our churches by our youth. Many churches, including All Saints’, were aware of this problem and began to think of ways to break that cycle and also reflect the theological shift about Confirmation.

In response, we at All Saints’ would not search for the mythical “pied piper” youth program. Rather, we wanted a parish owned, comprehensive series of offerings by which our youth could grow in faith. As a result, we offer Sunday Night Live (our version of the traditional Sunday night youth group), choir, scouting, the acolyte ministry, service projects and mission trips, among other opportunities. We reach many of our youth through these ministries and each of these ministries contributes to the faith development of our youth. Furthermore, we changed our approach to Sunday school and Confirmation, implementing a program called Journey to Adulthood.

The Journey to Adulthood curriculum is a comprehensive six-year program. There are three separate classes within the program. They are: Rite 13, Journey to Adulthood (J2A), and Young Adults in the Church (YAC). This can get confusing, but if one thought about Journey to Adulthood as an organization, it would look like this:

Journey to Adulthood Curriculum

Each course has its purpose. Furthermore, each teenager has time to develop and make an adult decision as to whether he or she desires to be confirmed. Therefore, Confirmation in does not take place until the end of one’s sophomore year in high school. In addition to Confirmation, there are other milestones in this curriculum. They are: the Rite 13 Liturgy, the J2A Pilgrimage, and involvement in lay ministry for our YACs. The result of moving Confirmation and allowing the YACs to participate in ministry is the increased involvement by our youth in our Church. In addition, the courses foster a gradual, thought provoking formation process that challenges our youth to learn the catholic faith, to think about and understand their individual faith trajectories and to learn how to articulate matters of faith confidently in a pluralistic world. Each course is part of this gradual process, with each year building towards the next. Here is how:

Rite 13 and the Rite 13 Liturgy (7th and 8th Grade)

Rite 13 is a foundational class that is part of an overall catechesis suitable for Confirmation. It is a two-year course that focuses on self, spirituality, society and sexuality. When we say sexuality, we mean the gifts associated with the process of maturing into men and women and how God fits into our lives around those gifts. The classes are meant to encourage discussion and activity. One week the students might be engaged in a discussion about the Rite of Reconciliation. The next week the students might be tracing and coloring each other on large sheets of blank newsprint and discussing self images and truths about themselves and about God.

Though we no longer offer the sacrament of Confirmation to our children at the age of 12 or 13, there is still a major rite of passage for our youth, through the Rite 13 liturgy. In this liturgy, which we celebrate two times each year, we acknowledge our new teenagers are changing and growing into adults. We affirm this change and offer our support as parents, peers and church community. We promise to be present for our youth during their years of change.

Journey to Adulthood (J2A), including Confirmation and Pilgrimage (9th and 10th Grade)

The focus of this class is to prepare our youth for Confirmation and participation in the life of our adult Church community and to help our youth learn about our faith heritage. As in our Rite 13 class, the J2A youth focus on areas of self, society, sexuality and spirituality. In addition the lesson plans are geared towards helping our youth acquire skills for functioning in an adult community, such as active listening, assertion, leadership, and partnership. Each week the lesson plans change, in order to address the variety of ways that different people learn. Some classes are activity based, others are discussion based. One week they may be engaged in role playing. The next week they may be discussing civil disobedience. As with Rite 13, all of the lesson plans are rooted in scripture.

In addition, we have a traditional Confirmation Class curriculum built into our J2A curriculum. During the 10th grade year, all of our clergy participate in providing catechesis about the bible, church history, the sacraments, the creeds, and the Book of Common Prayer. The clergy-led classes, combined with the Rite 13 and J2A courses, give our youth a comprehensive education about the catholic faith, and what it means to make an affirmation of faith. In other words, after Rite 13 and J2A, all of our young people should understand what it means to graduate into lay ministry, and can, therefore, make an informed decision about their own faith lives. So far, an overwhelming majority of those participating in J2A have chosen confirmation, rather than choosing against it. However, those who have opted not to be confirmed have made thoughtful informed decisions. These decisions were made with integrity.

Because J2A prepares our youth for participation in the life of the adult church community, it concludes with the J2A Pilgrimage. The pilgrimage is an optional component of the J2A curriculum. However, it is a very powerful component in the overall spiritual development of our young adults. This is not a tourist trip. It is intentional, spiritual and holy travel. Our students discern and choose a spiritual destination during their first year in J2A. They spend time throughout the course of the following year reflecting on that decision and preparing for their spiritual odyssey. Pilgrims from All Saints’ have gone to Brazil, Scotland, Greece, and Ecuador. This year, our pilgrims will travel to Spain and for 5 days, up to 15 miles a day on the Camino de Santiago, a traditional pilgrimage route that has been traversed by Christians and non-Christians since the Middle Ages. Our pilgrims travel with journals, bibles, and their own copies of the Book of Common Prayer. Each day they spend time in prayer and reflection. The chaperons lead meditations. The students spend time reflecting on those mediations and writing in their journals. Each evening the group spends time discussing spiritual topics. Every evening comes to a close with student-led Compline, a form of prayer found in the BCP. The pilgrimage is a very intentional program, designed to help our students unplug, build relationships with their peers and spend time with God, discerning what God is doing in each of their lives. There is no doubt that those who go on pilgrimage return changed in many ways. In addition, they return well prepared to participate in the life of our Parish through ministry.

Young Adults in the Church (YAC)

The YAC class has three components, discernment, ministry, and preparation for adult living beyond high school. Our young adults are ready for the next step in their spiritual lives, participating as active members in our church community. Though many of our young adults have already participated in ministries, such as acolytes and youth choir, they are encouraged to participate in new ways. Therefore, they spend the first portion of this class in the classroom, discerning their gifts and which ministries they may best serve with them. After spending time in discernment, our YACs spend over a year in active ministry here at All Saints’. You may notice some of them already. They are serving as Lectors, Intercessors and Eucharistic Ministers. Others are helping to teach our sixth grade Sunday school. Others participate in the Children’s Formation program, or serve on the Flower and Altar Guilds. These are some, not all, of the ministries open to them. Through this class, our young adults acquire real life experience. Therefore, when they move on to life beyond All Saints’ as adults outside of their childhood homes, they will be walking into their new churches with confidence, knowing that they can function as ministers in their Church.

The final component for our Young Adults is both sad and joyful. Our young adults return to the classroom for their last semester. They use this time to start preparing for life beyond All Saints’, life beyond their homes. They spend time discussing what their lives might look like, spiritually. They discuss what spiritual practices they might take with them as they leave their home. Furthermore, they spend time thinking and talking as adults, about current events, the impact of those events and appropriate practical and spiritual responses.

By the end of the second year of YAC, our young adults have finished six years of a comprehensive program. They have had opportunities for ministry, and fellowship through a host of offerings. They have spent considerable time in faith discussions with their peers and their adult leaders. Those who participate in this program are well equipped to enter a pluralistic society, and engage in matters of faith with confidence.

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