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Integrating Youth and Young Adults
The Youth Ministry Division is a part of the Education and Youth Department. It is responsible for spearheading programmes that will prepare our youth through fellowship, teaching and discipleship for worship, ministry and evangelism so that they may live abundant lives in Christ.
OUR MISSION
We believe that all Youth and Young Adults within the Diocese, having been admitted to the family of God’s Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church through the sacrament of Baptism, are integral to its growth and development.
We further assert that because ‘Youth’ is a stage that is accompanied by change, uncertainty and dynamism, the Diocese of Jamaica through its Youth Department and related groups and organizations, will at all times seek to affirm the image of God in all Youth/Young Adults regardless of social class, status and/ethnicity.
These ideals will be promoted at all levels within the diocesan structure so that from the Synod to the Local Congregations, Youth and Young Adults will be welcomed and embraced in a spirit of love and mutual respect.
OUR OBJECTIVES
- To provide opportunities for fellowship and to give creative expression to faith in Jesus Christ
- To develop and promote the use of God given talents in the service of the church
- To encourage and promote through prayer and study a greater awareness of Kingdom values in living exemplary lives as demonstrated by Jesus Christ
- To foster and encourage growth in love and unity within the body of Christ
- To develop a holistic approach that will integrate the cultural, social and spiritual life of young people and encourage them to engage in wholesome social activity that is guided by their faith
- To provide a forum for discussion of issues that are critical to the social, moral, psychological and spiritual development of youth and young adults.
YOUTH RALLY
Traditionally held on the third Saturday in November, the annual Youth Rally is a landmark and eagerly anticipated event. It brings youth and young adults from across the Diocese together for a day of worship, fellowship, and Christian teaching, as well as a variety of competitions which provides added spice to the event.
A Diocesan Youth Rally is organized every three years and it allows participants to make and renew friendships with their peers from different parts of the island.
In 2009, the Diocesan Rally was held in July to coincide with the Opening Service for the Provincial Youth Gathering which was hosted in this Diocese. It was a day that will long be remembered.
ACHIEVING OUR MISSION
The Youth Ministry Division works with the Education and Youth Department Directors and staff along with Deanery Youth Coordinators (1 per Deanery), Youth Advisors (1) and Chaplains to achieve our objectives. This team of resource persons is supported by the wider family of the Church, both lay and ordained members.
Within this Division, the fellowship group that remains a strong staple is the Anglican Youth Fellowship (AYF), which seeks to meet the needs of persons between the ages of 12 – 25.
For persons over 25 years old, the Young Adults Fellowship provides a forum for continued spiritual growth and fellowship within the Church. Active Young Adult Fellowship groups currently exist in the following congregations:
- Church of the Reconciliation, Portmore – Canon Charles Manderson
- Christ Church, Port Antonio –
- St. James Parish Church, Montego Bay – The Venerable Justin Nembhard, Rector
- St. Matthew’s Claremont –
- St. Andrew Parish Church, Half Way Tree – The Rev. Canon Sirrano Kitson, Rector
If you are interested in forming a Young Adult Group at your church, please let us know!
The Youth Ministry Division also organizes camps, retreats, training sessions, days of fellowship, and the well-established and popular Annual Youth Rally to facilitate spiritual nurturing and meet the social needs of the Youth within our church.
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