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Leadership Opportunity for 8 th – 12 th graders
Our parishes are one of 7 parish communities in NJ selected to participate in NeXt Level, a program of the Center for FaithJustice funded by the Lilly Endowment, which offers a new approach to youth ministry designed to strengthen Catholic parishes. NeXt Level invites youth to discover their gifts and passions in order to create and implement parish-wide projects rooted in the Catholic tradition of service and justice.
3-4 youth from our parishes will be selected* to serve as NeXt Level Youth Delegates. NeXt Level will provide them with a series of social gatherings, interactive retreats, and a weeklong overnight service immersion experience that will allow them to grow as leaders, explore their faith, and pursue service and social justice. In our community, they will implement a project designed by their cohort of youth delegates that will engage members of our parishes across generations. They will be supported through all of this by adult mentors* of our parishes, parish staff, and NeXt Level staff.
*If you are an adult who desires to support our teens in our parishes OR *If you know of a teen who you feel is an excellent fit for this program, please contact Nancy (below).
Their participation in NeXt Level is invaluable to our parishes, and to the Church at large! As Pope Francis said at World Youth Day in Panama, “Dear young people, you are not the future but the now of God.”
Over the next few months we will be announcing which youth will be representing our parishes. They will need your support and prayers, so stay tuned! If you have any questions regarding NeXt Level please contact:
Nancy Lucash at nlucash@stjamespennington.org