Amazing Catechists

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Meet Two Teens who use Social Media to Evangelize

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There are a few strong voices in the world of Teen Catholic Social Media. I recently had the privilege of interviewing two of them for an article on Catechist.com, Jimmy Reynolds, @litcatholicmemes on Instagram and Peter Burleigh of @Jesufex (Young Catholics) on Twitter. I wanted to share some of the insights they shared with me.

Why did you start your page?

I wanted to start this page because I wanted to try to be a part of something where I could reach a large number of people and show them the faith. I loved seeing memes on Instagram, and I felt like there weren’t that many new Catholic memes being made, just a few old ones that got passed around a lot. I had a few ideas, so I decided to start a page. Now a year later, the ideas haven’t really stopped.
Jimmy R.

I always wrote down anything I thought to be interesting—perhaps a bit too meticulously. One day I realized that other people would probably want to hear what I’m hearing. After a bit of prayer and discernment (because it would not be a small commitment if there were an audience—I would be responsible if I led people the wrong way) I set up the account late one night. Then, whenever I got a hint of truth about the world or some whisper in prayer I shared it. It was always something basic: asking prayers for a friend, noting that God shows His love through making the sun rise every day, and perhaps a few Bible quotes. Over the years my knowledge of the Church and spirituality increased (a bit faster than I would have liked) and so I found that I never ran out of material to share. I love listening to talks and podcasts and so the small things I can wring out I hope to make a difference in the lives of people who follow me. Over time it has become easier to say more with fewer characters, suggesting bigger ideas with the same limit. Not that I’m a rock star at tweeting, but I go for that; I think it makes a difference when people are forced to stop and think about what I’m saying rather than get a message they’ve already heard. The last thing I want is to tweet platitudes.
Peter B.

What is the Goal of your page in terms of evangelization and catechesis?

They [other teens] don’t consider investing any time in the Church, because that’s not the lifestyle they wanna live. S,o I am hoping that by running my page, I can show people that you can live a life devoted to Christ, and still enjoy life here on earth, as that will ultimately lead you to the fulfillment of life in Heaven.
Jimmy R.

Young people are thirsting for real connection and faith that demands they change their lives. They don’t want a voice online telling them to frequent confession [that] only makes a difference in the world of the Internet. People change their lives more often through what they hear in person rather than what they read online. And this is an unfortunate difficulty because the amount [number] of solid parishes out there are too few. Young people want something more, but they don’t know how to go about finding it; in person is what hits hardest, but online is much easier. I think once we have the understanding that one voice amongst a million others is not going to do it. I think things like YouTube channels and other subscription programs (where a person is more isolated and has to go out of their way to pay attention) are effective; I think well-written blogs are effective, as are songs. If you want to be heard, go to the tower and not the market place. For those who want, my favorite resources are…Ascension Presents (YouTube), @emwilss (Instagram), @FrMatthewLC (Twitter), and definitely “The Crunch” and “Pints With Aquinas” Catholic podcasts.
Peter B.

What else do you want others to know?

I never would have thought I could make this many [memes], and it is truly a testament of God working and inspiring me with so many ideas. As long as He inspires me, I will keep making more. All glory to God.
Jimmy R.

Stick close to the Sacraments. Frequent Mass as often as you can; carpe those graces. Get cleaned up in reconciliation at least once a month. Keep close with the friends who lift you up. Spend time with your family as much as they annoy you. Look at beautiful things. Most importantly, disconnect from the Internet as often as possible so you’re in every moment of your own life. Never take yourself so seriously that you can’t laugh at yourself. The glory of God is man fully alive.
Peter B.

(C)2017

Should Catholic Kids Unplug?

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I try to prepare myself for the tech requests of my kids: Ipods, Ipads, cell phones, laptops….and of course the newest video games and DVDs. In a world where you need to be tech savvy or at least technologically literate, I struggle with the limits to set on some of these devices and influences.

As I have struggled to raise seven kids and a foster son, I have come to some conclusions about the tech world. First, I can’t avoid it. We can limit television, computers and music, but they are everywhere and so is access to them. Second, all my children react differently to the limits placed on them and some will (horror of horrors) disobey me at times. There, I admitted it. I have raised six to adulthood, two more are close behind and I couldn’t do it perfectly. Yup….. I home schooled for years, took them to church, gave them (what I hoped was) a good example, but sometimes they disobeyed anyway.

Social media can also provide a positive tool for some children! One of my kids has a mild form of autism. Social sites helped her to connect in a non-threatening way with some of her peers. This gave her the confidence to interact more freely in person. Another daughter of mine uses her page to promote messages of chastity and a pro-life world view. We do not need to be out of the social media sites, just not negatively influenced by them.

So, with these things in mind, I have a few ideas to help parents and youth ministers tackle these difficult subjects.

1/ Don’t be too rigid. Experience has taught me that when I draw a line in the sand my children will be challenged to cross it. Rather than not having a television, we all watch things together. Instead of saying you can’t watch a particular movie, we may pre-screen it or watch it together and critique it at the end. This becomes a valuable tool for both the young adults and ourselves. They have an environment in which they are getting the benefit of our knowledge and wisdom and we know what they are drawn to watch. As our children have become adults we hope that they will make good choices and this way we can still have some influence over the things they choose.

2/ Help them to become media literate. Often times, information is presented through media purposefully confusing or even imitating truth. Most teens need help sorting this out. Teaching them how commercials are influencing them, or how movies will say, “This movie is based on actual events,” even when it is not, will help discern truth as they discover media. We can teach them critical thinking skills and give them information on websites that critique and rate movies and games for their offensive content.

3/ Join in. Many teens will use a friend’s computer to have a social networking website if they are not allowed one at home. (i.e. Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat etc.) A better tactic might be to allow them to have one on your computer, but keep the computer in an open, family space and require that you have their password. Another idea is to have your own social media and become ‘friends’ with your kids and with their friends. You would be amazed at how much information your teen or other teens will reveal about themselves on a social networking site.

4/ Teach them safety rules. Teens often don’t realize the long-term ramifications of their actions. Consider hosting an in-service on internet safety. Discuss how predators use the internet, how info they post can follow them into job interviews and future relationships. A quick web search will reveal stories of how social media has negatively impacted someone’s life or safety.

Discuss how simple information can provide information that may violate their privacy and compromise safety. For example, a school sport’s picture with their Jersey number can be used to locate a teen. If you have any doubts about how easy it is to gain info, ask any teenage girl how she can locate a guy she has only seen once and even when she doesn’t know his name!

Encourage kids to leave off location services on their mobile devices when using wi-fi, especially in free hotspots. These services advertise where an individual can be found and when.

5/ Discuss being connected. Kids often disconnect their real life behavior from their internet behavior, song choices or movie choices. I know great Catholic kids who listen to violent music about killing and sex. They don’t think the lyrics affect their thinking process. Other teens will go to horribly offensive movies (either highly violent or sexual in nature), still others have fantasy lives on the internet.

Spending time talking about how these things can change thinking and even personalities, may help them discern what things to allow into their own lives.
*If you watch a sadistic, violent movie for two hours, can you really be the same person when you come out of the theater that you were going in?
*If a boy respects women, can he tolerate lyrics that objectify or reflect violence against women?
Opening this type of dialogue will help young people to create an informed conscience. God bless!
Copyright 2015

Happy Halloween for Tweens and Teens

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PumpkinThe teen years can be tricky around Halloween. Perhaps your students are feeling a little old for trick-or-treating, but a little young for some of the adult themed parties. Giving this time of year a new meaning can help students to celebrate this month, while still enjoying themselves.

1. Have a Saint party. Everyone dresses up as their favorite Saint and learns a little bit about them to share. Play 20 questions to figure out who is representing what Saint.

2. Write letters to someone who has lost a loved one this year. People naturally think of Christmas as a tough time for people who are grieving, but I know from personal experience (my brother died when I was 21 years-old) that Halloween can be even worse. All those images of scary movies, dead people, ghosts and the like can be really disturbing for those who have lost a loved one. This is especially true for those whose loved ones died violently or suddenly. Reaching out to say we care and we are thinking of you can help. A friend stayed all evening with me that first Halloween and I still appreciate it many years later.

3. Encourage students to help with treat-giving at home. Every year my husband and I struggle with who gets to take the little ones trick-or-treating and who stays home to give out candy and protect the house for mischievous makers. Ask your students to consider staying home so parents can take out younger siblings, or volunteering to watch a neighbor’s house so they can take out their children. (Or they could offer to take out younger sibs or younger neighbors so that parents can stay home.)

4. Do the right thing. Talk to students about how defacing property is against God’s commandments. Give them the strength to go against what their peers may be doing (on Halloween night) if it involves hurting someone or their property. Teach them to stand up and say that behavior is not acceptable, even at the risk of getting laughed at.

5. Attend Mass for All Souls Day. Perhaps include all the departed family members and friends of your students in the Mass intentions. Talk to them about praying for the departed, including the poor souls in Purgatory and what the Church teaches on this subject.

6. Discuss the movies that are released this time of year. Investigate with your students whether we should, as Catholics, support movies that glorify murder, mass murder or evil.

7. Have a Happy Halloween!!

(Reprinted from my OSV.com YM column, photo credit to Darya Rosien)

The Struggles and Successes of Young Catholics

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imageRecently, some young twenty-somethings and teens begged me to write about the difficulties of being Catholic at those ages and what could be done about it. After talking with some young adult ministers, young adults and doing some additional research, I recognized some common threads in the struggles and strengths of those who seem to have found a way to maintain their faith.

The Issues:

*Hell! No, really, it is an issue. It seems that in the late teens and early twenties, many people easily accept the idea of heaven, but cannot grasp that a good God who is merciful would ever send anyone to hell. This opens the door to ideas of moral relativism (whatever is good for you is good for you, but what I think is good for me is equally good) or a dismissive attitude towards teachings that are difficult (for example, the Church’s teachings on sexuality). The flip side is that some of these young people do not understand the salvation Christ offers us, thinking instead that they must be ‘perfect’ to be an active member of the Church.

*There is a lack of things for young people to be involved in. Other than youth group, a lot of churches seem to ‘drop the ball’ when it comes to 16-30 year olds. We see a huge drop off in church attendance during those years. Oddly, that age group tends to develop very strong friendship ties during those years outside of the Church. We see young people return to worship after they are married and desire Baptism for their own children.

*Mass just isn’t a priority, especially first thing on Sunday morning after working, studying, or partying the night before. They are tired, hungover, or bored and they don’t see how the Mass is feeding them.

Solutions:

*Hell is real. It is a dogma of the Church and we can’t be afraid to discuss it. Padre Pio once said, “They will very well believe in hell when they get there.” Blessed Richard of St. Anne, the children of Fatima, St. Teresa of Avila and St. Gemma Galgani all had stories of either being taken to hell or shown the suffering there. Helping young people stay connected means being unafraid to take on hard issues or teachings.

*We also need to help young people understand the story of Salvation in a very real way. We need to properly instruct them in the Sacraments, most importantly the Eucharist (which will increase their desire for the Mass) and Confession so that they will realize that there is an ongoing avenue for grace for all of us sinners!

*Our Parishes have to develop and promote activities for our young people to be involved in. St. John Paul II constantly reached out to them, reminding that they are the future of the Church. We need to do the same. We have to recognize the tools and issues our young people are involved in. How do we support young, or unmarried parents? Do we reach out with opportunities for young adults to come to Confession in creative ways? Our parish priest recognized that many teens were at Church for an activity one evening, so he just offered Confession since they were already there. He heard Confessions for almost three hours! We have to think outside the box, or in this case, the Confessional.

*Having a young adult group that spins off the Youth Group is another way to reach out. Sending our high schoolers to programs like LEAD at the Franciscan University of Steubenville, so they can increase their understanding of Church teachings and develop leadership skills, so they have the tools to transition into a young adult group, is one way to accomplish that.

*Offering Masses on Sunday evenings may be another way to reach these very busy young adults. Programs such as LifeTeen offer energetic ways to keep teens and young people engaged in the Mass.

*Mentor programs and accountability partners. One young mother (in her twenties) shared with me, that having someone a little older, well grounded in the teachings of the Church, really helped her get though the tough times. She told me that having someone to talk her through her early marriage days, and having her first couple children was beneficial to her in keeping and practicing her faith.

*PreCana follow ups and reunions. Since many people come back to Church when they seek to be married, we have an opportunity to reach out and continue those relationships after PreCana. This can lead into opportunities to support and mentor, as well.

*Networking. It is easy for Young Catholics to feel like they are the only people out there who feel the way that do. The world is a difficult place to find faith, but networking by using current technologies can help connect young adults who have similar values thus decreasing isolation.

It is vital that we reach out to our younger Catholics in a positive, supportive way, meeting them where they are and addressing their needs. They are our future!! God bless.