PROVIDENCE — On Wednesday, April 13, close to 300 youth ministers, catechists, pastors, parents and teenagers gathered in the cathedral hall to address an issue of major concern to the Church at the first diocesan Post-Confirmation Summit. Participants exchanged thoughts on why an alarmingly large number of Catholic youth cease to practice their faith after receiving the sacrament of confirmation and developed suggestions on what can be done to engage these youth and bring them back to the Church.
“People are taking this very seriously and are clearly concerned with engaging young people after the sacrament,” said Louise Dussault, director of youth ministry for the Diocese of Providence. “This is an awesome opportunity to form the future ministry of the Church towards young people.”
According to research conducted by The Dynamic Catholic Institute, 85 percent of young Catholics stop actively engaging in their faith after receiving the sacrament of confirmation. For many in the diocese, this number is alarming, as it not only shows low engagement among young people, but indicates a smaller number of future Catholic adults.
Last fall, a group of concerned Catholics, including representatives of the Offices of Catholic Youth Ministry and Faith Formation, began discussing how best to address the need for improved youth engagement. With the approval of Bishop Thomas J. Tobin, a committee was formed to plan a Post-Confirmation Summit that would bring together youth and adults from around the diocese to share ideas and make recommendations on the issue.
“It’s a commitment to a new direction inviting youth into a deeper relationship with the Lord and his Church,” explained Dussault.
Bishop Tobin offered the opening address at the summit, emphasizing the importance of youth in the diocese and questioning how we can best communicate to young people their responsibility in the Church.
“Our purpose for gathering tonight is both very simple and very challenging,” he said. “And it is to answer this question: How do we engage our young people in the faith after the sacrament of confirmation?”
Jude Angell, a parishioner of St. Charles Borromeo Parish, Woonsocket, and volunteer youth ministry consultant for the diocese, served as facilitator. Angell, who works as a business consultant for Blue Cross Blue Shield Rhode Island, became involved with the planning for the Post-Confirmation Summit when she realized her business skills might be useful in helping to address the question of youth engagement.
“Keeping young Catholics practicing their faith has been on my heart for years and I didn’t know what to do,” she said. “After a lot of prayer and discussion, I was inspired to utilize my business skills to attack a Church issue.”
In keeping with a business-like approach, the planning committee for the Post-Confirmation Summit began by gathering information about the religious experiences of youth and young adults through a survey released in January. Nearly 2,100 individuals between the ages of 12 and 29 took the survey, offering their opinions on topics like religious education programs, engagement in the liturgy and cultural influences in their lives.
Angell began the discussion by presenting the survey results. Though at times the responses seemed to indicate a positive outlook for the future of the Church, at other times the lack of engagement on the part of youth was worrisome. At one point Angell emphasized the link between the role of parents and their children’s experience of the faith. Out of 2,100 responses, the most popular answers to a question about the top life influences were Mom, Dad and God, in that order.
“As adults, we all have accountability there,” she said.
After reviewing the survey results, the summit participants turned toward developing a strategy for addressing the major roadblocks between youth and better engagement in the Church. Youth volunteers helped gather suggestions from participants, and then all present – clergy, lay adults and young people – voted on recommendations to forward to Bishop Tobin for implementation on a diocesan scale.
“This event was the first phase of what we hope will be a long-term plan committed to engaging post-confirmation Catholics,” said Angell. “We want to help bring them the joy of the Gospel and the message of Jesus Christ.”
Reaction to the summit was generally positive, with many participants glad to share their opinions on what all agreed was a significant problem facing today’s Church.
“I think it’s wonderful. It’s refreshing to see so many people in so many parishes come together and talk about this,” said Colleen Earnshaw, coordinator of confirmation programs at St. Lucy’s Parish, Middletown.
Katherine Martin, a confirmation student at St. Michael’s Church, Smithfield, said she was glad the forum included youth.
“I think it’s a good way for them to see how I feel,” she said.
Martin shared her own thoughts on the issue and suggested that catechists might have an easier time engaging youth if they incorporated more interactive teaching methods.
“We go to school and then we have to go to [confirmation] class,” she said. “We don’t want it to be the same.”
Diane Costantino, a parishioner and RCIA instructor at the cathedral, said the Church needs to make more of an effort to connect with young people.
“They’re not helping the kids as far as a personal relationship with Jesus Christ,” she said. “I think the Catholic Church is lacking in helping people with God and with one another. There has to be more of that dialogue.”
The summit closed with a prayer offered by Father Carl Fisette in which he called upon the name of Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati, patron of youth.
“Dear Lord, grant that your young people will remain steadfast in faith, firm in hope and generous in charity,” he said. “May they have the support of their parents and families as well as the whole Christian community as they grow in their personal relationship with you.”
Dussault indicated that the Office of Youth Ministry plans to release additional results from the summit within the next few weeks. She said the office is grateful for the support of the Knights of Columbus Our Lady of Fatima Council, who sponsored the event, and Relevant Radio, which assisted in promoting the youth survey.
