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Every Sunday Senior High and Middle School meet in the youth hut to talk about different faith topics. Past series have included: “Faith in an Anxious World” and “The Big Questions”. Honest conversations and big questions are always welcome here!
Typically: We will meet from 10:45am-11:25am in the Youth Hut & we will almost always have either doughnuts or munchkins 🙂
Nearly every Sunday we have something going on in the evening. At least two Sunday’s out of the month we have “Regularly Scheduled Youth Group”. Here, we meet in the evening for games, shenanigans, and a conversation about that day’s Jesus Topic. Past series have included: “YOU” (identity), “FILM” (Faith in pop culture movies), “Grace & Gratitude” (a series around Thanksgiving). Each youth group is a game paired with a deeper conversation about faith.
Typically, on “Regularly Scheduled Youth Group Sundays”:
Each Sunday’s afternoon may look slightly different, please reference our calendar to know whether it is a Youth Group Sunday, Service Sunday, or if we have an alternative fun evening planned.
At its roots, Confirmation is a journey of faith formation. It is the milestone youth age into once they reach 7th grade as a ‘next step’ to their baptism. Confirmation is the opportunity for young teenagers to take ownership of the faith their family has been carrying for them so far. It’s their time to shine with questions, conversations, activities, and more with the hope they will not only learn about Christianity, but the hope they will make a holy connection with God and his deeply abounding love. Our great hope is this class will provide the Confirmand with the tools, support, and inspiration they will need to build their faith on a firm foundation. This is not a one and done task to be completed, rather for faith to thrive it requires life-long attention and care on their part as well as encouragement and love on yours, their beloved family.
* Confirmands can range from 6th-8th grade. The youth does not have to be baptized before starting the Confirmation class, however, before they are Confirmed on Pentecost, they will need to be baptized. We will gladly have that conversation with you when the time comes for them to choose if they want to be Confirmed. *
Confirmation is truly a sacred time for the Confirmand to make faith personal through encountering God’s furious love like never before. Here they will learn about God and his presence in the Bible, the Moravian Church, creation, forgiveness, justice, grief, prayer, sacraments, and more. At the end of our time together in May, each Confirmand will be asked 2 very important questions: “1) Have you said ‘yes’ to Jesus? 2)Do you want to be Confirmed?” No matter their answers, we will celebrate them for the care they’ve put into their responses & the courage it takes to answer with their heart, rather than simply with the expectation of others. If they do say no and, prayerfully, change their mind later, they may return to us and then they will be Confirmed as professing members of New Philadelphia Moravian Church.
From the first week of January- Pentecost Sunday in May, all regularly scheduled weekly “Classes” will take place on Sundays from 3:30pm-4:30pm in the youth hut. Parents & Shepherds will be expected to chaperone at least 1 of these classes to maintain our “Safe Sanctuary” policy (states more than 1 adult must be present when in a room with minors). Aside from weekly Confirmation class on Sundays, Confirmands will meet with their Shepherds 1-on-1 each week to discuss that week’s journal topic. Occasionally we might have a retreat or a meeting on a different day of the week.
A Shepherd is an adult who is active in their church (outside of immediate family) who the Confirmand chooses to be their mentor. Shepherds are by no means expected to know all the answers, rather they are asked to answer what they can and search alongside their youth for what they can’t. Aside from weekly meeting times that are specific to the Confirmand & Shepherd we will have several field trips mandatory for the Shepherd to join us on as well (if they can’t make one, there is grace- we will gladly work with them on that). As we are devoted to fostering a relationship between our Shepherds and Confirmands, it is the Confirmand’s responsibility to ask the adult they want to be their Shepherd to be their Shepherd. Parent’s may of course help foster the start of this newfound relationship. But the upkeep of the relationship is the Confirmand’s responsibility. If they struggle to find a Shepherd, please reach out to Abby and we will come up with a few wonderful Shepherd options tailored just for them!
DCE, is a form of Confirmation tailor-made for our 9th-12th graders who didn’t take Confirmation in middle school. As the next step on their journey of faith formation, Confirmation follows the sacrament of baptism and is the opportunity for young people to take ownership of their faith. Here they are invited to ask the big questions and find God amidst the turbulence of their everyday life. While being Discipled by their ‘Shepherd’ and taught by Abby & Sam, they will learn not only what it means to be Moravian, but also what it means to belong, to be Christian, to be curious, and to be dearly loved by God. At the end of our time together in May, each Disciple will be asked 2 very important questions: “1) Have you said ‘yes’ to Jesus? 2)Do you want to be Confirmed?” No matter their answers, we will celebrate them for the care they’ve put into their responses & the courage it takes to answer with their heart, rather than simply with the expectation of others. If they do say no and, prayerfully, change their mind later, they may return to us and then they will be Confirmed as professing members of New Philadelphia Moravian Church.
DCE is the invitation to ask really BIG questions and to explore your faith deeper than you ever have before with no judgement and no tight grip holding you back. It is the opportunity to dive into curiosity and to learn what it is that your family and/or friends have passed down to you. Whether you are entering this holy time with a church background or just want to learn something new, we’re glad you’re here.
A Shepherd is an adult who is active in their church (outside of immediate family) who the Disciple chooses to be their mentor. Shepherds are by no means expected to know all the answers, rather they are asked to answer what they can and search alongside their youth for what they can’t. Aside from weekly meeting times that are specific to the Confirmand & Shepherd we will have several field trips mandatory for the Shepherd to join us on as well (if they can’t make one, there is grace- we will gladly work with them on that). As we are devoted to fostering a relationship between our Shepherds and Disciples, it is the Disciple’s responsibility to ask the adult they want to be their Shepherd to be their Shepherd. Parent’s may of course help foster the start of this newfound relationship. But the upkeep of the relationship is the Disciple’s responsibility. If they struggle to find a Shepherd, please reach out to Abby and we will come up with a few wonderful Shepherd options tailored just for them!
