MY DEAR YOUNG FRIENDS IN CHRIST!

It is with great joy that I greet and invite you to participate in an exciting and dynamic evangelization youth conference that will take place in our Archdiocese. The theme of this youth conference is “Responding to the Call to Holiness in Today’s World” (or simply “Call to Holiness”) and it will be held on Saturday, September 12, 2009 at the George R. Brown (GRB) Convention Center in downtown Houston.

During this faith-filled event you have the opportunity to participate and interact with youths from around the Archdiocese. You will be addressed by amazing speakers who will share their experiences and what they know of people like Pope John Paul II, our late Holy Father! Also, the internationally acclaimed Fr. Stan Fortuna, a member of the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal, will be in concert to bless us with his extraordinary talents and music!

At last summer’s World Youth Day in Sydney, Australia, our Holy Father Benedict XVI suggested the theme “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Ps 119:105). With this passage of Scripture, he urged the youth to become familiar with the Word of God so that it would be as a “compass” along life’s paths leading one to a deeper relationship with Jesus.

As you prepare spiritually for this conference, I invite you to reflect on the Sacred Scriptures and especially the word of St. Paul,

Come, see, and experience for yourselves the life-changing grace of the Holy Spirit as we gather to deepen our faith and give praise to God. It is my hope that this conference will transform your hearts and enliven your mind to God's Call to Holiness.

Sincerely in Christ,

Daniel Cardinal DiNardo
Archbishop of Galveston-Houston

In this section you will be able to get program highlights, program information and what to expect with insights to the keynotes and general conferences. We hope you find it useful and exciting and if we have not answered your questions please free to contact the conference committee or Randy Adams at the Office of Youth Ministry.

• This is a one-day program featuring a keynote address, theatric presentation of the Call to Holiness and two general sessions that will have multiple workshops.
• Participation in parish sharing, Eucharistic Adoration, the Sacrament of Reconciliation and concluding Holy Eucharist
• Participation in a closing concert by Fr. Stan Fortuna, CFR

General Conference: Speakers will have 60 minutes for their conference talk or presentation and all participants will be slated for these talks.

Workshops: Speakers will have 60 minutes for their workshops. The participants of the workshop will be part of dynamic programs that will have discussion and focus on the topic in unique perspectives for the youth.

In this section you will find the detailed program. You can view them online and/or you can download a viewable/printable version of the programs as a pdf file.

Saturday, September 12, 2009 Program
Youth Track: Call to Holiness-Throw Out to the Deep

Please note that the program is current as of May 2009 and is subject to change.

Saturday, September 12, 2009

MORNING SESSION

The Life of Blessed Teresa of Calcutta, Mother to the Poor
Sr. M. Dorothy, MC, Founding Member of the Missionaries of Charity with Mother Teresa
Calcutta, India

This is a general conference on the Life of Blessed Teresa of Calcutta and her interior call that led her to form the Missionaries of Charity serving the poorest of the poor initially in the India and now in other parts of the world. In particular, we will hear witness to the poverty both physical and spiritual.

The Missionaries of Charity is an international religious family of pontifical right composed of active and contemplative branches with perpetual public vows of chastity, poverty, obedience, and wholehearted and free service to the poorest of the poor, leading each sister to the perfect love of God and neighbor and making the Church fully present in the world of today.
The Society was founded by Mother M. Teresa, M.C. in Calcutta, India, and now has houses on every continent and in most of the countries of the world. Their particular mission is to labor for the salvation and the sanctification of the poorest of the poor all over the world. Each member of the Society goes where she is sent and does not choose the place or kind of work.

Betania, Light of the World, Maria Esperanza, Messenger of Reconciliation
Mr. Geo Bianchini & Family, Husband and Family of Maria Esperanza Bianchini,
Caracas, Venezuela

This workshop focuses on the message of reconciliation and how that manifests itself the lives of family and humanity through the eyes of people who knew Maria Esperanza Bianchini and were witness to the message of Our Lady of the Reconciler of Nations and Peoples. The emphasis will be in witnessing to the extraordinary life of a laywoman and raising a family rooted in love and service.

A native of Italy, he was raised in a family who was in the wood trade business. Divine providence would have it that he would meet and marry Ms. Maria Esperanza in 1955. They were blessed with six daughters and a son and their lives were centered on the education and spiritual guidance of their family. At present, he is the President of the Civil Association Betania Foundation located in Betania, Venezuela. Our Lady appeared on this farm, under the title of Mary, Virgin and Mother Reconciler of all People and Nations in 1976 and 1984. Mr. Geo and his family continue the task his wife left him to spread the message of reconciliation throughout the all the nations of the world.

Evangelization: The Third Testament
Brian Lennox, Youth Ministry Director, St. Ignatius of Loyola Catholic Church,
Spring, Texas, Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston

We have all heard the stories God has given to us in the Old and New Testaments, but what about your story? “The Third Testament” takes a look at what God may be asking of you, especially working towards and beyond your Confirmation.

Brian Lennox has been heavily involved with youth ministry since his days at Texas A&M University. After graduating in 2004, Brian returned to the Houston area where he has been working as the Director of Youth Ministry at St. Anne in Tomball for the last five years. In addition, Brian has been a presenter at the Archdiocesan Youth Conference, the Region Ten Youth Conference, and has been an advisor for the Archdiocesan Youth Council. Brian hopes that one day he will have the opportunity to spar with St. Michael the Archangel in Heaven.

Mission and Vocations
Fr. Stan Fortuna, CFR
the Bronx, New York, USA

Vital to the formation of all youth is the understanding the Call to Holiness in relation to mission and vocations. Fr. Stan will bring to focus the mission of the Church and put it the context for the youth to understand and be inspired to seek what God is calling them to.

Fr. Stan Fortuna, CFR. New York, United States of America. He is one of the eight original members of the Community of Franciscan Friars of the Renewal, a Franciscan Order established by John Cardinal O’Connor in 1987. Fr. Stan was ordained a priest in the Bronx in 1990. He travels the world giving missions and concerts in preaching the Word. He is noted for his evangelical musical contributions of various genres such as jazz and hip-hop. Before becoming a priest, he studied with the legendary jazz musician, Lennie Tristano, and was an accomplished, professional bass guitar player.

The Posture of Inculturation: Shaping Vibrant Worship
Patrick Spedale, Director of the Office for Campus Ministry
St. Pius X Catholic High School, Houston, Texas, USA

Hidden Treasures: Hidden Holiness
Kenn McLaughlin and Sally Edmunson
Houston, Texas, USA

Witness to Courage
Msgr. Ricardo Urioste, Former Priest Secretary to Archbishop Oscar Romero,
Archdiocese of San Salvador, El Salvador

This workshop on the Life of Archbishop Oscar Romero who was martyred in San Salvador witnesses to the struggle of people and their Shepherd and how the responding to the Call to Holiness manifests itself in the courage of humanity.

Msgr. Ricardo Urioste was ordained at the Jesuit Comillas University in Spain where he commenced his theological studies and finished up at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome in Canon Law. As personal priest secretary to Archbishop Oscar Romero, the Archbishop of San Salvador who was assassinated in 1980 by a right-wing group for speaking out against injustices in El Salvador can witness to the struggle, he can witness to Romero who has been called the “prophet of hope”. He witnessed ongoing violations of human rights and started a group, which spoke out on behalf of the poor and victims of the country’s civil war. Urioste was a witness to the struggling faithful and Church. He would be able to outreach to all on the call to extraordinary courage. He currently serves as an assistant to the Christian family movement as Pastor at Cristo Redentor Parish in San Salvador.

Icons: Seeing and Believing
Fr. Elias Rafaj,
Archeparchy of Pittsburgh

How do Icons work? What are they? How can they lead us down the path of Holiness. This workshop explores all these questions and incorporates the basic principles of icon creation.

Father Elias Rafaj was ordained to the priesthood in 1999 for the Byzantine Catholic Archeparchy of Pittsburgh, studied in Europe where he completed his Philosophical and Theological studies, completing the Licentiate in Eastern Christian Studies with a specialization in Eastern Christian Liturgy at the Pontifical Oriental Institute in Rome. Father also studied in Greece and Lebanon, specializing in languages and at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, where his first artistic training took place. Father is also Assistant Director of Religious Education of the Archeparchy of Pittsburgh, as well as a member of the Intereparchial Liturgical Commission, the Intereparchial Catechetical Commission, National Conference of Catechetical Leaders and the Eastern Catholic Diocesan Directors of Religious Education. He is currently involved in teaching Holy Iconography (both practical and theoretical) as well as teaching catechist formation, adult education, and faith formation classes throughout the United States. Father Elias is currently serving as pastor of St. John Chrysostom Byzantine Catholic Church in Houston and he is the Protopresbyter (Dean) of the Southern States of the Archeparchy of Pittsburgh.

Living Out Our Baptism
Ms. Anita Klueg, former Maryknoll Lay Missionary in Kenya and St. Patrick Catholic Church Youth Ministry Coordinator
Chicago, Illinois, USA

God calls us to be disciples as Mary was called to be the mother of Christ. How are we called to serve? How are we called to witness by sharing of our experiences, stories and journey? Answering the challenge, we will explore the journey to “Be the change you wish to see in the world.”

Anita Klueg is first and foremost a wife and mother. With her husband, Curt, they are blessed with two daughters born will on mission in Kenya as a Maryknoll Lay Missioner. While on mission she served as social worker at a Marianist run vocational school for youth in the poverty-stricken area of Mombasa. She received her Masters of Theological Studies from University of St. Thomas. She believes in Gandhi's view that “We must be the change we wish to see in the world.” Currently, she lives in Chicago, Illinois working as a Coordinator of Youth Ministry at St. Patrick Catholic Church.

Session 8: Keep the Faith-But Not to Yourself
Mike Patin, Faith Horticulturist
Lafayette, Louisiana, USA

Being a person of faith when we're misunderstood or a in a very challenging world is difficult. Let's talk about what make it difficult and how we can learn and live out our faith better.

Mike Patin lives in Lafayette, LA. He is a husband, and a dad of one daughter. He spent 6 years as high school teacher and coach, and has worked in youth ministry since 1990. He's been a summer camp counselor as well as an assistant coach for a college basketball team. He now speaks around the country to teens and adults about Catholic faith, positive attitude, using your gifts and living life fully.

Praise and Worship-fest
Fr. Stan Fortuna, CFR
the Bronx, New York, USA

According to St. Augustine, "Singing is praying twice." What other than a concert to end the day. Fr. Stan will lead the entire congregation to a Worship and Praise Music session.

Fr. Stan Fortuna, CFR. New York, United States of America. He is one of the eight original members of the Community of Franciscan Friars of the Renewal, a Franciscan Order established by John Cardinal O’Connor in 1987. Fr. Stan was ordained a priest in the Bronx in 1990. He travels the world giving missions and concerts in preaching the Word. He is noted for his evangelical musical contributions of various genres such as jazz and hip-hop. Before becoming a priest, he studied with the legendary jazz musician, Lennie Tristano, and was an accomplished, professional bass guitar player.

The Saturday Youth Track program is an all day event that requires pre-registration. No day-of registration will be available. Youth who are not coming with a parish group or as part of a Catholic High School or youth group will be assigned to a group. All are welcome and encouraged to attend!

There are two options during this evangelization conference: (1) you may choose to come to the youth track program and experience the conference with people your age or (2) you may attend the general conference with your family and experience it with them. Both options will provide an amazing experience, which will be beneficial to your spiritual growth.

Please note that for the youth track price includes lunch and dinner. The general conference only includes lunch and not dinner since the program finishes before dinner.

Each registrant must complete the following forms to attend:

• Registration form (Youth and Adult)
• Medical Release and Liability form for Key leader, Chaperone and Young Adult Assistant (this is only if you are attending in this capacity)
• Parent/Guardian Consent, Liability Waiver and Medical Consent form
• Accounting Sheet
  

There are two ways to register:

Online:

• The group leader or parent should fill and print out the online registration confirmation form for their high school youth(s).
• Fill out the required release forms per registrant as needed.
• Mail the printed online registration confirmation form and the release forms for the group with the accounting form.
• Include a single check or money order for payment for the entire group.
  
  Note: Online Payment is not available-only registration.

By Mail:

• Download the forms above, fill them out and mail in. Payment must accompany your registration forms. Please note that group leaders need to mail all forms together with a single form of payment.

• Phone, email or fax registration will not be accepted.

Emmaus Walk, George R. Brown 3^rd Floor Area in the lobby area in front of the prefunction area which is in front of the George Bush Grand Ballroom area. Click here for GRB map Note: Conference packets maybe picked up in this area at the Youth Track booth and there will be no day-of registrations.

• September 10, 2009: Noon to 7pm
• September 11, 2009: 7am to 7pm
• September 12, 2009: 7am to 2pm
  

• Registration card giving access to venue areas
• Conference pilgrim bag with conference-related documents
  

Please be aware of the following deadlines for the registration process.

• August 17, 2009: Early Bird registration ends. Register early to save money!
• September 3, 2009:Online and mail-in registration closes.

Circumstances arise that sometimes require a participant cancellation. Therefore, the following will apply:

• Before July 30, 2009: Full refund minus a $5 handling fee
• July 30-September 1, 2009: 50% Refund minus a $5 handling fee
• After September 1, 2009: None
  

All adults that will attend the youth track program must have completed the Virtus workshop prior to the conference.

For additional information on what this means and how to register for a course please refer to the following archdiocesan website, here.

CONFERENCE PRAYER

O Lord,
help us know your will for us.
Let your light shine
in the depths of our hearts that we may know what you want us to do
with our lives.
Help us believe that you have a special plan for us.
Lord, we know we pass through this life only once;
help us decide
how you want us to make a difference.
Like our Blessed Mother,
give us the wisdom to hear your voice
and the courage to answer
your Call to Holiness.
Above all,
give us peace of mind and heart.
We offer this prayer in the name of
Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.

adapted USCCB vocation prayer