LEADER TOOLKIT
Youth Ministry
This leader toolkit is provided to help youth ministry leaders build a culture of life throughout the year. The provided resources, ideas, and activities are only suggestions. We encourage you to adapt them as necessary for your specific youth ministry. Feel free to get creative as you build "an authentic civilization of truth and love" (Evangelium vitae, 6) among the youth of your parish.
Check out our Action Guides for additional ideas and step-by-step instructions for highlighting Respect Life themes year-round!
POSTER &
PRAYER CARD
This Respect Life poster focuses on our call to radical solidarity with mothers in need and their children, reminding us of our responsibility to put our love for them into action.
Consider hanging it in your regular meeting space and using it in conjunction with the Prayer for Radical Solidarity to introduce the Church's teaching on the dignity of the human person.
SAMPLE ACTIVITY
Respect Life Bulletin Board
​
This activity* invites youth to help create an interactive Respect Life bulletin board. The idea is to hang the Respect Life poster in the center of a large bulletin board or other prominent area with space around it. Then, invite members of your youth group to add their own items to the board (or to the surrounding area) that illustrate and unpack Respect Life themes.
​
For a youth group setting, consider having a stack of old magazines on hand that can be used for clipping words and photos that can be posted to the Respect Life display.
You can find this activity in our Respect Life Month Action Guide.
*This activity can also be completed individually. Download the blank bulletin board template as a double-sided PDF with instructions to allow each youth to create their own display.
REFLECTION
This short reflection unpacks the theme of radical solidarity, highlighting how Catholics are called to put their love for others into action. You can use the reflection to help inspire a youth ministry meeting highlighting Respect Life topics.
​
The reflection could also be read aloud together to open a larger discussion or lead into a time of prayer, possibly before the Blessed Sacrament. Or, it could also be used as a small group prompt, with a series of discussion questions.
For example:
-
Why do you think Jesus says love will be the identifying characteristic of His disciples?
-
What are some of the challenges a woman may face in welcoming an unexpected baby?
-
What do think are some of the new opportunities and responsibilities we have after the overturning of Roe v. Wade? Why is this such an important moment?
-
What are some examples of radical solidarity with moms in need? How can we put our love into action? Individually? As a youth group?
-
What gifts do I have that I could use to support moms in need in my community?
INTERCESSIONS
Prayer is the basis of all our efforts to build a culture of life. The provided intercessions are appropriate for use during Mass in the Prayer of the Faithful. Consider using them in a Mass being celebrated during a youth event or at a parish Mass where you know many youth will be present.
​
If you open or close your gatherings in prayer, incorporate one or more of the intercessions, and invite students to add their own prayer intentions related to the sanctity of human life. Perhaps you could send each youth home with a specific intention to pray for throughout the week and encourage them to pray for the intention with their families.
"...in our daily prayer as individuals and as a community, praise and bless God our Father, who knitted us together in our mother's womb..."
Evangelium vitae, 84
That the life of every person,
from conception to natural death,
will be protected in our laws
and cherished in our hearts;
We pray to the Lord:
​
For women and men suffering after abortion:
May the Church’s abortion healing ministry,
Project Rachel, help them find peace and healing
through Christ’s endless mercy;
We pray to the Lord:
For those nearing the end of life:
May they receive care that respects their dignity
and protects their lives
as they place their hope
in the promise of eternal life;
We pray to the Lord:
May God grant us the wisdom and courage
to lovingly protect His gift of human life
at every stage, in sickness and in health;
We pray to the Lord:
Looking for more intercessions to incorporate year-round?
Check out our series of Action Guides, which each include additional intercessions that are connected to annual observances and liturgical feasts. You can also subscribe to our monthly parish liturgical resource, Word of Life.
ARTICLES
Find the list of titles under the "Articles" tab in the menu at the top of the page.
Our Respect Life articles can be used as catechetical tools and discussion starters and can be helpful in illustrating the application of Catholic moral teaching in real-life scenarios. They can also be used to demonstrate a pastoral response to those who are facing challenging circumstances.
​
Each article is available to read online or to print as a handout. Many are also available to order as pamphlets.
9 DAYS FOR LIFE
9 Days for Life is an annual novena for the protection of human life that takes place each January. Each day’s intention is accompanied by a short reflection and suggested actions to help build a culture of life.
​
Youth groups can pray this novena together. It can also be included as part of your pilgrimage to the national, or a local, March for Life.
WALKING WITH MOMS IN NEED
Walking with Moms in Need is the Church's pastoral initiative to increase outreach and support to pregnant and parenting mothers in difficult or challenging circumstances.
Contact your diocese to learn about local efforts, service opportunities, and other ways your youth can help support mothers and their children.
Models used for illustrative purposes only. Photos courtesy of Wix.com. Excerpts from Evangelium vitae © 1995 and Spe salvi © 2007, Libreria Editrice Vaticana.
Used with permission. All rights reserved.