By: Luis Chacon
Province Coordinator for Volunteers

On Thursday, March 24th, the Boyle Heights Youth Ministry organized the already traditional “Youth Night” for the Confirmation Program. The month’s theme was Catholic Social Teachings and was hosted at the Salesian Family Youth Center.

We began at 6:30 pm with the Core Team preparing all the material for prayers and learning about Catholic Social Teachings. I have been impressed with the commitment and leadership roles that the youth of the Confirmation Program have taken up. Without a doubt, the Youth Minister, Miriam Hernandez, has worked very hard to empower the youth to carry out the organization of the Youth Night. That night fruits of all the work the leadership team have been doing were apparent.

On other occasions, the Youth Night has been a thanksgiving, a dance celebrating friendship, an advent retreat, etc. This time it was a prayer service with different prayer stations, each of the stations was led by a youth leader from the Core Team. Youth leaders at each station explained catholic social teaching and lead an activity. The stations were as follows:

• Life and Dignity of the Human Person (participants created a mural with a message defending life)
• Call to Family, Community, and Participation (in a poster that read Gmail “God’s mail” participants posted prayers for their families)
• Rights and Responsibilities (Here participants brainstormed rights and responsibilities through drawings)
• Option for the Poor and Vulnerable (Youth made a bandage prayer using a world map beach ball youth prayed for a person they know by placing their name on a band aid and sticking it on the ball)
• The Dignity of Work and the Rights of Workers (Youth took a donut “donut forget to pray for those without a job”: Breaking bread reminds us that we are a church community. Jesus broke bread)
• Solidarity (they prayed a decade per group praying for Ukraine)
• Care for God’s Creation (Participants made a bird feeder: God has given us the task to care for creation as a reminder Youth will make a bird feeder out of cheerios and ask them to place it on a tree in a tree in their community or home).

The night ended with father Héctor giving us the traditional Salesian Good Night. He invited the young people to continue with the practices of Lent, to value and be thankful for everything they have in their lives.

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