Catholic Committee on Scouting Allentown Diocese Minsi Trails Council Bill Brodniak 20091

Eligibility: the Youth  Application/Approval form signed  A registered youth member (male or female) of the Boy Scouts of America of the Catholic faith.  Has started ninth grade.  Designed for age year old, but all registered Venturers (male or female before their 21st birthday) and all registered Boy Scouts (in high school, before their 18th birthday) are eligible. 2

Eligibility: the Counselor  Program Intent form signed and submitted to local CCoS for approval prior to begining  A registered member of BSA in good standing  Be of the Catholic faith  Completed the Diocesan program “Protecting God’s Children” follow links for Protection of Youth and Protecting God’s Children  Completed BSA Youth Protection training 3

o INTERESTED o UNDERSTANDING o OPEN o FLEXIBLE AND CREATIVE o LIKABLE o SENSE OF HUMOR o KNOWLEDGEABLE o COMMUNICATE o SPIRITUAL o SENSITIVE o OBSERVANT 4 Counselor attributes

Purpose of the Program Help Catholic Scouts and Venturers more fully develop a Christian way of life within a faith community The program deals with different life choices (single, married, religious, ordained), occupations and ministries in the church as calls from God. It includes youth led discussions on current issues facing the church and society, which are normally included as part of a Pius XII retreat or day of recollection 5

Program Requirements  Ideal group size is 4-12, but the course may be run with smaller groups.  The program should be run by the candidates themselves, the adult serves as a facilitator  A number of interviews and an investigation of a controversial issue facing the church or society are integral to the program  A retreat experience, ideally centered on the Pius XII program itself and a ministries service project (Chapter 5) are required 6

Program Goals  Examine how being a Christian affects his or her daily life in the real world.  Be challenged to evaluate his or her personal talents and abilities in light of a possible choice of life state, occupation and ministry.  Be challenged to discover how these life states, occupations and ministries help him or her become more active in the Catholic Christian faith community.  Have an opportunity to share his or her faith and practice his or her religion among peers, while receiving guidance and feedback attuned to the ideals of Scouting. 7

Program duration  It is suggested that the group meet for nine to twelve sessions. As the youth are older, two hour sessions seem to work well, and flexibility is often required in scheduling sessions and interview feedback’s. 8

Program Completion  Complete requirements for all units in Pope Pius XII Religious Emblem Scout Manual  Pass a Pope Pius XII Board of Review  Pope Pius XII Board of Review is made up of former Pope Pius XII recipients with adult leaders acting in an advisory and supervisory capacity. No changes permitted Additional requirements may not be added 9

10

Board of Review  Does he have a better understanding of his Christian commitment?  Has he learned to understand, support, and apply Christian principles to the problems of our day?  Has he thought about his vocation in life: a vocation to the priesthood, religious life, marriage, or single life?  How has his relationship with his Church grown?  What is his attitude toward Scouting and the ideals of the program?  How does his relationship between Scouting and the Church compare?  Has the Scout grown in his understanding and living out of his faith? (faith growth) 11

Award Presentation  The religious emblem will be presented to the Scout at the annual Youth Recognition Ceremony  Sunday after Mother’s Day in May  The religious knot or device should be presented at a Troop Court of Honor 12

Counselor’s role: Delivering the Program  Use the PPXII Facilitator Guide  Act as facilitator, not group leader  Form the group  Help the candidates focus on essential elements and important issues  Review the chapters prior to meeting  Anticipate questions or stumbling areas  Hold regular meetings & schedule projects  Use of a check-off worksheet helps keep track of progress 13

Counselor’s role: Guiding the Youth  Encourage greater participation of Catholic Scouts/Venturers in the religious programs of the Church  Promote the Spiritual component of Scouting within the parish and unit. (A Scout is Reverent)  Help create an atmosphere conducive to the development of religious vocations.  Provide guidance and assistance to non-Catholic members of the unit and in neighboring units, urging them to participate in the religious program of their own faith. 14

Youth’s Roles and Responsibilities:  As an older Scout/Venturer, the candidate is expected to actively share in group discussions and complete all interviews and activities.  Attend regular meetings.  Make the program a priority  Be prepared to share experiences at BOR  Attend Catholic Scout Retreat 15

Parent’s Role  Support the Religious Emblems Counselor in his/her role  Support and encourage their youth’s participation in the program  Make the program a priority 16

Program Structure  First chapter is directed toward building group trust  Chapters 2 thru 5 use a combination of lived experiences and guided discoveries to examine various calls.  Chapter 6 starts with a guided discovery  Chapter 7 is strictly an application exercise. 17

Chapter 1 – "In the beginning": To examine the individual’s I have chosen to associate with, and to explain the implications of those choices.  Create a group environment for sharing  Examine how relationships of respect, trust, and friendship come into play in everything  Open (or reopen) trusting relationship with the Church  Remember your task is to facilitate not lead or control 18

Chapter 1 – "In the beginning“ (Cont’d):  Ice Breaker needed for first session to build trust among PPXII group  Rules for discussions:  Any and all views are valid – no ridiculing  Treat each other with respect  You will need to start the first exercise with explaining your choices 19

Chapter 2 – "God and You" : To explore what it means to be called by God through the Sacraments of Initiation, and how these calls continue to affect my life  How do we as individuals discern God’s calls  Break to discover the ‘who, how, where, when, and why’ of God communicating in the Bible – use ‘Facilitators Guide’ Appendix B as resource  Break to discover ancient uses of oil 20

Chapter 3 – "Life Choices": To examine and discover various "life states" to which God may be calling me  Panel discussion:  To discuss life states and commitments  Composed of two vowed individuals, three promised, and one confirmed single 21

Chapter 4 – "9 to 5": To examine various professions or occupations, and seek to discover the ones to which God may be calling me  Consider how you spend your time  Complete list of gifts and talents for themselves and each other – distribute  Split session  Discuss gifts and talents others see in you  What occupations for you? 22

Chapter 5 "Here I am": To examine various ministries, and seek to discover ones to which God might be calling me  What does it mean to ‘live out our baptismal call?’  Is all “service” really ministry?  Why am I performing the ministry? For God, for self, for others? Chapter 5 – Service Project  ‘Design and conduct a service project that best utilizes the Scout’s gifts and talents’  Can be individual or group 23

Chapter 5 – Service Project (Cont’d)  Should be of some benefit to the Church, society, or the general community  Should be unique to this program  No specific number of hours required  Report on project – to the group  What they did and Why they did it  What gifts or talents they used in the project  How did they feel about doing the project  What benefit they got out of it  Did they discover or learn anything through the project 24

Chapter 6 - "A melting Pot": To examine the Church’s definition of vocation and how it and God’s call intertwine in an individual’s daily life through life state, occupation and ministry  What do you feel a priest, religious, and laity is?  Why does the Catholic Church need them?  Why the shortage? 25

Chapter 7 – "Putting it all together": To aid the participants in a realization that our faith and call from God affect our daily life and how our daily life affects our faith and call from God  Each participant is to select a serious issue currently faced by the church or society  Research pros and cons, Church’s stance 26

National Catholic Committee on Scouting National Catholic Committee on Scouting

Allentown Diocese Allentown Diocese

Minsi Trails Catholic Committee on Scouting Minsi Trails Catholic Committee on Scouting

P.R.A.Y. P.R.A.Y.

Congratulations! _______________________ has completed the Pope Pius XII Award Counselor Training March 14, 2009 ________________________________ Bill Brodniak, Catholic Committee on Scouting Allentown Diocese