Cops, Catholics and Camp: Police Lieutenant Reflects on His First Experience of Young Life

This guest post was written by Jason Smith, Lieutenant of the Tactical Operations Bureau, and one of my closest friends. A lifelong Catholic, Jason was an adult guest this summer at Timber Wolf Lake,  a Young Life camp in Michigan.

Have you ever been moved in a way that changes how you look at or perceive something? Have you ever been in a place so amazing you can't actually describe it to others who ask? Have you ever been with a group of people, some you know, most you don't, that just ooze love and make you feel like you are the most important person in their life? Have you ever been in a place that was so infused with the Holy Spirit you could actually feel, hear, smell, taste, and see It? Have you ever been so moved you want to cry and smile at the same time? And have you ever seen 217 teenagers "stand up" and give their life to Christ before your very eyes?

I have. I experienced all of those things this summer as a thirty-nine year old "camper" at Timber Wolfe Lake. My family was lucky enough to have been invited by our friends to be a part of something way bigger than us.  As Adult Guests we were invited to watch God work in ways that I never dreamed possible. I literally saw God reach out and touch young people's hearts through the hands of others during a week at Timber Wolf Lake. Weeks later it's still difficult to find the words to describe what I witnessed at camp this summer.

Young Life's mission is simple. Bring the message of Christ to teenagers. Nothing more. Nothing less. You see, the staff and volunteers don't have to tell you their mission. They live it and everyone in their path feels it. Everything they do is a means to accomplish this goal. Yeah the buildings are majestic, the blob is fun, and the grounds are meticulous, but the real secret to Young life's mission? It's about relationships. They reach kids where they’re at. They bring the universal message to kids who have never heard the message of Christ. They tell the story of a redemptive God to kids who are struggling with real life problems at too young an age. They don't pass judgment. They just love em like Christ called us to do. This is something I can get behind. This is something all Christians, no matter your denomination, should get behind.

I am a cradle Catholic that, like many others, left my faith during my late teenage years only to return when I had a family of my own. I went to church every Sunday growing up and went to a Catholic grade school, high school, and even earned my degree from a Catholic university. Despite the Catholic upbringing, I didn't develop a personal relationship with Christ until I was 36 years old. That’s a lot of lost time.

After my experience at camp I keep asking myself, "If I had this experience as a teenager would I have been away from the Church for 20 years? Would I have had developed a personal relationship with Christ as a teenager?" I don't know the answer to those questions and probably never will. I can say however, I very much would have liked to have had the opportunity. 

I want nothing more than to raise my two sons in the finest tradition of the Catholic Church and all it has to offer. But above all I want my sons to know and love Christ in a most personal way. There are so many Catholic teenagers who will take similar paths to mine. I pray both my son's and those teenagers choose a different path.

I think we as Catholics can learn a lot about how Young Life lives their mission, reaches people where they’re at, and shares Christ them. I also think Young Life could learn a lot about how we as Catholics live our faith as a sacramental people. This isn't a competition. This is about Christ!  This is about how we as witnesses bring His message to others and love one another as Christ has called us to do.

Jason and his beautiful family

My Experience of Young Life Camp As a Catholic Adult Guest

This guest post was written by Hugo de la Rosa, a Catholic teacher and campus minister in the diocese of Brownsville, TX. Hugo and a delegation of other Catholic leaders from S. Texas, participated at a special YL-Catholic Adult Guest Program at Camp Buckner in February.

Twelve brave souls made a pilgrimage from the Diocese of Brownsville in the Rio Grande Valley (very bottom of South Texas) to Camp Buckner over Valentine’s Day weekend. We were invited at the request of Michael Havercamp and Bishop Daniel Flores, head of the over 1,000,000 Catholics who live in our area. Our goal was to experience a Young Life weekend camp as adult Catholic guests.

I’d never heard of Young Life before this invitation, so I was entering the experience with no preconceived notions of what to expect. We had the pleasure of meeting with Michael the morning of the weekend, and I drove over to the Camp with him; these were my initial impressions after those two conversations:

• Young Life’s stated mission is to intentionally & passionately reach kids at the margins – the unchurched, the ones who do not have an active connection to Jesus and his church (in whatever denominational flavor that happens to be; Young Life is non-sectarian and not focused on any one Christian tradition)
• This initiative to reach out to the Catholic Church goes hand in hand with Pope Francis’ desire for a new evangelization, using methods and steps that may be new, risky and messy; doing everything in a “missionary key,” going beyond the confines of what is safe and comfortable, reaching out to kids where they’re at
• It aims to tie kids back into their own faith traditions, or, as sometimes happens, have kids join the faith tradition of their adult leaders if no connection to another faith tradition exists
• The basic message of the Gospel is delivered in engaging, age-appropriate ways to help foster a response that ultimately leads the child to a relationship with Christ and his Church
• Young Life aims to bring young people to Christ through attraction, and only later will they receive appropriate catechetical / liturgical formation in their own faith traditions
• They aim to foster one on one relationship between adults (college age and up) and kids (middle school / high school / college)
• This relationship is fostered through one on one meetings, small group meetings, and weekly/monthly Club meetings
• Adult leaders will spend at least 4-6 hours each week with direct contact to their kids (visiting schools at lunch, attending extra-curricular activities, etc.)
• This investment of time and attention gives the adult leader the “right to be heard” in the child’s life – eventually leading to conversion experiences at weekend or week long camps (such as the one taking place this weekend)
• The Catholic Church, while being very good at sacramental and catechetical instruction, sometimes lacks in helping to foster a prayerful, direct relationship with Christ
• A partnership with Young Life can help bridge that gap
• Because much of Young Life is led by evangelical / non-denominational adults, having a Catholic presence (i.e. developing Catholic Young Life leaders) is crucial to leading Catholic students back to their parishes

The rest of the weekend bore out those initial impressions. I saw staff greeting teens with enthusiasm and genuine care, using music, costumes/personalities & humor to create an engaging and non-threatening environment for the campers. I saw leaders gathering together to plan and pray, intentionally choosing their teenage friends to be part of activities that would help bolster their self-esteem and bring them closer to God. I saw a definite Young Life culture that leaders and participants shared, bridging generational, cultural, denominational and economic differences.

At Club I saw youth and adults who were joyous and joyful. The music, games and antics started at a fast pace, eventually moving towards a short message that introduced elements of the Gospel to the gathered crowd. I then saw youth being led by their mentors for some reflection time. And then, most powerfully of all, I saw youth and adults spending free time together, playing games, and simply talking one on one or in small groups.

It strikes me that this goes to the heart of Catholic social teaching – leaders were engaging with these adolescents not as a ploy to “get them to church,” but because of their inherent worth and dignity as people lovingly hand-crafted by their Creator. Even if the gathered young people never grace the hallowed halls of a church building, they will have experienced the love of God through the love of their adult leader. While the end-game is eventual Church membership and church service / activity, even if that doesn’t happen we have still loved and served them as Jesus loves and serves us.

The specific charism of Young Life – reaching out to disenfranchised youth with no other purpose then to love them as they are; the no-pressure environment, the pre-evangelistic nature of it; the acceptance of meeting them where they’re at, going to their schools, going to their games, getting to know them; investing the time to “earn the right to be heard” (a phrase that I love!) – it sounds so very . . .Jesusy to me. J

I think that all of us came out of the experience with a deeper understanding of and appreciation for the ministry that Young Life leaders are exercising all over the country. I came back humbled by the willingness of the staff and leaders to share with us as Catholic adults. I came back personally challenged to incorporate the culture of Young Life into my own ministry as a teacher and campus minister at a PK-8^th grade Catholic school. I came back energized and excited at the prospect of partnering with such a vibrant and obviously Christ-centered community.

I think that a partnership between Young Life and the Catholic Church (specifically in my area, but all over the country as well) has the potential to be life changing for both adults involved in ministry and the kids that are ministered to, and I’m grateful for the opportunity I have to be a small part of making that a reality.