The Journey to Adulthood is a complete youth ministry program of spiritual formation for 6th-12th grades. It uses Bible study, prayer, rites of passage, outreach ministries and both serious and playful activities to underscore its two guiding principles:
1. Manhood and womanhood are free gifts from God.
2. Adulthood must be earned.
There are three two-year segments of the program:
Rite-13: The first two years (6th & 7th or 7th & 8th graders) that focus on celebrating the individuality of each young person and their creative potential. The Rite-13 liturgy (A celebration of Manhood and Womanhood) is the community expression of this and a rite of passage form childhood towards adulthood .
J2A: The middle portion of the program (8th & 9th or 9th and 10th graders), engages youth with the skills and critical thinking involved in adulthood. The youth plan and embark on a pilgrimage together at the end of this segment. This experience is often the spiritual highlight of their youth.
YAC: This is a mentor-based program that helps older teens (11th and 12th graders) discern and carry out a ministry within their church or in the larger community. Vocation and development of a personal credo are also emphasized. A final rite of passage sends them out into the world as ambassadors of Christ.
Download an overview and sample pages to learn more...
J2A is based on the principles of relational youth ministry. It assumes that at least two or three adults (of both genders) will be leaders for each of the three groups and that these leaders will only serve for two years before taking a "break." This engages many more adults in building relationships with youth and providing positive role models for them. The traditional youth ministry model of a single youth "guru" (paid or volunteer) depends on the personality of that individual -- and when he/she leaves, the youth program often collapses. J2A is designed to engage lots of adults in nurturing the youth of your congregation and community. It is designed to bring young people into full participation in the life of the congregation so they actually ARE the church of today instead of the church of the future!
- Our church used to have 6-8 kids serving as acolytes and coming to an occasional pizza party or field trip. Now we have at last 25 teenagers in church every Sunday morning and lots of them actively involved in the life of the congregation. We recently had a couple of Smith College students come to church who were very pleased to see we had J2A....they talked about how much it meant to them and how it still influences how they think and live. (St. John's Episcopal Church, Northampton, MA)
This is a very common story of a J2A congregation. An added benefit of this ministry is that it often serves as a catalyst for congregational renewal. Parents are drawn into greater particiation. Youth leaders learn skills and develop a commitment to ministry that they use in other ministries when they rotate off of being leaders. Others in the congregation pick up on the energy and the ministries of the youth. So J2A is much, much more than just a way to inform or entertain our youth -- it is a way of being the church that engages everyone in ministry!
A J2A membership includes materials downloadable from the website, program additions, access to other J2A congregations through online forums, J2A newsletters for youth leaders, and more!
Become a member!
Congregations become J2A members and are billed annually for their membership fee. We recommend congregations use a discernment process as they decide whether or not to use this program. We ask that congregations make a commitment to use the program for three years because we know that it takes most congregation that long before the program is established and working well. The temptation is to quit after the first year or so presents challenges -- so the request for a three year commitment is to ensure that you get to the point where you can see how J2A really works. We can count on congregations "getting it" about the middle of the third year. After that, most congregation use J2A successfully for many years. However, we do not want to minimize the effort needed to get the program started especially since it asks for a much higher investment from the congregation than just hiring or recruiting a single youth leader.
Judicatory memberships for dioceses, synods, etc. also are available -- they allow a judictory to pay a flat fee based on the number of churches in their judicatory for access to all materials for all of their congregations, camps, schools, etc. For more information, go to the J2A Diocesan Membership section.
FREE DOWNLOADS
Youth Ministry Discernment
Overview and Sample Pages
Articles About How J2A Affects Leaders and Youth:
Searching for Alex
First Steps on A Lifelong Journey
My Life as a J2A Leader
Other Resources for J2A:
J2A brochure - in MS Word for editing
J2A color brochure w/photos - for printing
J2A Training Schedule
J2A Institute Schedule
Youth Ministry Books
J2A Pilgrimage Books
Added Benefits of a J2A Membership:
Get discounts on related programs such as:
Sealed and Sent Forth (confirmation program)
Teach Us to Pray (J2A prayer lessons for adults)
20% off of WorkshopCycles (Children's Sunday School)
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Bears, caps and t-shirts make great gifts for confirmands -- especially youth! But even adults appreciate a lighter touch along with the hand of the bishop on one's head! 
A must-have book to safeguard everyone in your church from accidents and your congregation from lawsuits! This book gives actual examples and practical advice on how to look for safety hazards, avoid harmful situations and protect your youth from injury, sexual misconduct and inappropriate behaviors by other youth or adults. 
A book that deals directly with the primary need for God in the lives of youth and youth leaders—reaffirms ministry as practicing the faith together. One of the best books on relational youth ministry -- highly recommended for J2A. 
Spiritual exercises and workbook from the author of The Godbearing Life. 
