From Father George's Desk 9/7/2025

In lieu of my usual column this week, I share some exciting news for youth ministry at Holy Family and St. John, and at several other parishes in the Greater Latrobe area.  Over the coming weeks, Justin will be settling into his new position and getting the “lay of the land”.  I look forward to working with him and my fellow pastors to build a healthy, vital and active Catholic youth ministry program for our parishes...

In Bishop Kulick’s Pastoral Letter Donum Vertitatis, he announced his commitment to take more of a proactive and direct role in the faith formation efforts of our youth and families after consultation with our clergy through the establishment of Regional Directors of Faith Formation and Youth Ministry. These leaders will enable all parishes to begin the process of developing programs that meet the current formation needs of our families, most especially our youth. By working together on innovative and experiential methods of formation and evangelization, we can meet the needs of our people and change the narrative of shrinking numbers of participants in the life of the Church. These professionally trained Regional Directors will provide the necessary catechetical and faith formation support to allow our pastors, priests, and permanent deacons to focus on sacramental and parochial ministries. Working together with one another, these Regional Directors can create the best resources and practices to reach both our youth and adults in ways that meet the present needs of the Church while preserving the Truth of the Gospel.

Through sharing resources of staffing and materials between parishes, we are able to reach a greater number of families and offer them transformative Catholic experiences. When parishes align their    resources, we are able to provide our youth and young adults a more comprehensive and complete catechetical experience than single parishes working alone. Through this shared effort, we can also offer families a choice of experiential catechetical sessions, including intergenerational or family catechesis and The Catechesis of the Good Shepherd.

As we plan for the future of faith formation and youth ministry, we will have some additions to our present offerings as part of the broader diocesan vision. Currently many programs are shared between various parishes, and our parish already has some partnerships, such as pairing with other parishes in faith formation retreats and sacraments. To facilitate these initiatives, Justin Massetto has been named as our Regional Director for Youth Ministry, effective September 1, 2025.

As the new regional director appointed by Bishop Kulick, Justin will be accompanying the following parishes: Saint Vincent Basilica, Holy Family, St. John the Evangelist, St. Bartholomew, St. James, Sacred Heart, St. Cecilia, and Holy Trinity.

If you have any questions or are interested in learning more about the Regionalization of Faith Formation in our parishes, please let our new Regional Director know or contact the Office of Faith, Family and Discipleship of the Diocese of Greensburg at ffd@dioceseofgreensburg.org.