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MEETING A NEED
For decades the degradation and pulverization of the human person have left generations lost and in desperate need of direction and clarity. Men and women not only lack understanding of who they are, but also whose they are. Through our New Horizon Leadership Formation program, Echo Community desires to partner with dioceses and parishes to form young adults as the mature Christian disciples and leaders that they desire to be and help remind them of who they are while inviting them into a life fully alive and truly free. The program addresses some of the deepest questions of the human heart: DO YOU TRULY KNOW WHO YOU ARE? HAVE YOU EXPERIENCED AUTHENTIC RELATIONSHIPS? HAVE YOU DISCOVERED THE GIFTS THAT GOD HAS GIVEN YOU? |
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A 2-YEAR JOURNEY
YEAR ONE:
Year one includes weekly formation sessions centered on our four key pillars of formation (outlined above.) Young adults who commit to the program will be responsible for attending 40 sessions over the year where they will receive time for prayer, formation, and community. This is not an “at your own pace” formation experience, young adults will be invited into community and journey together in person.
YEAR ONE CAPSTONE:
In the pristine wilderness near Cody, Wyoming rests Hawkeye Ranch. At the end of year one formation, participants will be offered an opportunity to journey with us to this beautiful place for a capstone experience where they will be afforded the chance to enter on retreat, be stretched by new adventures, and grow profoundly in community through the experiences fostered at Hawkeye Ranch. Following this experience they will journey back to their parish and set out on their evangelizing mission as well-formed, joyful, and mature Christian disciples.
YEAR TWO:
Year two of the program is no longer centered around formation but evangelization. Young Adults who have completed the first year of the formation program will enter into their second year as Mature Christian Disciples and be sent back into their parishes and communities to evangelize the men and women in their community.
This formation program will greatly help young adults grow in specific areas to become mature Christian disciples. The men and women interested in the program do not need specific skills or qualities to enter into the program – a young adult simply needs to be willing to dedicate the time and have docility to the Holy Spirit.
Year one includes weekly formation sessions centered on our four key pillars of formation (outlined above.) Young adults who commit to the program will be responsible for attending 40 sessions over the year where they will receive time for prayer, formation, and community. This is not an “at your own pace” formation experience, young adults will be invited into community and journey together in person.
YEAR ONE CAPSTONE:
In the pristine wilderness near Cody, Wyoming rests Hawkeye Ranch. At the end of year one formation, participants will be offered an opportunity to journey with us to this beautiful place for a capstone experience where they will be afforded the chance to enter on retreat, be stretched by new adventures, and grow profoundly in community through the experiences fostered at Hawkeye Ranch. Following this experience they will journey back to their parish and set out on their evangelizing mission as well-formed, joyful, and mature Christian disciples.
YEAR TWO:
Year two of the program is no longer centered around formation but evangelization. Young Adults who have completed the first year of the formation program will enter into their second year as Mature Christian Disciples and be sent back into their parishes and communities to evangelize the men and women in their community.
This formation program will greatly help young adults grow in specific areas to become mature Christian disciples. The men and women interested in the program do not need specific skills or qualities to enter into the program – a young adult simply needs to be willing to dedicate the time and have docility to the Holy Spirit.
FORMATION PILLARS
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HUMAN FORMATION
If we do not first have a firm foundation and understanding of who we are then we will be building on sand. Anchored in the teachings of Pope St. John Paul II’s Theology of the Body, young adults who journey through the leadership program will dive into the following, coming to know the depths of their own identity, the truths of who God created them to be, and develop skills to grow ever deeper in these realities. |
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SPIRITUAL FORMATION
We are made for relationship. As young adults journey deeper in becoming mature Christian disciples they will come to recognize this truth. More than anything, we are made for relationship with God. Through intentional practice and growing in prayer, participants will come to know and deepen their relationship with God. |
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VIRTUE & SELF-GIFT
“Man, who is the only creature on earth which God willed for itself, cannot fully find himself except through a sincere gift of himself” (GS 24). What value is it to know ourselves and know who God calls us to be, but not pursue growth towards that call? Through the formation program, young adults will discover concrete and applicable ways to grow in virtue, especially chastity, and an understanding of how to be a self-gift to others. |
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MISSIONARY SPIRITUALITY
“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age” (Mt. 28:19-20). Fully alive and truly free, young adults will learn how to live a missionary spirituality in order to return to their parish and community to make disciples of others. This is the ultimate mission of the young adult formation program. |
THE FORMATORS
FAQ'S
I DON'T HAVE EXPERIENCE AS A LEADER, IS THE NEW HORIZON LEADERSHIP FORMATION PROGRAM FOR ME?
Absolutely! Participants who enter into the New Horizon program are not required to have specific qualifications or unique qualities that distinguish them as leaders. In fact, the whole purpose of the program is to form young adults as mature Christian disciples who boldly step out on mission to evangelize the people living within the boundaries of their church parish. You will receive throughout the first year of formation a great foundation for servant leadership. All that is asked of you is to remain docile to the Holy Spirit, and to firmly commit to the structure of the program throughout the two years.
I HAVE A LOT OF COMMITMENTS, IS IT OKAY THAT I COME TO SOME OF THE SESSIONS, BUT NOT ALL OF THEM?
It is great to have commitments in life, but we ask anyone who is joining the New Horizon Leadership Formation Program to firmly commit to being at every session during the first year and to maintain commitment throughout the second year in whatever evolves to look for you specifically in that year. We understand that vocational responsibility comes first, and that emergencies or other important commitments come up so we have built in allotted absences into the program. However, if you are not able to commit full heartedly to the whole of the program once it starts and will only be showing up when it is convenient then at this time New Horizon is not for you.
WILL THERE BE ANY TYPE OF WORK REQUIRED OF ME OUTSIDE OF THE SESSIONS?
There will never be any homework assigned to you during the first year of New Horizon. We will encourage you with regular challenges, and ask you to check in with your small group on those throughout the program, but there will never be any required work or assignments during the first year. When we move into the second year of the program, the commitment and requirements will be unique to each participant depending on where they feel called on mission. This will be made clear as you approach the second year.
WHAT HAPPENS IF I MISS TOO MANY SESSIONS?
Missing too many sessions throughout the formation year of the program will greatly inhibit your formation in New Horizon. As stated in an above answer, we are seeking to form a community of mature Christian disciples. By missing too many sessions, this formation will be hindered, and because of this we will ask for you to step out of the program at this time and discern if you would like to return in the future to join a different cohort. Missing too many sessions also affects small group dynamics which is critical to the growth of community within the cohort.
TWO YEARS IS A BIG COMMITMENT, WHY IS THE PROGRAM SO LONG?
Two years is a big commitment, but in order for us to effectively respond to the Lord’s command to, “make disciples of all nations” it is critical that we are well formed to live a life as a witness to our faith and to have an understanding of a missionary spirituality. Before we set out on a mission, it is important to know who we are as unique and unrepeatable gifts made in the image and likeness of God. This takes time, and we believe the two years participants commit to this program are a strong foundation in realizing this identity and living in freedom through it.
IF I MISS A SESSION, HOW CAN I STAY CAUGHT UP WITH MY COHORT?
Missing sessions will happen, that's expected! Every session will be recorded and a video file and playlist of all past sessions will be provided to you. In the event you miss a session, or if you just want to go back and watch a session again, you will be able to do so!
who do i communicate with or direct my questions to during the program?
The site that you will be attending each week will have a site team taking care of everything for you at your location and journeying with you each week. Our site directors have been formed by our team here at Echo Community to authentically bring you the fullness of New Horizon. They are in regular contact and fellowship with the Young Adult Outreach Director for Echo Community and should be able to answer any and all of your questions. Your site director will be the person you contact if you are missing a session or need help with something.
what does a session look like each week?
Sessions each week will vary depending on what the session objectives are. However, by enlarge we follow a general structure where over the course of two hours there is formational content presented by an expert or experienced witness in the content area, small group time guided by a number of questions provided by the presenter, and also time for larger group discussion that is facilitated by the site team.
will i be able to ask questions of the presenters?
Possibly! Depending on the evening and time of your site’s weekly sessions, you could possibly be able to ask questions live to our presenters. If your site has their session at the same time as our presenter site, then you will be receiving the session live and will be afforded the opportunity to submit your question to our presenter. If your site does not meet at the same time as the presenter site then you will be able to receive the Q&A discussion that will be recorded on video and watch it later. Our hopes are that the most common questions will be answered during the Q&A portion of the formation night.