PYC National Office |
---|
LIFE AND WORK OF THE YOUTH DEPARTMENT OF THE PCCPreambleWe would like to begin this right-up by the definition of the Church as well as her mission. According to Article six of the 1198 edition of the Constitution of the Presbyterian Church in Cameroon, the church is defined as: The community of the people of God, who through the work of the Holy Spirit, come together in the name of Jesus Christ. She is the pilgrim people of God's salvation, through word and deed, as she journeys towards God's coming Kingdom. The church is the Institution that witnesses to right, justice, truth and peace in the social, economic and political life of the country in which she lives. This is done on the basis of love and forgiveness, in obedience to to the word of God, as recorded in the Holy Bible. On the other hand, Arcticle seven of the same constitution of the PCC States that the mission of the church is to proclaim the Good News of God through Jesus Christ, in word and action. The proclamation of this Good News includes preaching the word, teaching, healing... In order to accomplish her mission, the church has several service arms and departments. One of such departments is the Youth Department. The life and work of this department was begun as far back as 1886. This is when the Evangelical Missionary Society of Basel (Basel Mission) in Switzerland arrived Cameroon. The Basel Mission (BM) felt that in order to engender the community of her work, children of the new convents (adults) should be adequately nurtured in Christian principles. This will enable them (these children) to effectively take over the work of the church from the old. Therefore, in every established adult congregation, there was the children's service commonly called the Sunday School. The Birth Of The Youth DepartmentIn brief, after Several Years of the work of the Basel Mission in Cameroon, she saw the need of constituting the youth of the Church into a veritable crop for Christian witness. Thus in 1957, a Bible Study or Bible Reading Fellowship group (BRF) was introduced in Beach in Victoria. It constituted youths of 18 to abouth 40 years old. Later in 1958, the group was named fellowship of Youths (FOY). In 1959, and with the birth of other FOY youth groups in Ombe, Sasse College, Tiko and CDC Bota, the Youth Movement of the Church was born and it was called the Christian Youth Fellowship (CYF). The Rev. A.C. Maiz of Swiss nationality was appointed the Youth Secretary. This means he was given charge over youth activities of the entire Presbyterian Church in Cameroon or (West Cameroon as was the case then). The Work Of The DepartmentThe Youth Department of the PC has six units or branches. These are the units under which the department presently functions.
Aim of the work of YPMotto of The YPEverything with Christ (Colosians 3:17).
The Promise of the YPSince I have been a YP, I know that Jesus Christ is my only Lord, I promise that I will do everything with Him in my work, in my words and in my thoughts. I shall always allow him to lead me.
Note should be taken of the fact that the YP members are at a period of their life where they face puberty. Thus, the boys and girls at this stage are helped to know how to face amd manage this stage of their life visa-a-vis the biological changes that take place in their bodies. The Youp Presbyterians is what is called boys scout in some Churches. There are 788 YP groups in the country with a membership of over 15,296 boys and girls. The Presbyterian Church in Cameroon afirms that Youths are leaders of tomorrow. Thus the Church is interested in their moral, spiritual, and social well-being. Raison D'etreThe raison d'etre establishing Youth Centres is to take youths off the streets and out of old cars into a centre where they can find vocational training, creative leisure and spiritual nurture. The first Youth Centre was built in 1967 in Victoria.
To achieve the above objectives, the Church runs five Youth Centres in the countryand in which she runs a number of vocational activities.These include: Computer Training, Tailoring, Traditional dress making, Crafts, catering etc. We also prepare youths for public examinations such as the General Certificate of Education Examination in the Ordinary level. The Centres also have social clubs such as Drama, Music, HIV/AIDS and sports. These activities are aimed at helping the underprivileged youths to cope with the exigencies of life. |