Youth activities

Young people in Lutheran congregations come together for evening meetings, worship services, trips, projects, concerts and camps – and sometimes just to sit, relax and talk, perhaps over a cup of coffee.  Confirmation school leads to youth activities, but you can participate in many activities even if you are not a church member.  Confirmation school and consequently the training of group leaders for confirmation schools of following age groups, however, form the backbone of youth activities in our congregations, and one must be confirmed before it is possible to become a group leader.  Even if you have passed the age of fifteen it is not too late to enter confirmation school and join the church (see the page Church membership and confirmation).

Every year almost five hundred young people in the Lutheran congregations of Vantaa undergo training (isoskoulutus in Finnish, hjälpledarutbildning in Swedish) to become group leaders for holding confirmation school.  A group leader like this (a ”biggie,” isonen in Finnish) does not really teach confirmation classes, but especially in a camp setting there are many tasks for a ”biggie.”  An experienced group leader can later be trained to be an assistant instructor.

Group leader training is given in each congregation in Vantaa, but every year in the autumn trainees and their instructors from our six Finnish-speaking congregations gather for a mass meeting called isoskoulutustapahtuma.

Young people can also serve as leaders of clubs for the ”early youth” (7–14 -year-olds).  Youth directors in congregations also provide training (kerhonohjaajakoulutus) for club leaders.

Every year a gospel music week (”Vantaa Gospel") is arranged with concerts in many parts of the city.

Young people in the Lutheran congregations of Vantaa have their own website www.hengis.fi.  You can also find contact information on the web page ”Nuoret” .

In our congregations we also have specialized youth workers to help young people whose life is troubled.  This ministry of the church to help young people and their families is called erityisnuorisotyö.  It is more like social work, but sometimes it also provides emergency help.  ”Operation Boot” (Saapas) in Vantaankoski and Hakunila and the youth support station (Nuorten tukipiste) in Rekola are a part of this work.

”Operation Boot” needs volunteers, but they must be at least eighteen years old.  Some congregations also have other kinds of activities for young adults (”K-18” etc.).