Pastoral care is a core ministry and spiritual practice in Unitarian Universalism. Youth should have the support of good active listening from their peers, adults who can listen to them, and access to the formal pastoral care of the congregation such as religious educator and minister.
Youth should be part of the caring web of their community. They can support others by sending cards, making meals, and listening to peers. And they should be considered by the religious professionals and pastoral care team as vital members of the community in need of support and celebration.
Youth deserve adults competent in developmentally appropriate pastoral care and need specific care around their identities, particularly around gender, sexual orientation, and ethnicity and race. (link to Exploring Identity page below)
If a youth is in crisis please see our UUA crisis management, mandatory reporting, and trauma response pages.
Resources to build youth capacity for pastoral care
- Workshop on Learning Active Listening
- Peer chaplain training
- Unconditional Love activities
Resources to build adult capacity for developmentally appropriate pastoral care
- Peer chaplain training
- Webinar on Pastoral Care to/with Youth
- Ministry With Youth Renaissance Module
- Attention to physical space for pastoral care
Specific resources
- Supporting youth with eating disorders (video)
- Families and loss (PDF)
- Depression
- Bullying
- Suicide in a youth group
- Addiction
