We are committed to be a Church that experiences intergenerational faith formation. There are eight pillars that support these experiences, and the pillar we identified at a congregational workshop last year was Mentoring.
Therefore, we have launched our first Mentoring programme that started in October 2020. It was great to be able to match up a number of young people with older members of the congregation and we look forward to hearing some of their experiences as the programme continues.
Mentoring is intended to build meaningful and accountable partnerships to create effective one-to-one discipleship. Mentors commit to a wholesome and positive partnership to the benefit of forming faith for the young person concerned.
mentoring programme details
Being a mentor
A mentor is a person or a couple who takes a special, personal interest in helping guide a young person in their faith journey. This will involve a number of pre-arranged meetings, with parental consent, on a one-to-one basis (or as a couple), in an appropriate venue. The mentoring sessions are confidential unless it is considered that there is any risk of harm to any person.
To become a mentor you must:
be at least 25 years old (so that you’ve got adequate life experience to draw upon)
be a member of St John’s
be well-known in the community and in good standing with St John’s
have good character, faith in Christ, and be committed to teaching the next generation
be trustworthy, respect confidentiality, and be warm, positive, and encouraging
agree to undergo a Police Check and to provide a character reference.
Being a Mentee
A mentee is a young person who is seeking personal and spiritual development and growth with the help of an experienced and knowledgeable adult in our community.
To be a mentee you must:
be aged between 14 and 25
have permission from your parents/caregivers to participate in the Mentoring programme.
We also expect that you will demonstrate commitment to your own self-development by:
being proactive in contacting your mentor, arranging meetings, and completing any tasks or progress reviews between meetings
appreciating the role of your mentor, and that is a a voluntary arrangement.
Programme length
Applications are now open and close on 24 August.
The programme itself begins from the first week of Term 4 (11 October 2020) and runs to the end of Term 3 2021. You must be able to fully commit to this whole time period when signing up to the Mentoring programme.
When the programme officially ends, you are still welcome to continue your partnership informally if both of your wish to do so.
Important dates
10 August 2020: Applications open
16 August 2020: Mentoring info session
24 August 2020: Applications close (5 pm)
21 September 2020: Mentees and mentors advised of possible match
27 September 2020: Mentor training session (compulsory for all matched mentors)
11 October 2020: Commissioning and mentor/mentee lunch