In the run-up to All Saints Day last autumn we spent a fair bit of time reading, debating and writing about Saints. We came across the life stories of some amazing individuals, and we researched what it takes to become a Saint, but we also found that it can be quite difficult to get hold of resources that help to explore the theme and are appealing to young people. So, maybe for the first time, we have come up with a broad collection of youth ministry resources, all around the theme 'Saints and Holiness'.

All of the resources in this collection can be used individually. However, you may wish to run a whole session on the topic ‘Saints and Holiness’, maybe to focus on All Saints Day or as part of a confirmation programme. Here’s a sample of how to run a 90 min session with the resources. Of course, there are many different ways of doing it; you will know best which fits to your group. See our Sample Session Plan

Info
So, what exactly is a Saint? Who decides if somebody becomes a Saint? How many Saints are there? And what are relics? To find the answers to these questions and many other interesting facts about Saints, see our Info Sheet!  

The Church's Teaching - to help understand the principles of why Saints are so relevant to the Catholic faith, we’ve done some of the reading and browsing for you and compiled some of the key points of the church’s teaching on sainthood, mainly taken from the Catechism. It might help you prepare for looking at ‘Saints and Holiness’ with a youth group.

Games
This is a collection of Games, all somehow connected to the Saints theme. They are great fun for teams of about 4 or 5 people and suitable for being played indoors. You can use 1 or 2 of the games as icebreakers at the beginning of your session, or use all of them to run a games evening.

Activities
If you wish to look at the theme in more depth, but want to keep it active and fun, use our Activities. These are designed to explore the life of Saints in a creative way and to get your group talking about it.  

Films
If your youth group enjoys films, this might be something for you. We looked at 3 different films which all feature some saintly theme. For each film you’ll find a brief synopsis and then ideas for discussion based on a clip rather than the whole movie. At the end of each film session there is a brief biography of a Saint that would relate to the theme of the particular film. Film Clips Introduction
Film Clips Resource

Music
The review of 'Handlebars' by the Flobots gives an opportunity to discuss with your group how they feel about choices & decision making in their lives and to affirm their confidence in their own abilities.   Handlebars Lyrics
Session Plan

Scripture
Here you will find 3 sessions that have been designed for youth groups to look at the theme of Saints and Scripture. There are discussion questions and suggestions for activities. Whereas the first session is most suitable for younger groups or those not used to talking about their faith, session 2 and 3 or for groups that are used to talking about their faith and keen to explore.

Saint Stories
Here you can read two articles that reflect on different aspects of holiness. The first one is a short biography of Caroline Chisholm,  a remarkable woman from Northampton who in the 19th century obtained fame for her tireless efforts to improve the situation of immigrants in Australia (read article). The 2nd article is a reflection by a young person from our diocese on his recent trip to India (read article) You can build in both stories in a session with your youth group and may find the included discussion starters helpful.