The Junior Youth Spiritual Empowerment Program helps young adolescents (ages 11–15) recognize their unique qualities and direct them toward service to their communities.
The Junior Youth Spiritual Empowerment Program (JYSEP) seeks to unlock the intellectual and spiritual capacities of young adolescents, generally between the ages of eleven and fifteen, and to direct them toward service to humanity. At this pivotal age, they begin to move beyond childhood and to develop and strengthen fundamental concepts about their identity and the role they will play in society.
Given the importance of belonging to a group of peers at this stage of life, the program is organized around a group of friends who are accompanied by an "animator" — a mentor who builds genuine bonds of friendship with the participants, encouraging them to develop these capacities and direct them towards service to their communities.
Through study and service, junior youth engage in meaningful conversations centered on stories from the lives of other young people their age, helping them explore profound concepts such as true friendship, intellectual and spiritual excellence, and service to others. With the guidance of their animator, they reflect on these ideas and put them into practice by designing and carrying out service projects that contribute to the betterment of their surroundings.
Alongside this, junior youth participate in a range of artistic, cultural, and recreational activities shaped by their interests and diverse backgrounds, strengthening collaboration and building deep bonds of friendship. They also take part in monthly camps that bring together junior youth from different communities — a joyful space to share what they are learning and to experience being part of a collective movement united by a common purpose.
Tap an element to explore — each group weaves these threads together in different proportions, shaped by their own interests and context.
Junior youth read and discuss stories drawn from the lives of other young people their age — wrestling with big ideas like true friendship, intellectual and spiritual excellence, and service to others. Conversations are open and real; the animator listens more than they speak.
Ideas move from the page into the neighborhood. With the guidance of their animator, junior youth plan and carry out service projects that respond to a real need they see around them — a garden, a tutoring session, a cleanup, a performance — growing a sense of purpose and responsibility toward their community.
Music, drama, drawing, poetry, dance — shaped by each group's interests and cultural backgrounds. Artistic expression is how junior youth sharpen their voices, share what matters to them, and build confidence in putting their ideas into the world.
Collaboration is the through-line — not competition. Through games, sports, and recreational activities, junior youth strengthen friendships, learn to include everyone, and experience joy together as a group.
Once a month, junior youth from different communities come together for a camp — a joyful space to share what they are learning, meet friends from neighboring groups, and experience being part of a larger movement united by a common purpose.
Junior youth groups work through a sequence of 14 texts developed specifically for this age. All of the titles are concerned with developing language skills and the power of expression. Some in the first category also address mathematical concepts and social issues, while others seek to prepare young people to approach the investigation of physical, social and spiritual reality in a scientific manner.
Below is a look at a handful of them — tap a book to see what's inside.
The first text in the junior youth sequence. Through short stories about young people of the same age, participants become aware of the powers latent within them and begin an honest conversation about the qualities they want to strengthen in themselves.
Follows a young refugee adjusting to a new city as he explores the relationship between true joy, reliance on God, and service to humanity. Junior youth come to distinguish temporary happiness from a deeper, lasting joy — one that grows from inner certainty and contributing positively to the world around them.
Follows young people who face difficult circumstances yet learn to recognize their own capacity to contribute to positive change. Junior youth explore what hope looks like in practice, and how small acts of service can light the way for others.
Strengthens the ability to discern constructive from destructive patterns in the world. Through vivid stories and open discussion, junior youth practice making thoughtful moral choices — the daily decisions that keep them walking a path of integrity.
Builds the habit of reading deeply, reflecting, and drawing insight from sacred writings and meaningful texts. Participants learn to let what they read shape how they see the world, how they speak, and how they act.
The program supports junior youth in developing the ability to express themselves with clarity and precision while strengthening their reading, writing, and comprehension skills. It offers opportunities for artistic expression, critical thinking, and the development of presentation skills, helping participants gain confidence in sharing their ideas and experiences.
At the same time, junior youth build strong moral foundations by learning to make thoughtful choices through a process of action and reflection, exploring complex situations and their implications. In parallel, the program cultivates spiritual perception — helping junior youth recognize the constructive and destructive forces at work in their environment, reflect more deeply on their experiences, and direct their actions toward their own well-being and the well-being of their community.
Junior youth participants and animators share their experience with the program.
Through education children recognize the importance of respecting the interests of others and see as a sacred obligation service to their neighbors.
Contact us to find a junior youth group in your area or to become trained as an animator.
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