2022 MS and HS Summer Youth Retreat

Key Verse

“If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”
(John 8:31-32)

Goals

Give them an opportunity to discuss, vent, and ask questions related to the modern day push of homosexuality, transgenderism, abortion, etc.
Day 1
- Provide a structure of defense against the issue of homosexuality in society
- Provide some answers about where homosexuality comes from, the history and negative social effects
- Address Current Events (e.g. House Bill 1557 "Don't say Gay Bill", Disney Supporting it, Schools Protesting it, etc.)
Day 2
- Clearly detail the role of men and women and their equality in God's eyes and in the Church
- Provide a structure of defense against the issue of abortion in society
- Address Current Events (e.g. Roe v Wade overturning)

Day 1 - Homosexuality

Resources

2022 SMF College book
HG Bishop Youssef on Truth
- Truth - HG Bishop Youssef
- Very systematic lecture about the Truth, how the Truth is defined, how to deal with someone sick with homosexuality, etc.
HG Bishop Youssef on Homosexuality
- Homosexuality - HG Bishop Youssef
Fr Antony Paul on Homosexuality
- https://stbasil.net/the-st-basil-podcast/2015/10/30/homosexuality-and-the-orthodox-church
- This lecture has a discussion on the role of "Nature" vs "Nurture" in homosexuality (among many other things)
Dr Julie Harren Hamilton
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C54CIxm-w44
- This lecture discusses the psychological aspects of why someone may develop homosexual tendencies. How does genetics play a role (i.e. only in the sense that your genetics may make you more sensitive). How does early childhood development play a role? Etc.
Voddie Baucham
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZkL3lT95vOU
- Dr Voddie Baucham is a Protestant Pastor who has been outspoken about the harm of Homosexuality, the fact that it is sin, and spoken against Christians who accept it
- This lecture is about the political side of the argument, and why Christians should not support them, and more importantly HOW TO ANSWER the common arguments that come from that side
Voddie Baucham
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJG9CtaBXeM
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F2nPRV8dmOk
- These two videos are about how homosexuality harms society, children/families, persons practicing it, etc.
Serving the Lost Sheep (STLS) 2019 Convention Material
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHD5sSnvcwQ
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9oySpetaj6c
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UMuFjGPZg18
- https://www.dropbox.com/s/n6s88x23hazmtip/Understanding%20Same-Sex%20Attraction-STLS.pdf?dl=0
- Fr Makary Ibrahim (may the Lord repose his pure soul) presented these slides at the convention

Outline

Introductory Topic: Truth
- Responsible Servants: Morcous
- What is Truth? What is Absolute Truth? Where do we get Truth?
- What about "that's just your opinion"?
- The goal is not to convince you that homosexuality is a sin - most of you are already convinced of that. The goal is to equip you with the tools and information needed to support your stance and to give a defense for your faith.
- Outline of the Day
Station 1: Where does Homosexuality Come From?
- Responsible Servants: Lisa, Maria, Andrew
- Nature vs Nurture
- How does genetics play a role?
- How does the role of parents play a role?
- How does society and the media play a role?
- Is there a spectrum of sexuality?
- Don't forget to include Bisexuality and Transgenderism in this discussion
Station 2: Biblical View of Homosexuality
- Responsible Servants: Morcous, Christy, Mark
- What is Sin?
- Homosexuality in the Old Testament
  - A common argument is that Christians "pick and choose" from the Old Testament. HG Bishop Youssef addresses this in the "Truth" Q&A and Voddie Baucham in his lecture
- How is it addressed in the New Testament?
  - A common argument is that the New Testament Greek words for homosexuality are a bad translation and should be "pedagogy" or "paedophilia"
Station 3: Social Effects of Homosexuality
- Responsible Servants: Mina, Reham
- Many people use the argument now of "it's not hurting you"
  - - Homosexuality DOES hurt everyone; it hurts the person practicing it, it hurts the children and families (homosexuals and heterosexuals), and it hurts the whole society.
  - Homosexuality harms the person practicing it (check SMF college book)
    - Spiritual harms
    - Social harms
    - Physical harms
  - Homosexuality harms children and families
    - Distorting the meaning of a family
    - Many homosexuals end up alone or without a family due to their lifestyle
    - Preventing children from having the benefit of Father and Mother
    - Imparts homosexuality in the minds of their children
  - Homosexuality harms society
    - Oversexualizing society and pushing their agenda
    - When the idea of a family is distorted, moral values are also distorted
    - Advocating and enticing many to sin under the idea of "finding their identity"
- Now that we know the harms of homosexuality .... what should we do?
- How do I hate the sin and love the sinner?
  - How about supporting the sin? (Romans 1)
  - By not being dragged into the claims that victimizes homosexuals
  - There are some ways that we support the sin without knowing (e.g. by putting pronouns on our profiles)
  - Marching for causes we do not understand (i.e. school marching against Do not say Gay bill)
  - Supporting celebrities/movies/shows with homosexual agenda
- Station 4: The Holiness of Marriage
- Responsible Servants: Jimmy, Mirolla, Ehab
- Definition of Marriage
- Biblical Marriage (Genesis + the Lord quoting Genesis)
- Church Rituals about Marriage
Closing Topic: Final Debate and the Apologetics of Homosexuality
- Responsible Servants: Susan + All Servants Participation
- Common arguments and fallacies and how to answer them
  - Starting at 40:36 in the Voddie Baucham Video
- We should prepare certain questions to ask them and await their response
- If they are unable to answer, then we will give them the answers and the way to respond to them
- How to deal with the ad hominem fallacy

Day 2 - Feminism

Resources

Feminism and Tradition - Fr Lawrence Farley
St Mary & St Phoebe Consecrated Sisters
- https://sisters.suscopts.org/2016/04/06/a-response-to-feminism-2/#
St Mark ATL Lectures
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-bFj9Nn88kc - The Role of Men and Women
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BRF593rNNtM - St Paul's Attitude Towards Women
- https://youtu.be/4FS5GBExt7U
- Third video to come 5/29
- This is a very good series from St Mark Atlanta titled "The Church has a Woman Problem??"
- It is very basic about the equality of honor and dignity, and the difference in roles
Stephanie Gray
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RGPudL_GQ3Y
- Abortion Apologist
- Most Anti-Abortion arguments center around the fact that the Embryo is a living human being and terminating him/her is murder. Unfortunately, now many pro-abortion people are saying "yes the Embryo is a living person, but the right for bodily autonomy is more important" - how do we answer that? - Stephanie Gray addresses that here
- Orthodox talks
- https://youtu.be/fwCNj7elM-A

Outline

Introductory Topic: Introduction to Feminism
- Responsible Servants: Morcous
- Relate Homosexuality to Feminism via Transgenderism - many feminists are supporting Transgenderism even to the point of not being able to "define woman"
- What is Feminism
  - Feminism is defined as "Advocacy for women's rights" and yet it has devolved to oppressing women...
  - They want men who call themselves women to use girls bathrooms, to play in girls' and women's sports, etc.
  - They want abortion and argue that it is a fundamental right and they can't function without it
- Importance of studying the topic of Feminism for Boys and for Girls
- Outline of the day
Station 1: Does it fight for women's rights?
- Responsible Servants: Lisa, Mark, Mina
- God made man and woman
- The role and equality of man and woman designed by God in the church
- Priesthood only for men?! Deaconship only for men?!?!?
  - The apostles would go to St. Mary for prayers and blessings, but St. Mary would go to them for Eucharist. I feel that if the servants and the youth have this concept clear in their minds, it's a good door for the rest of the topic
  - And this is the equality God has for us. And equality doesn't delete the fact that women has a role as well as men. No person on earth was/is greater than St. Mary, but she was never a priest, never administered any sacraments. The apostles also know and appreciate St. Mary so much that they would go for her opinion/blessings/prayers. St. John never left Jerusalem until her body's assumption.
  - God picked men to be the apostles, but also the women to anointed his body.
    But He also picked EVERYONE to be His disciple (you mentioned this part)
- Similarities and differences in men and women
Station 2: Does it fulfill God's will?
- Responsible Servants: Morcous, Mirolla, Andrew
- Feminism is the advocacy of women, and God's will is for the equality of men and women... so is feminism fulfilling God's will?
- This station should focus on the topic of Abortion
- Some believe that abortion is fundamental to the functioning of a woman... (e.g. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yZYQpge1W5s 12:00 "I think abortion rights are fundamental to women being able to function as full humans in society") and they call this feminism
- Some people ask why do we let a person live without a father? abortion is a solution for this. Why would someone that got raped live with a baby that she didn't want? abortion is a solution
  The real answer for these is that God has a plan (even if it seems unclear)
Station 3: Is it fair to everyone?
- Responsible Servants: Rafeek, Maivel, Maria
- Historically, Christianity was the first institution in the world to be openly for women and liberating to women...
  - Jesus accepted women to be His disciples, they had a very specific ministry (i.e. Luke 8) in providing financial support, meals, etc. He appeared to them first after His Resurrection
  - Christianity was open about accepting women and this attracted many women to join the faith in the Early Church
  - "There is neither male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus" (Galatians 3:28)
- The feminist movement disregards all of this and calls the Church unfair to women and oppressive to women
- The feminist movement is unfair in its judgmental attitude towards the church
Station 4: Does it help build society?
- Responsible Servants: Jimmy, Christy, Ehab
- Promotion of independence and individuality
Closing Topic: Final Debate
- Responsible Servants: Susan + All Servants Participation

Revision #56
Created 2022-04-11 05:47:15 UTC by Morcous Wahba
Updated 2025-11-25 06:52:50 UTC by Morcous Wahba