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PASTOR GENERAL'S REPORT, SEPTEMBER 9, 1983
PAGE 5
Y.O.U. UPDATE
Y.E.S. Progress Report
The Youth Opportunities United office in Pasadena has received many posi
tive comments concerning the Youth Bible Lessons, as well as a number of
questions about the overall progress of the Y.E.S. program, Evaluation
Meetings and schedules for the upcoming academic year. We hope to answer
many of those questions in this report.
The Youth Educational Services program is based on a monthly Bible Corre
spondence Course for children ages 5-13. The course, when completed, will
comprise nine different grade levels of 12 lessons each (plus the Fall and
Spring festival editions of each level). They are written specifically
with the vocabulary and comprehension of each level in mind.
Mr. Herbert W. Armstrong, who is very interested in the education of the
Church's youth, has established the goals and purposes for the Y.E.S. pro
gram. This education program is by far the most important aspect of Y.O.U.
and is designed to teach children the who, what, when, where, why and how of
the Bible. Mr. Armstrong feels that the Youth Bible Lessons are vitally
important tools to aid parents in instructing their children in the basic
principles of Christian living.
The Y.E.S. program has been growing rapidly. Youth Bible Lessons are pres
ently mailed to over 75 different countries around the world. Estimates
for 1983 show that we will have printed over 500,000 copies of the lessons.
The course is scheduled to be completed during the 1983-84 academic year.
Y.E.S. Academic Year
We have recently started a new academic year for the Y.E.S. program in the
Northern Hemisphere. It began in August with lesson 1 and will continue
through to the following July with lesson 12. Those who receive the lessons
in the Southern Hemisphere will begin the academic year in January with
lesson 1 and continue through to December with lesson 12. The two festival
issues are mailed just prior to the Spring and Fall Holy Day seasons.
After a child has received lesson 12, he or she is automatically advanced to
the next level before receiving lesson 1 at the start of the next academic
year. Children who are considered NONChurch youth will receive a renewal
notice in May (Northern Hemisphere) and must reply by July in order to con
tinue their enrollment in the program. For the Southern Hemisphere, a re
newal notice will be mailed in October and a reply is needed by December.
(Currently there are over 2,500 nonChurch youths enrolled.)
Evaluation Meetings
The Pastor is responsible for seeing that a monthly Y.E.S. Evaluation Meet
ing is held for all levels of the course. The time of month the meetings
are held should allow for the children to receive and study their lessons
beforehand. These meetings are not to be conducted during the Sabbath ser
vice, and lessons should be completed at home with parental help and guid
ance before the child attends the Evaluation Meeting. However, the child
should be allowed to attend the Evaluation Meeting if he has not completed
his lesson.