"They're looking for happiness," he said.
The second lesson discusses how God is the source of happiness and talks about who God is.
Other lesson topics include salvation history, divine revelation, and the person of Jesus Christ. One lesson addresses the question "Why be Catholic?" Lessons examine the Trinity, Church, the sacraments, Mary and the Saints, the role of the Beatitudes, and how to build virtue and the kingdom of God.
The lessons review the previous week's material then begin with an opening prayer. A video presentation is divided into three segments to allow for workbook activities and small group discussion. The lessons include a story of a saint and a challenge of the week that encourages teens to live out their faith. Each lesson closes with prayer.
Each lesson, Stefanick said, is "constantly bringing them to an encounter with Jesus, to think about who he is, who they are, what life is about, and how to fulfill their purpose in God."
"This is structured to change lives, not just to convey truths," he added.
The presentations aim to be "inherently engaging" in style. The lessons includes contributions from various Catholic teachers who Stefanick said are "some of the best youth ministers in the country."
He said it is essential that "Chosen" takes place in "small group discipleship" to help teens form "meaningful and mentoring" relationships while they are learning the faith.
He said the program aims to create meaningful experiences that make conversions permanent, in part because participants are encouraged to keep in contact with each other after the program is finished.
Stefanick stressed that confirmation preparation may be the last chance to reach many young Catholics who are not firm in their faith. Some statistics indicate as many as 80 percent of young Catholics stop going to mass by age 23.
He said confirmation programs sometimes fall into the error of being "as engaging as possible, sacrificing content with the sad presumption that content is not engaging." Other programs stress the truths of faith to the point where program leaders don't try to "meet kids where they are by making it as engagingly beautiful and compelling as possible.
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"Chosen" study materials include a DVD set for a confirmation preparation group, a leader's guide for facilitators, and a family pack composed of a student workbook, a parent's guide and a sponsor's guide.
Archbishop Charles Chaput of Philadelphia has said that the program "speaks to the hearts and minds of our youth."
"This is a new level of catechesis that uses modern methods to transmit eternal truths," he said.
Kevin J. Jones is a senior staff writer with Catholic News Agency. He was a recipient of a 2014 Catholic Relief Services' Egan Journalism Fellowship.