Youth E-Magazine November 2010 - Catholic Diocese of Parramatta

DIOCESE OF
PARRAMATTA
The Spotlight is on:
Holy Family Youth
Group, Emerton

ALIVE AGAIN IN CHRIST
The theme “ALIVE AGAIN IN CHRIST” was made tangible when the young people came
together with their shepherd Bishop Anthony to celebrate the Youth Mass at the
Diocesan family. The youth of Penrith parish didn’t space a stone to organize this great
event in their parish. Their meticulous planning and committed service under the able
leadership of Fr. Chris De Souza, the parish priest helped the young hearts to have that profound
God experience.
The evening began with Adoration to the Blessed Sacrament and opportunities of the Sacrament of
Reconciliation. Number of young people availed themselves of this wonderful
opportunity to take the ‘Load off’ their hearts. The presence of Christ amidst us
gave the consolation that we are accepted back into the family of God when we turn
back to him with contrition.
The Eucharistic celebration began with the melodious singing of the youth choir.
Bishop Anthony was the principal celebrant accompanied by number of priests
across the Diocese. In his homily Bishop spoke on the meaning of ‘Eucharist’ as
thanks giving. He very well connected the Gospel message on the theme of thanks
giving by the Samaritan leper.
The young people from our Diocese participated in the Mass very
enthusiastically. After the Mass everyone gathered in the hall for
a light supper. There were varieties of food spread out well. It
was a good opportunity to catch up with the youth of other
parishes as well. A dynamic game was conducted to ‘break the ice’.
After which the videos which were filmed at the Diocesan Camp
were screened. The Bishop was presented with the canvas
decorations prepared by the youth groups of the Diocese. The
night ended with the opportunity for a group photo.
Thanks to Bishop who celebrated the Mass and gave a beautiful message in his homily.
Thanks to Fr. Chris and his youth group who were so generous to make the day a possibility.
Thanks to the Priests and religious who came in large numbers to show their solidarity to the youth
of the Diocese.
Thanks to one and all who participated in the event with great spirit.
Now it is our task to work to get more and more young people to go to World Youth day in 2011. We
need to take Jesus to others and others to Jesus. Let us work together in this God given Mission.
Fr. Suresh Kumar MSFS, Diocesan Youth Director.

MELBOURNE YOUTH MINISTRY CONVENTION
OCTOBER 2010
At the start of October, a group of five of us came together drawn by our involvement with young
people in the Parramatta diocese, to attend the Australian Catholic Youth Ministry Convention in
Melbourne. Some of us did not know each other well at the beginning, but were bonded during the
insightful three-day weekend convention attended by 400 delegates from around the nation.
We arrived in Melbourne in advance to attend the World Youth Day 2011 debrief in the Diocesan
Youth Office prior to the convention also allowing time to enjoy the city sights and cafés, including
an uplifting bike ride along the Yarra River getting us in touch with our youthful side. It was a nice
lead up to the weekend that provided keynote addresses and workshops facilitating youth ministry.
Presenters from around Australia and the USA were present
to provide formation to the attendants. One message that
stuck with me was that a common element in vibrant youth
ministry was its passionate leaders. And that youth want
relationships, rather than being merely ministered to. The
convention presented creative ways in how ministers can get
more connected and in touch with the youth and foster their
journey of spiritual growth.
There was opportunity to also meet and network with others
working in youth ministry from around Australia, sharing in fellowship and from each other’s
experiences and ideas. A vast number of workshops were available, providing valuable tips, tools and
resources geared at successful youth ministry. One workshop I attended raised awareness for the
care of Youth Ministers themselves, to avoid getting burned out, management of stress and the
importance of formation and training.
An inspiring keynote address by the charismatic Bishop Joseph Grech highlighted the final day of
the convention. Bishop Grech spoke passionately about living out and celebrating our identity as
Catholics. “To be chosen by God for all eternity to be more and more like Jesus”. Bishop Grech
revitalized the audience calling for Jesus to live in us and to stand for Jesus in our ministry and
lives.
It has been a wonderful experience attending the Youth Ministry Convention. It has certainly
equipped me with an improved outlook in approaching youth ministry. There is much joy in journeying
with others as we share in
fellowship and in service.
Ben Ruiz, GenChristi Youth
Group

Upcoming Diocesan Events:
Prayer for Our Lives & Purpose - Thursday 4th November 7pm
A new gathering every 1st Thursday of the month: Adoration,
Inspiration, A Shared life Story with youth/young adults and others.
Starts at 7pm. Share a café meal with others at 8pm or be on your way.
Where: St Patrick’s Cathedral, 1 Marist Place, Parramatta.
For more details contact: Fr Paul, Vocations Director- 0419 219 819,
Fr Suresh, Diocesan Youth Director - 8838 3419
Photo (Hamilton Lund)
From the Diocesan Youth Office:
Panel Discussion with Bishop Anthony Fisher OP, Parents and Youth - 5th November
Bishop Anthony, Parents and Youth who are part of the Panel will discuss on the Generation Gap and
on challenges that face the youth in today's society.
Place: St Patrick's Cathedral Hall, 1 Marist Place, Parramatta
Time 7pm.
Light supper provided. Please RSVP by 1st November to Catholic Youth Parramatta (CYP) on 8838
3418 or youth@parra.catholic.org.au
WYD 2011 Intellectual Formation Program - 4th December
‘Scripture: God’s Talk: In the Bible
Guest Speaker: Peter Holmes
Time & Place: 1pm - 4pm at Campion College, 8-14 Austin Woodbury Place, Old
Toongabbie.
You are invited to join in a friendly volleyball game afterwards. Please RSVP by 1st
December for afternoon tea, to 8838 3418 or youth@parra.catholic.org.au
Diocesan Youth Christmas Celebration - 12th December
Join in as we bring to a close 2010 with a celebration of fun, thanksgiving to God and Christmas
cheer!
Don't forget to invite your friends for a great night of enjoyment!
Place: St Patrick's Cathedral Hall, 1 Marist Place, Parramatta
Time: 7pm

Soul Food at the Tavern - 26th October
A young adult group for ages 18-35 which meets at The Tavern in Victoria Avenue at Castle Hill on
the last Tuesday of each month from 6.30 - 9.00pm.
This is your opportunity to hear about their experiences and what makes them so passionate about
their ministry. Food and drinks are available. More information can be found on (Soul Food)
facebook group.
Big Night In With St Aidan’s and Some Ice Cream! - 20th November
St Aidan’s Youth are hosting a WYD Fundraising Concert to raise funds for their parishioners taking
part in the ‘Planted & Built Up Youth Volunteers Program’ to attend WYD, Madrid 2011.
The show will be at St. Aidan's, 1 Adelaide Street, Rooty Hill at the Mary MacKillop Hall. The
show starts at 7:30pm and finishes at 10pm. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5.00 kids.
Contact Jay-Ann Gutierrez on 0425 890 309 or email jiggyj92@hotmail.com for more information.
Beatification of Chiara Luce Badano - A Saint at 18! - 28th November
Chiara Luce Badano was born in 1971 in Sassello, Italy. The family got to know the Focolare
Movement’s ideal of unity when Chiara was 8 years old and discovered a new way of living and
thinking with this spirituality.
Around the age of 17, she was diagnosed with
a malignant bone cancer. She offered every
new suffering without hesitation, “It’s for
you, Jesus; if you want it, I want it too.” She
left for heaven on October 7, 1990. Recently
a young boy in Italy was dying from meningitis
and his organs were failing him. His parents
learned of Chiara Luce’s story and sought her
intercession. He recovered fully and a panel of
doctors has ruled out any medical explanation. Pope Benedict XVI recognized this event as a
miraculous healing last December. Chiara Luce Badano will be beatified on 25 September 2010 in
Rome. The Focolare Movement are also planning a local youth event in Sydney to give young people
a chance “to get to know her”...
Date: Sunday 28th November 2010
Time: 6:30pm BYO dinner
7:30pm-9:00pm time with Chiara Luce
9:00pm supper and time to chat
Address: St Fiacre Parish Hall, 98 Catherine St, Leichhardt

Advent Journey for Young Adults - 28th Novemner
The Schoenstatt Sisters invite all young adults to join them in the ‘Advent Journey’
on Sunday 28th November from 3-9pm at Mount Schoenstatt, 230 Fairlight Rd,
Mulgoa.
Registrations essential by 24th November to Sr. M. Julie - juliebrcar@gmail.com
or 0408 738 334
VINNIES YOUTH
Vinnies has several programs in the Parramatta Diocese that are always in need of
enthusiastic volunteers. Buddies Mentoring:Safe, green and healthy is an exciting new
program and there are the regular Buddies Days which many of you may be familiar
with already.
If you are aged 16-29 and can spare 4 hours once a month or through school holidays
we'd love to hear from you. For more information or to register your interest please contact
Penelope Foster on 9689 1900 or penelope.foster@vinnies.org.au
Schoenstatt Girl’s Camp – September 2010
Do Angels exist? How is God close to us? 31 girls aged between 9 -15yrs and 7 youth leaders
gathered at Mount Schoenstatt from 26 th to 29 th September.
In group sessions, outdoor activities, games, prayer in the
Shrine and at meals God’s presence was tangible in our camp
community. We tried to be like angels for one another. We
also realised how God sends us messages, guides and
protects us through the invisible angels who care for each
one of us.
The camp team was led by Sr. M. Luka, who together made
the camp a great experience for all the girls who attended.
They might one day also be a camp leader like Amanda.
“I attended a camp when I was in year 7 back in 2001, and it was
definitely one of the most fun things I had ever done. I made new
friends and learned so many new things...
And this year’s camp was no different. Even though I may not have
been 11 years old anymore, and I wasn’t a participant, but a youth
leader. I was still able to make so many new friends and learn so many
things!
The girls were so beautiful and amazing to be around. It was surprising to see how much these girls
knew about God, and how, even though they might not have known everyone before they came into
the camp, they still made friends so easily and created bonds that I’m sure they will have for a long
time, maybe even when they start leading their own camps.”

Holy Family youth has significantly developed since World
Youth Day in Sydney 2008! Derived from 3 distinct youth
groups: Tongan Catholic Youth, Samoan Catholic Youth &
Youth For Christ, we strive to create a parish-based youth
group to bring together the many young people in our parish.
Guided by our awesome Jesuit priests, Fr. Edward Dooley & Fr.
Patrick Mullens, we endeavour to work together to find God in
all things, especially in our youth ministry.
We have a youth choir, in which we sing at the 6pm mass on the
2 nd Saturday of every month, and at the 10.30am mass on the
5 th Sundays. We also offer our services by cleaning the church
on the 2 nd weekend of every month, and give each member
the opportunity of hosting our spiritual nights on the last
Friday of every month. We also try wherever possible to
help our community.
We also enjoy attending the diocesan events! Our first
and most memorable experience was the Road to
Emmaus Youth Camp in Galston. We hope to continue
what we’ve established so far, and prepare ourselves
more fully for the next World Youth Day in Madrid,
Spain 2011!!!
Malia Lolesio
TESTIMONY by GWEN HARWOOD KITEAU
“I got involved by just showing up to one of the events.
It was a big step for me because I was never the type of
person to get involved in things. But in seeing the whole
vibrant environment of the youth inspired me. I had
received a text message about joining a youth
event, but I was dreading it. But surprisingly, I
had a blast; it was something out of my
comfort zone but I really enjoyed it, and
continued attending the youth events.
TESTIMONY by SALAMASINA ‘AHIO
“I became involved in the youth by being a part of the
Tongan Catholic Community Mount Druitt. You begin
your early childhood years in ECL, namely the
“Primary Sunday School”, and once you’ve finished
Year 12 or High School, and then you become a
member of the youth. So for me, it was a natural thing
joining the youth group, of
which I’m proud to be a strong
member of the HOLY FAMILY
parish youth group. Being a
part of the youth group has
played a significant role in my
life. It has helped me create a
special and strong connection
to God, especially through such
awe experiences as World
Youth Day in Sydney, 2008; youth retreat camps,
spiritual nights & other social events. I’ve learnt that
you don’t need to be at church 24/7 to feel close to
God. God is always with you through everything! And
it is with this that we too, need to find God in all
things. There are three main things I carry with me,
through this spiritual journey of life, i.e. LOVE,
HOPE & FAITH, in which I encounter everyday
to accomplish my hopes and dreams;
especially at this time in preparing to
attend the next World Youth Day in
Madrid, Spain 2011!
Joining the youth has helped me perceive the world with
a broader mind, and has also helped me make some changes
about myself that would help me strive to do more in overcoming
the many obstacles I face in my daily life. I have learnt to have
more trust and faith in myself, in which I hope to endure on”.
If you would like to know more about the youth at Holy Family, Emerton, please
contact: Malia Lolesio: 0400289278 : mia_lole@msn.com Christina Tuuhetoka:
0403563486 : ctuuhetoka@hotmail.com

Saint Martin of Tours
Feast day: November 11 - Patron of Soldiers
Born in 315 or 316 in Pannonia, a Roman province that includes modern Hungary, Martin
came into a world in transition. It was Martin's own spiritual yearning and hunger that
led him to secretly knock on the door of the local Christian church and beg to be made
a catechumen -- when he was ten years old. In contemplative prayer, he found the
time to be alone with God that he ached for.
He was forced to join the army at 15. Martin found this so far removed from his
desire to be a Christian monk that he had to be held in chains before taking the military oath.
It was on this garrison duty at Amiens that the event took place that has been portrayed in art
throughout the ages. On a bitterly cold winter day, the young tribune Martin rode through the gates,
probably dressed in the regalia of his unit As he approached the gates he saw a beggar, with clothes
so ragged that he was practically naked. No one reached out to help him. Martin, overcome with
compassion, took off his mantle, slashed it in two with his sword, handed half to the freezing man and
wrapped the remainder on his own shoulders. Many in the crowd thought this was so ridiculous a sight
that they laughed and jeered but some realized that they were seeing Christian goodness. That night
Martin dreamed that he saw Jesus wearing the half mantle he had given the beggar. Jesus said to the
angels and saints that surrounded him, "See! this is the mantle that Martin, yet a catechumen, gave
me." When he woke, it was the "yet a catechumen" that spurred Martin on and he went immediately to
be baptized. He was eighteen years old.
He felt a strong responsibility to the missionary conversion of those who still held to various
non-Christian beliefs. In those early days of Christianity such old beliefs survived in abundance. He did
not attempt to convert these people from a high pulpit or from far away. His method was to travel
from house to house and speak to people about God.
Article and photo provided by Catholic.org
Reprinted with permission of Catholic Online www.catholic.org http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=81
Saint Catherine Laboure (1806 - 1876)
Feast day: November 25
St. Catherine Laboure, virgin, was born on May 2, 1806. At an early age she entered the
community of the Daughters of Charity, in Paris, France. Three times in 1830 the Virgin
Mary appeared to St. Catherine Laboure, who then was a twenty-four year old novice.
On July 18, the first apparition occurred in the community's motherhouse. St. Catherine
beheld a lady seated on the right side of the sanctuary. When St. Catherine approached her, the
heavenly visitor told her how to act in time of trial and pointed to the altar as the source of all
consolation. Promising to entrust St. Catherine with a mission which would cause her great suffering,
the lady also predicted the anticlerical revolt which occurred at Paris in 1870.
On November 27, the lady showed St. Catherine the medal of the Immaculate Conception, now
universally known as the "Miraculous Medal." She commissioned St. Catherine to have one made, and to
spread devotion to this medal. At that time, only her spiritual director, Father Aladel, knew of the
apparitions. Forty-five years later, St. Catherine spoke fully of the apparitions to one of her superiors.
She died on December 31, 1876, and was canonized on July 27, 1947. Her feast day is November 25.
Article and photo provided by Catholic.org
saint_id=266
Reprinted with permission of Catholic Online www.catholic.org http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?