Christ Is Alive! YCW Training Day With Bishop Ralph Heskett

Last month the YCW held a national training day for our Adult Companions and Chaplains, with our guest speaker the Rt. Rev. Ralph Heskett, Bishop of Hallam and Designated Bishop for Youth.

The theme of the day was how we can respond to Pope Francis’ message in Christus Vivit (Christ is Alive) to make young people the “now” of God and support them to become leaders in both the Church and the World.

To start with, Bishop Ralph outlined his experience at the Synod on Young People, Faith and Vocational Discernment. This gathering brought together a global reality of young people in the world today, capturing the various perspectives, challenges and hopes of the universal Church.

The Synod followed a See-Judge-Act method, to structure the discussions around being missionary disciples, formation and accompaniment. This was all very interesting for the YCW adult companions and chaplains in attendance, as this is very much part of their mission within the movement.

Following this, the Bishop then spoke about Christus Vivit, highlighting the three truths within Pope Francis’ writings - God is Love; Christ Saves Us; He is Alive. The apostolic exhortation contained many passage to inspire the companions and the Bishop helpfully talked through some of these.

After questions about both the Synod and exhortation, there was time for the group to split off and talk through some of the issued raised and how we could respond to them within the YCW movement. There was also the opportunity to hear more about the YCW leadership programme and share experiences amongst the companions.

Marc Besford, the YCW National Training and Development Worker, said: “I would just like to thank Bishop Ralph for taking the time to come and share his experiences of both the synod and Christus Vivit. His commitment to supporting young people having their voice heard is a very welcome thing. We hope to see many more opportunities for young leaders to step up and be the change.”

YCW Movements Across Europe To Meet Next Month

Next month will see an important gathering of YCW movements across Europe, as they reflect on a range of issues facing young people and the world of work, and prepare for next year’s International Council in Ethiopia.

The meeting is being held in Portugal and will host over 150 young leaders from across the continent. Our movement in England and Wales will be sending a delegation from the National Team, a representative from our local groups and accompanied by the National Chaplain.

Amongst a wide range of activities, the young leaders will be participating in a Review of Life around the World of Work - sharing the realities of work from each movement and exploring how best we can support one another in response.

There will also be a workshop on Laudato Si, the second encyclical of Pope Francis. The focus on "care for our common home" laments environmental degradation and global warming, and calls all people of the world to take swift and unified global action. For many young people, the needs to respond to climate change is the biggest issue facing their generation and it is important that we do not separate this from concerns about work and studies.

In response to the recent Synod on Young People, Faith and Vocational Discernment, there will be a reflection on how we can respond to this led by one of the Portuguese Bishops who attended the Synod.

Overall, the gathering will be a great opportunity to share the realities of life from across Europe and grow in solidarity with one another.

SAVE THE DATE - YCW National Garden Party - 13th July 2019

The YCW is putting on a Garden Party at the National HQ for all members, Chaplains and supporters of the movement on 13th July 2019, from 11am.

All are invited to come along and join us to celebrate and share all that our movement does.

This will be a great opportunity to have some fun and get to know others in the YCW across England and Wales.

We will be having a BBQ, buffet and drinks available for those who can attend - so please drop us a line if you can make it.

DETAILS: YCW HQ, Eleventh Street, Trafford Park, Manchester, M17 1JF - from 11am (food served around 1pm)

YCW Is Supporting Parish Development In Salford Diocese

Since moving the YCW HQ up to Trafford Park, we have been working to re-establish the movement across the north east and west. However, as we are based in Salford Diocese, we have also worked to support local parishes, schools and Diocesan events where we can.

In this spirit, the YCW will be supporting an upcoming event for parishes across Salford Diocese. YCW leaders will be running two workshops on how to engage and involve young people and the community, as well as run a stall advertising the work of the YCW.

The Parish Social Action Conference is being held on Saturday 6th July, where the aim is to share best practice and take away new ideas to impact social change, speakers will also include Andy Burnham, Sir Peter Fahy & John Battle.

The Diocese have asked that people please register at www.dioceseofsalford.org.uk/parishes/events

St Anthony's Mass Coming Up

On Thursday June 13th at 7:30pm, St Anthony’s Centre for Church and Industry are organising a Mass to celebrate the feast of St Anthony of Padua.

The event is being held at St Anthony’s Church - next to the YCW HQ in Trafford Park - and all are welcome to attend.

ICYCW To Attend Centenary Conference Of The International Labour Organisation

Following the upheaval experience during and after the First World War, global policy-makers began to more seriously explore the idea of social justice and the world of work. At the 1919 Versailles Peace Conference, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) came to be and a draft constitution brought together workers, employers and governments as three equal parts of the new organisation’s mandate and work.

Action quickly followed and a series of Conventions - legally binding international labour standards - and Recommendations were adopted by the ILO’s 40 founding member states. This included fundamentals like an eight-hour work day and the 48-hour week, support for the unemployed, maternity protection, night work, a minimum working age and various health and safety protections.

Since then, the ILO has been at the forefront of improving the world of work - again, having a boost following the devastation of the Second World War. An essential part of this response was agreed in 1944 in the Declaration of Philadelphia, where it was stated: “labour is not a commodity” and that “poverty everywhere constitutes a danger to prosperity everywhere.”

In its 100th year, the ILO is exploring the “Decent Work” agenda - which seeks to prioritise the quality of employment alongside the quantity - as well as the rapidly changing nature of work due to technology, demographics, automation and climate change.

The ICYCW will be attending as observers at the Conference, alongside a wider group of Catholic-inspired organisations and NGOs.

As we will be sending a representative from the England and Wales movement, we will give regular updates and a review of the event when it is over.

Please keep all the participants in your prayers and we hope for an outcome that continues to promote the dignity of work and of the human person.