Media Release: July 10, 2008The excitement of World Youth Day is building and parishes, schools, movements and youth ministry teams are being invited to tap into that excitement in a lasting way with a new program aimed at connecting young people more deeply with Jesus Christ and their parish community.
All eyes will be on Sydney next week as the youth of the world join with the Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, for a festival of prayer, faith enrichment and fun.
The Director of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference’s National Office for Evangelisation, Marita Winters, herself a veteran of three World Youth Days, said the week would spark a deeper awareness of faith in many young pilgrims and perhaps in some young people who for one reason or another were not able to make the pilgrimage.
“As the Body of the Christ, we all want to be able to tap into that level of excitement and raised spiritual awareness that is so often a feature of World Youth Day, and to translate it into a deep and lasting connection with the life of the Church,” Marita said.
“The National Office for Evangelisation has developed a Catholic program for evangelising young people, called Rewired which provides parishes, schools and other Church groups with an easy-to-use resource to help welcome young people in the period immediately following World Youth Day, and into the future.”
The Rewired resource can be run by youth leaders over six sessions and provides an environment for young people to reflect, share and grow in their faith.
“Rewired is for young people deeply immersed in their faith as well as those who haven’t had much to do with the Church at all,” Marita said. “It is an opportunity for young people in a parish, school, or on a university campus to invite their peers to look at their faith and tradition in a welcoming environment. It is also a useful tool for a parish which wants to start a youth group.”
Copies of Rewired go on sale during World Youth Day week and are available from the National Office for Evangelisation.
“If you’re in Sydney, come and see us at the WYD Vocations Expo at Darling Harbour, check out the program for yourself and even place orders.”
Otherwise, visit the National Office for Evangelisation website at http://www.evangeliseaustralia.com/resources/index.php or phone 02 9211 4470 or toll free on 1300 4 FAITH (1300 432 484).