I've been told that it's <3 years for church based youth workers now; am I right? Although they may be stats from our protestant brothers and sisters - not sure.

Doesn't surprise me though. Youth workers have a very precarious place in the church - we don't have a recognised 'ministry', as such (unless we are catechists), and we polarise opinion like few others. And when the money's tight, you see who's first to go! It's a recipe for burnout.

On a related issue, did you spot the article in last week's Catholic Herald about some research done among priest saying that although they may be overworked they are actually very happy in their jobs/roles. I wonder if they would get the same results with youth workers?

Sorry I missed your reply, voicetorbay - how did the day go?

It would also be good to hear about some of your experiences of the Ordinariate - how things are progressing? My prayers are most certainly with you!

I hope you don't mind if I feed back on what happened on the launch day.

It's only a 10 minute bus journey to the Oratory so I arrived a bit early to be greeted by Fr Guy Nicholls and Archbishop Longley - which was a bit nerve wracking as don't often speak to Archbishops! Fr Guy kicked off the day with an address that can be found here: http://www.newliturgicalmovement.org/2011/09/fr-guy-nicholls-on-chant-and-mass.html

His Grace responded and gave the initiative his blessing and we went into the first half of the day, which was preparation for the Solemn Mass celebrated by the Archbishop himself. The good thing was that we were using the new missal chants from the new translation, which was no mean feat but His Grace has a first class voice, even without the organ giving a starting note. This was a significant event as I had not yet heard the full repertoire of the Ordinary chants and they are particularly beautiful and very singable too - not beyond the majority of parishes, should they chose to sing them.

Following lunch we prepared for Vespers which was in Latin and English and held in the Newman's chapel. This was somewhat more challenging, but we practiced all the relevant antiphons and psalm tones. I am used to singing the monastic psalter and there were many similarities - I am hoping that as the course progresses I will begin to master the various genre's of plainsong, including the Divine Office.

Both of these services were videoed and should be on the website soon (see link in previous post).

Finally, the course will also be the launch platform for the Graduale Parvum. This is an initiative of a Hungarian called László Dobszay -  however he died at the end of August and the Oratory Fathers will be completing the project. The Graduale Parvum is simpler to sing the than the melismatic (many noted) Graduale Romanum yet more faithful to the melodies of Gregorian Chant than those found in the Graduale Simplex (published following VII, though it never took off) which often reduced chants to psalm tones and lost the sense of the original.

The other interesting thing about the Parvum is that it will be in both Latin and English (I believe) and have a responsory quality to it - reminiscent of the short responsories found in the Liturgy of the Hours at morning and evening prayer.

I hope I will be allowed to update you as the course progresses.

I'm on the Ordinariate e-mail database, and there is some exciting youth event news from the Torbay group.

VOICE 2011

Will be taking over St Cuthbert Mayne School in Torquay on the
8th October 2011 and starts at 4:00pm.

The event is open to everyone, and is FREE to attend.

the event is made up of Worship, Prayers, Live bands,
Activities, Free cafe, Chill out rooms, Question & Answer sessions
plus Loads more

VOICE is open to all denominations
but we would love for some of the other ordinariate groups to come along,
bring there young people or just support us.

more info on the website www.voicetorbay.co.uk

Source: http://www.ordinariate.org.uk/torbay.htm#vid

Watch the linked video too - it's a stunner! 

VOICE video 2011

...although I will bear in mind the proviso regarding those who are guests at a meal who cannot excuse themselves without causing great offence or friction. I think that's a sensible consideration.

Agreed.

I hadn't thought about it at all... hmmmm... definitely something to ponder!

The HT, Head of RE and myself had a very long discussion about what we ask the canteen to do, but the reality is, they are our county supplier, and we don't make money for them, so the relationship isn't good, they don't want to be here and they turn down pretty much any request we make. They complain every time we have a fundraising day that students selling cakes for charity reduces their sales, so now we're not really able to sell food or drinks as part of our charity fundraising.

We decided to fight with them about Ash Wednesday, but not about Fridays generally.

Ouch - that's a tough decision. Although if you did fight for Fridays they can't stop supplying you with food ...can they?! First the Jews, then the Muslims and now the Catholics!!! For catering companies the various religious diets must cause huge anxieties and headaches!

Great ideas DavidB - it's useful to make those differentiations between the various types of prayer. There's also the four traditional categories of prayer that might help: adoration, confession, thanksgiving and supplication. But I think your ones will be of more practical use to teachers.

I also agree that there will likely be a huge anxiety for most staff as they lead prayer - which is strange to contemplate in a way, since they are used to standing up in front of students all day! But prayer does have the uncanny ability to 'bring down the mighty' (so to speak) and we realise that when it comes to God we are not all that different.

At primary school we used to end the day with the 'Come Holy Spirit' prayer and I've remembered it ever since - my wife and I say this last thing every night now. If class prayers can do this for a young person then it's job-done, I think: it taught me how to pray, even if it wasn't all that 'relevant' or 'participative'.

Looks great, thanks!

Question: Why does it direct me to Cardinal Newman School, Coventry?

Really great questions. I thought that an interview with Pete Greig (of 24:7 Prayer) in the latest edition of YFC News was interesting:

In the Christian life, our primary objective cannot be evangelism. It cannot be ministry. It must be our relationship with God. Out of that, life comes.

Source (on 6/9/11): http://www.yfc.co.uk/YFC_News/

I think this is fascinating, particularly coming from a protestant.

There are a couple of points here. If Pete Greig is right then evangelism has a place - but that place is not the first place. In the past (and in my experience), some protestant Evangelicals have been very eager to use some Catholic Christians' apparent lack of evangelistic fervour to beat the Church with. And perhaps in some cases the criticism was justified, yet I think it is a more complex issue.

I recall a phrase that went something like: "The Church is the only organisation that exists for the sole benefit of it's nonmembers". I don't know who said it but I'm not convinced that it is entirely true. What it does do is to betray a particular theology of the Church that I wouldn't be in total agreement with and I think that Pete's comment is a partial critique of it.

There's also the issues of who defines what the word 'evangelism' means. It's certainly not synonymous with the word Evangelical. Of course, there are some people who are called to BE Evangelists - it is a particular vocation. Although that is not to say that we shouldn't evangelise, but we have to be careful about who it is that's defining it because in the Catholic tradition I'd say that it has a broader meaning.

I particularly agree with Pete Greig in that if we have our relationship with God as our primary focus, evangelisation will flow more freely from it - in fact we won't be able to help it. However, God uses us in different ways so we shouldn't be feeling guilty if we don't fit into one or two narrow definitions. I should say that I'm not dismissing what the Pope says but that evangelism is a fruit of our cooporation with the Holy Spirit. Maybe it says something about the state of our faith first and foremost.

In October 2011, William Lane Craig, arguably the world's leading Christian academic apologist, will once again visit the UK for a series of lectures and debates. Following his highly successful Reasonable Faith Tour in 2007, Bill will again present the case for the truth of the Christian faith, responding both to Stephen Hawking's recent book The Grand Design as well as to Richard Dawkins' The God Delusion, which will then have just seen its 5 year publication anniversary.

Richard Dawkins has thus far declined a debate, but the door is open to him defending his book The God Delusion on 25th October 2011 at the Sheldonian Theatre, Oxford.

Source: http://www.premier.org.uk/craig

This is pretty mouthwatering!

So far Polly Toynbee has pulled out of a debate after agreeing to take part in it, and A C Grayling has declined to debate Dr Craig. Richard Dawkins has turned down numerous requests for a debate - which has earned him some criticism from his fellow atheists - so Dr Craig will leave an "open chair" at his Oxford debate (see link above) for Dawkins to fill if he wants it. Otherwise, Dr Craig will simply deliver a lecture on the deficiencies of Dawkins' book The God Delusion.

Here's a video in anticpation of this event (or not!): 

William Lane Craig Leaves a Chair Open for Richard Dawkins (Mirror: Birdieupon)

PROVISIONAL SCHEDULE
The details of the tour are still being arranged, and the schedule below will be updated as events are finalised.

17th October 2011 from 7:30pm - 10pm
Westminster Central Hall, Storeys Gate, London, SW1H 9NH
Premier Christian Radio Debate on the existence of God against atheist philosopher Stephen Law, who is alsoeditor of the magazine of the Royal Institute of Philosophy THINK.

19th October 2011 at 7:30pm
St. Andrew the Great, St. Andrew's Street, Cambridge, CB2 3AX
Public lecture on Stephen Hawking's The Grand Design
(Followed by panel response)

21st October 2011 from 7:30pm - 10pm
The Great Hall, Birmingham University, Edgebaston, B15 2TT
Debate "Does God Exist?" with Prof. Peter Millican

22nd October 2011 from 9:30am - 5:30pm
Westminster Chapel, Buckingham Gate, London, SW1E 6BS
Bethinking National Apologetics Day Conference
Opening and closing lectures from William Lane Craig. Further lectures from Gary Habermas, John Lennox and Peter J. Williams

24th October 2011 at 7:30pm - 9:30pm
Southampton Guildhall, West Marlands Road, Southampton, SO14 7LP
"The Historical Evidence for the Resurrection" - Lecture & Question Time with William Lane Craig

25th October 2011 at 7:30pm
Sheldonian Theatre, Broad Street, Oxford, OX1 3AZ
Lecture "Is God a Delusion?" A Critique of Dawkin's The God Delusion

26th October 2011 at 7:30pm
University Place Lecture Theatre, ManchesterUniversity, Oxford Road, Manchester, M15 9PL
Debate "Does God Exist?" with Dr Peter Atkins

I ended up becoming seriously ill whilst I was in spain and have now come back to England with all kinds of diagnostic stuff going on... I know it's nothing to do with WYD, but I don't think I would want to ever go again :/

Get well soon. I think some of us are designed not to travel abroad.

Crumbs!

If the the Guardian has noticed this...

 

Saw this on New Liturgical Movement about some of our Eastern brethren:

Maronite Monks of Adoration

Thought this might be helpful for those considering a vocation to the religious life, or perhaps as a demonstration about the variety of Christian worship. They pray in Aramaic too - Christ's language - amazing!

Oh dear - I didn't think this would turn into a "fonts-I-have-known" discussion!

Well indeed - but why not a font like Gill Sans? It's the clearest font for dyslexics (let's dispel the myth that Comic Sans is the most legable font for people with Dyslexia.... because it's not), the Church of England and the Methodist Churches both use them as the font for their prayer books.... there must be something in it!

Having used Common Worship on numerous occasions to pray with my Anglican brethren I have to say that, while I find it clear, I don't find it particularly inspiring. There is little that makes it feel special. The Anglican church doesn't have a hand-missal to speak of so I know that we aren't comparing like for like, but the CTS missal (font, illustrations etc) is more suggestive of something that should be treasured.

Before I'm accused of being anti-Anglican (I'm far from it) I also found Collins' publications similarly bland - both missal and breviary. They, along with CTS and Redemptorist, have been chosen to publish hand-missals in the UK and are saying that they will be including art and catechetical material in the missal to aid the layman in praying the mass. There is certainly a clearer vision now for what these documents should look like.

Personally, I like the layout of this sample - it is clear and attractive and I'm a fan of the use of the two colours for the text.