Catholic Global Mission Resource for Youth

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A NEW SAINT FOR THE WHOLE WORLD

GMC

We joyously celebrate the canonization of our founder, Saint Guido Maria Conforti on October 23, World Mission Sunday. Commemorating the 25th anniversary of Conforti's death in 1956, Cardinal Giuseppe Roncalli, the future Pope John XXIII, described him as "Missionary for the entire world." We invite you to join us for the event at the Vatican via CTV's live web TV.

Blessings abound as we also announce the change of this e-newsletter's name and masthead to Across Borders to reflect our intercontinental partnership and the global mission of the Church. The Xaverian Missionaries of the USA and of the United Kingdom are delighted to embark on this new collaboration. Xaverian spirituality has always inspired us to reach across borders of geography, faith, language and culture and to seek dialogue and understanding with our sisters and brothers around the world. We hope that you will find this e-newsletter useful.

In the past two years the work of the UK Province has focused mainly around the development of the Conforti Institute in Coatbridge, Scotland, but our communities in Preston and London also witness to our commitment to work with young people. If you are involved in youth ministry in the UK, or are interested in developing interfaith dialogue, please contact us through our website or, better still, come visit Coatbridge. Visitors from the US would be most welcome too!

Father Carl Chudy, SX Father John Convery, SX

Xaverian Voices, Xaverian Lives

UK_program As part of the celebrations to mark the canonisation of Bishop Guido Maria Conforti, founder of the Xaverian Missionaries, the UK region is planning some resources for schools. A booklet, DVD and lesson notes on mission spirituality and pilgrimage should become available by March 2012. Our hope is that these will also be available in suitable format for students with learning difficulties. For more information click here

The Bishop Who Loved the Whole World

The US Province has produced a DVD on the life and legacy of Saint Guido Maria Conforti. We invite you to see it here.

POPE'S MESSAGE FOR WORLD MISSION SUNDAY 2011 "As the Father Has Sent Me, So I Send You" (John 20:21).

On the occasion of the Jubilee of 2000, the Venerable John Paul II, at the beginning of a new millennium of the Christian era, reaffirmed forcefully the need to renew the commitment to take to all the proclamation of the Gospel with "the same enthusiasm of the Christians of the early times" ("Novo Millennio Ineunte," No. 58). It is the most precious service that the Church can give to humanity and to each person who seeks the profound reasons to live his existence fully. Because of this, this same invitation resounds every year in the celebration of World Mission Sunday. Read more.

Accepting the Challenge

In response to Pope Benedict's Challenge to young people during his visit to the UK in September 2010, Students in Scottish high schools are being offered the opportunity to obtain the Caritas Award.

In His address to the young people of Britain, the Holy Father said,

God wants your friendship. And once you enter into friendship with God, everything in your life begins to change. As you come to know him better, you find you want to reflect something of his infinite goodness in your own life. You are attracted to the practice of virtue. You begin to see greed and selfishness and all the other sins for what they really are, destructive and dangerous tendencies that cause deep suffering and do great damage, and you want to avoid falling into that trap yourselves. You begin to feel compassion for people in difficulties and you are eager to do something to help them. You want to come to the aid of the poor and the hungry, you want to comfort the sorrowful, you want to be kind and generous. And once these things begin to matter to you, you are well on the way to becoming saints.

The award is designed to be inclusive of all young people and is open to pupils of all faiths and denominations. Pupils can choose how they would like to record and share their learning, reflection and witness from a number of formats. Pupils studying at all levels will be able to achieve the requirements for the award.

Servant Leadership

Since September 2009, the Conforti Institute has offered a Gospel-based approach to leadership skills for students in their final year of high school, with the objective of applying those skills in service projects during that year, and in the expression of their Faith in the world of work and beyond when they leave.

The programme aims

 To Nurture Confident and Competent Young Leaders from the Catholic School Community

 To enable Young People to bring their Faith to leadership at home, work, church, and in society

 To offer training for Senior Students in the Service of their School Faith Community and its Projects

 To provide a foundational Vision of Leadership based on the Gospel Ethos and Values of Catholic Education

The 2-day residential programme normally runs during the month of June each year and has proved popular, even beginning to attract interest from England. For more information, contact the Institute for a brochure.

World Food Day

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October 16 is World Food Day, which is dedicated to the increased awareness of global hunger issues.

As we approach World Food Day, our attention turns to East Africa, facing its worst drought in 60 years and leaving 12 million people uncertain about where they will get food. Catholic Relief Services is in East Africa providing assistance to communities in need. Read more.

The Hunger Project is a global, non-profit, strategic organization committed to the sustainable end of world hunger, working in 11 countries in Africa, South Asia and Latin America to develop effective, bottom-up strategies to end hunger and poverty. Check out The Hunger Project here.

Sister Cities International Exchange Visit to Glasgow: September 2011

UK_IFC From 17-26 September, the Conforti Institute was delighted to host the 16 delegates from Barcelona and New York who were in Scotland as part of the "Sister Cities" project involving the Scottish Interfaith Council, the Interfaith Center of New York and the Unesco Centre of Catalonia's Department for Interreligious Dialogue in Barcelona.

This ambitious 3-year programme was launched by the Interfaith Center of New York in 2009 and Glasgow was chosen from a number of European cities to participate in recognition of the extensive interfaith work going on here. For more information click here.

Partnership

Since 2009, the Conforti Institute has been working with Clare Carr, National Youth Development Officer of the Scottish St Vincent de Paul Society, to build awareness of the SSVP among young people. Inspire by the words of Blessed John Paul II, "Young people need to be able to see the practical relevance of their efforts to meet the real needs of people, especially the poor and neglected. They should also be able to see their apostolate belongs fully to the Church's mission in the world...", groups of young people and teacher accompaniers take part in a 2-day residential programme at the Institute, looking at issues of poverty locally and globally and at the Gospel message of Good News for the poor. This is followed up by Clare on their return to school. Adult members of SSVP are also following a youth ministry programme to encourage more young people to offer service in their home communities. For more information contact Clare Carr.