Youth Ministry for the Diocese of Saskatoon

Last night the Youth Ministry Office of the Diocese of Saskatoon hosted an event called Inception. There we challenged young people to start living and working for Christ everyday - to take up the challenge of what it means to be the hands and feet of Christ. In the spirit of Blessed John Paul II, to be not afraid to be change agents in the world through simple acts of love! 

So the Chalice Revolution was born. 

Read more...

Hey Everyone,

Translation can be a messy and sometimes imperfect science. You might say it is a tricky treat! (lame, I know).

A good example is our recent pilgrimage to Spain for World Youth Day. As some people may know, there was a huge storm that broke the evening of the Saturday Vigil with the Pope out at Quatro Vientros airfield with close to 2 million young people. Due to the severe weather some of the planned activities changed, along with closing of some side chapels and eventually availability to receive communion for every person at the Sunday closing mass (luckily we did after the closing mass due to the heroic work of our Bishop and Fr. Matthew Ramsey). This all lead to some very interesting announcements as we awoke in our sleeping bags the Sunday morning.

The MC's would make announcements in Spanish and English, then followed translated into many different languages. We first we're told that the missing kids from the night before we're found, but then they lost 22 others! Then we were informed in english that "due to the hurricane last night, the chapels we're damaged and we cannot give out communion to everyone." This had us frustrated, confused but ultimately laughing. It was quite funny to think the thunderstorm and wind we endured in this desert like climate was the equivalent to an hurricane. Obviously the MC's have never been through a hurricane, or something was lost in translation... a theme that would continue. Finally, Fr. Matthew turns to me getting word that how this all eventually translated into the German announcement was summarized quiet simply and directly. It was something to the effect of, "There will be no communion; the church is broken".

Obviously, there was a little more to the story then that, and it wasn't quite a "hurricane" either. The point of this story being, it is easy to miss the point and loose something in translation. This Advent, there will be changes coming to a mass near you as we implement the new General Instruction for the Roman Missal (GIRM, an unfortunate acronym) and the revised translation we have for many parts and responses during mass. 

This has lead some people to be really up in knots over the changes, even predicting people will leave the church over it. Some say no big deal, some say the sky is falling. The sky isn't falling. This is a change, but it isn't the vastness of Vatican II. The church is just revising the language we use during mass, by translating in a different way then we used before. They are using formal equivalence over dynamic... a buch of mumbo jumbo that essential means we're using words closer to the latin text we're translating from. 

Mark Hart, aka the Bible Geek and Vice-President of Lifeteen (a great Catholic Youth Ministry) explains it easy enough in the linked video. Pass it around to those asking questions or worried the church will be broken come November 27th. Perhaps even sit down with your family for 4-5 minutes and watch it together.

Let us see this not as a burden or something to cope with - but an opportunity, a movement of the Holy Spirit. Let's do as Mark suggests, as has our Bishop and many church leaders in our own Diocese. Let us be patient, be loving, be obedient and see this as an opportunity to learn and renew our love and understanding of Sacred Scripture!

Peace

-Colm

New Roman Missal for High School Teens - Word for Word by Life Teen from Life Teen on Vimeo.

By Matthew Ramsay

A key moment in my journey to the priesthood was an assignment I received in my first year of theology at Mount Angel Seminary. I was sent to work at a youth prison. The high school age guys I worked with were Catholic but couldn’t get to the Mass offered at the prison. My job was to bring them communion. They had all committed violent crimes and were going to be locked up for a long time. At the same time, they all wanted forgiveness, respect, love, and a fuller life than they had known so far. The days when I met these young men began in the seminary chapel. I would pray over the readings of the day, looking for a message that would speak to their lives in prison. Then I would take a few hosts from the tabernacle and bring them to the prison. After the communion service we would talk, sometimes about forgiveness, redemption, and the struggles to live a Catholic life in prison, other times about baseball.

This ministry has sat with me as an image of what the priesthood is. I was literally bringing Jesus to those young men, and over the year I came to see Jesus in them as well. Walking alone through the prison for the first time was a frightening experience, but it brought me to a lot of grace.

The path to communion in the youth prison began in Humboldt. With a loving Catholic family I attended St. Dominic School and went to Mass at St. Augustine Parish. My faith grew through the parish youth group and retreats at St. Peter’s Monastery. As involved as I was, the priesthood was not even remotely on my mind.

This changed with a conference I attended outside Edmonton the summer before my grade 12 year. A priest challenged us to pray a simple prayer every day: “God help me to know your will and do it in my life.” What he said made sense, and I began to pray. This was a dangerous move. I prayed that prayer every day, and gradually, silently, the thought of priesthood appeared in my mind. I tried to push it away, but I kept on praying, waiting for God to give me another answer. Another answer didn’t come, and the answer I didn’t want got stronger.

God put three important events in my path that helped me accept his call. First was World Youth Day 2000 in Rome. There I learned to love the Mass. We had daily Mass with anywhere from twenty people in a convent chapel to two million people and the Pope in a field outside Rome, and I saw a beauty and power I had never seen before.

Second was the John Paul II Bible School in Radway, Alberta. There I learned to love prayer. This school is now closed, but the year I spent there taught me serious prayer. Prayer became a deep conversation and union with the God who loves me. And this God was still calling me to be a priest.

Third was Behold the Lamb, a traveling missionary team. There I learned to love the people. We worked across Saskatchewan, Alberta, BC, and the Territories, and I saw the difference God makes in people’s lives. If one year helping people discover God was so meaningful, what about a lifetime?

Over these years and in hundreds of ways, God changed my heart. The call to priesthood, which looked impossible, unpleasant, and dull, became exciting, beautiful, and real. Finally, after a few years of university in San Francisco, I entered Mount Angel Seminary for the Diocese of Saskatoon.

My journey to the seminary happened largely outside the diocese, but since entering seminary the diocese has played a much bigger role. I am grateful for the wonderful people I have met throughout the diocese, working in hospitals, schools, parishes, youth programs, CCO, Face to Face, and many other places. The lesson I learned at the youth prison appears again and again. Bringing Jesus to people and finding Jesus in people is the way I want to spend my life.

Halfway through my seminary years I came to a wise old monk very frustrated. I had been working and praying for years, trying to grow into a good priest, but I realized that I didn’t even know what I wanted to grow into. What does it mean to be a priest? The monk sat back, closed his eyes, and gave me an answer: To be a priest is to sacrifice yourself, in union with Christ, for the salvation of souls. I try to do that. When I do, I find that sacrifice is never just sacrifice. Christ’s sacrifice moved to Easter, and any sacrifice I make with Christ moves to its own resurrection. That is to say, I always get back far more than I give.

Looking ahead now to my priestly ordination what I’m most looking forward to is watching people encounter God. This might happen through the Mass, the Sacrament of Reconciliation, or other prayers and conversation. However it happens, helping the people loved by God know the God who loves them is an experience worth giving my life for.

Good Afternoon!

Just a personal invitation to the ecumenical prayer event detailed below!

So often we gather for a variety of reasons. We gather as family to eat, celebrate birthdays, or spend a Sunday afternoon catching up. As a community we often come together to celebrate our successes (Go riders!), support each other in hard times (poor weather for farmers), and unite as a country with pride such as last year during the Olympics (Go iggy and crosby!)

How often though, do we gather as Christians? Well, every time we attend church sure. Every time we unite ourselves in prayer, sure. But how intentional are we to gather and share with our fellow Christians of other denominations? So often I hear about everything that divides us, when all I can think about is WHO we have in common; GOD - Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

So I encourage you this Lenten season to take on the mission of trying to be more intentional in sharing and celebrating your faith with fellow Christians. Perhaps this prayer service may be one way for you to do that. Let us pray that together this Lenten season we can foster Jesus' desire into our reality;

Coming Together: Evangelicals and Catholics Gather to Pray

Join us for a service of prayer with Bishop Don Bolen and Evangelical leaders Tuesday, March 22nd, 7 pm at St. Paul's Cathedral. 

The Word of God will be central in the service with focus on Jesus Christ. A time of fellowship will follow the service.

For further information contact:
Nick Jesson at jesson@ecumenism.net or 652-1595; or 
Rev. Harry Strauss at harry@forestgrovecc.com or 933-2266 (x234).

Hey Everyone,

Below is just a link to some events happening out at St. Therese in the Spring. If you're done university and don't have any plans yet, why not consider attending one of these great opportunities? Peace.