Silence - a reflection by Sr Gabriel Davison

A few weeks before the beginning of Lent my community decided that we wanted to live in a deeper way the silence we try to inhabit throughout our day. I live in a contemplative Poor Clare community, where we try to foster an atmosphere of silence in our daily life. We decided that during Lent we would have a thought for each day around the theme of silence and have it read out at the end of dinner. It seemed a good time in the day to refocus our mind and heart on the essentials of what we want to live and to help us begin the afternoon in a spirit of communion.  A couple of days ago I shared with the community this thought from Pope Francis: “Silence entails self-emptying in order to grow in receptivity; interior noise makes it impossible to welcome anyone or anything”.

I share this with you because often we think that silence is about “not talking” or not doing something.  However Pope Francis says it entails self-emptying which is very much about doing something. Emptying the self -  what does that mean..... when we empty something, like a bin, it is so that we can make space for something more. So before even I can be silent I need to empty my bin so that I can create a space to be.... receptive as Pope Francis says.

Sr Gabriel

At this moment of great anxiety and fear as we live and cope with our changing circumstances of living with this Covid 19 Virus, there may be a lot of interior noise going on inside of you. Our streets are empty, the shops and pubs are closed .... there is a silence... but it is not a creative silence, it is like the silence of death.  The silence that Pope Francis speaks of however is something quite different. It is the silence of communion, of solidarity, of peace, of waiting, of suffering together this great pain.  It is a silent hope that we will come through this and will be a better people for it.

So I invite you, as I do myself, to listen to your interior noise, to your fears, anxieties, worries, doubts and hold this pain and listen to it.  Until we know what we are holding inside of us we can’t lay it down and so the noise inside of us continues. Putting a name on how we feel can create a calmness, a space, a silence, so that we are then able to listen. The purpose of course is not to create a vacuum but to make a space, a space first  to welcome myself as I am,  then to welcome the other, to welcome Jesus. We wait, we are  silent, we are open, we are receptive and we can welcome Jesus into our lives.  He is waiting, always waiting, to welcome us, to speak a word to us in our silence.

During these days when we are more confined to our homes, take this time as a precious gift, a time to live a deeper silence in your life. May this silence nourish your soul so that you may meet the person of Jesus who says to you and me “Make your home in me as I make mine in you”.

Try not to think of yourself as isolated or alone during this pandemic for in this place of silence, you are in a deep communion with all your brothers and sisters and with Jesus himself who says to us “come to me all you who  labour and overburdened and I will give you rest.”

“Christus Vivit” – First anniversary message from our founder

Before I start, please be assured of the prayers of everyone here at Million Minutes. I hope you and those you love are staying safe and well at this very challenging time. 

How do we respond to Pope Francis’ call at this time? This week is the first anniversary of his letter to all young people - Christus Vivit (‘Christ is Alive’). The Pope’s message rings out a fresh invitation in these difficult days

“Jesus loves you, dear young people, for you are the means by which he can spread his light and hope. He is counting on your courage, your boldness and your enthusiasm.”  

How could we know we would need their courage, boldness and enthusiasm so much right now? 

Million Minutes had been planning to celebrate this week’s anniversary by offering Catholic communities training, support and resources to develop their mission to young people.   The time is not right for that. But it must be right for something.

Pope Francis says to young people:

“Make the most of these years of your youth. Don’t observe life from a balcony. Don’t confuse happiness with an armchair, or live your life behind a screen… open the door of the cage, go out and fly!” He calls on them to “not leave it to others to be the protagonists of change. You are the ones who hold the future!” 

And he asks the older generations and youth minsters to be close to them, and to look for new ways to accompany them and to support them to discern their mission in the world. We must do this now as we tackle the coronavirus and the dreadful social consequences it brings.  So we invite you to join us as we explore this key question:  

How can the Church support young people both at this time, and into the changed times which will emerge?   

We consider how we can ensure young people have real accompaniment when we cannot do our normal youth work. How do we reach the most vulnerable and support them and their families? How do we share our faith and support the well-being of our young people?  How do we ensure their voices are heard as the world considers the longer-term view? How do we ensure that young people are the means of ‘light and hope’ that we know them to be? 

So over the coming weeks we will be convening online discussions (and later, training) for those seeking to reach out and journey with young people. We need to innovate new approaches. We don’t have all the answers, but together we can work out some possible routes forward for the Church.  

It would be great to have your support and input during these new and challenging times. The first sessions will be on: 

1. Complex Catholicism: Understanding different ‘types’ of young people and how to reach out to them in the context of coronavirus 

2. Alone together: Accompanying our young people when our churches and schools are closed 

3. Youth voice and action: How can our ministry help to include young people in the ‘adult world’s' response to Covid-19 

4. Self isolation, faith sharing and sacramental preparation: new approaches 

5. Discernment of our mission: finding ways to accompany young people on their unique journey 

We’ll be joined by some special guests, including Abbot Christopher Jamison OSB. Register your interest now and we’ll work to find the right time for the online meet ups here.

In addition to our own sessions, we are also happy to act as a hub to offer other people’s conversations and training. Get in touch if you’re interested.  More details of training will emerge. 

In Christ 

Danny Curtin 

PS More details will also be announced via Twitter (@Million_Minutes), Facebook (@millionminutes), and Instagram (@MillionMinutes11) so please do keep an eye out. 

Supporting young mothers

siLENT is helping Madeline to empower young expectant mum’s at university to continue their education. With fellow students Madeline is ensuring these young women get access to the support they need, so that they can defy expectations, and rather than face crisis alone, they can have the confidence to graduate.

Madeline and a group of university students realised the hardships faced by pregnant mothers when studying at university. Often when women find out they are pregnant, along with dealing with a whirlwind of emotions, they are left alone.  Seeking funding or support can simply be overwhelming when faced with a mind-bending maze of confusing information.

Deciding they wanted to do something about this, the students devised a project, Pregnant at Uni, to fill in all the blanks that studying mothers would need. Their aim is to show that with the right support, young mothers can continue with study, have their baby and go on to change the world.

Madeline said “Women are strong and powerful and deserve to be treated as such. All we need is the appropriate information and a little bit of help”. The project, funded by siLENT and launching in 2020, will give young mothers access to the vital support they need so they don’t feel alone.

siLENT: Invest in young people, Change the world.

Ella the peacemaker

For six years Ella has committed her life to building peace. Now aged 16 siLENT is supporting her to share her passion with others through her youth action group. She’s inspiring other young people in Lancaster to build a better world, educating and challenging them to broaden their horizons. She’s building communities of solidarity and love, bringing her peers together with young people like Mohammed, 22 yrs old, who fled from the war in Syria.

Ella has been part of the Lytham Action Impact Group since the age of 11. In an effort to make the group livelier she dragged her friends along. They soon set out on their first project to teach Year 5s and 6s about the Climate Emergency, inspired by Laudato Si. The workshop was a huge success and since then they have created projects addressing issues like mental health and promoting peace.

Ella decided to take it upon herself to become a Young Peace Journalist. With that came the opportunity to interview Mohammed who, at the age of 22, had arrived in the UK having left Syria in 2014. Ella recalls the interview as being extremely emotional, but more importantly it opened her eyes to an issue that was right on her doorstep. She says She says “I was extremely blind sighted to how difficult the situation was for those feeling to the UK. As hard as it was listening to Mohammed recall his treacherous journey, I knew that the most important thing I did was look him in the eye and listen to him, that’s all I could do.” Ella’s interview with Mohammed went on to be published in America and across the UK.

Ella with Barry and Bill Mizen from For Jimmy at the 2017 Celebrating Young People Awards.

Ella says “I`m so proud of the fact that people knew more of Mohammed’s story and about the plight of refugees from outside of Lancaster. Then getting nominated for the Celebrating Young People Awards in 2017 on top of that, I was stunned, I thought I’m not going to receive anything, I’m just doing my part and then I did! It showed me that young people need to be reminded of the fact that they are great, and we need to be recognised for all the amazing work we do. Everything is so negative in the papers about youth today, but that’s not the case. My action group proves that.” Since their meeting, Ella has brought Mohammed to meet her youth action group, school and local parish community.

Million Minutes is proud to support young leaders like Ella with funding from siLENT. In 2020 Ella is creating a new youth project - “We are People too”. Ella and her action group will create a safe space which brings young people together, giving them a platform, to raise their voice.

In 2017 Ella became the recipient of the Jimmy Mizen Award at the Celebrating Young People Awards. Since then Ella has gone on to present at the 2019 Awards Ceremony and went on to secure a grant from Million Minutes to carry out her new and emerging project “We are people too”. We are proud to support young peacemakers like Ella who are making real change in their communities.

You can read her interview with Mohammed here: https://www.indcatholicnews.com/news/31686

siLENT: Invest in young people, Change the world.

Elliot and friends show Manchester how to care

Elliot faces prejudice and challenge every day. But he has a huge heart and his first thought is always for others. siLENT is supporting him and his fellow students with learning difficulties at St John Vianney SEN school. They are dedicating themselves to helping refugee families seeking a new home in Manchester.

Elliot and the other pupils who have built an allotment from scratch and are tending it weekly.  Not only are the young people growing together, the vegetables they are growing are being donated to refugees and asylum seekers in their local area.  The aim of the siLENT funded project is simple: to help those who are experiencing poverty to feel empowered. They grow and tend to the food, and they have met with some of the refugee families.  The young people also hope that the project will inspire more people to see the need to care for the earth and see how small spaces can be a hub of growing activity!

Elliot says “I love working with and meeting with the families. I love to support other people and motivate them when they really need it. I am a motivator.” The group have very high standards for those involved, expecting everyone in the team to be motivated, kind, respectful and compassionate.

Julie, the school chaplain, adds: “Everything the group say or does comes from the heart. They face their own struggles every day, but they want to do so much more to help others.” We aim to build the self-esteem of both the young people and the families they support.  There is real integration through the project.”

Fr Odenigbo, a Spiritan priest and part of REVIVE (the project working with the families) says “We thank St John Vianney’s for stepping forward and helping REVIVE. They go a long way to support the refugees and asylum seekers we have in our midst. Their impact has been amazing, and their produce from the allotment goes a long way in reducing the hardship our service users go through.”

One of those supported said: “I want to extend my gratitude to the young people for the food. It`s amazing. We really appreciate it and hopefully one day we can re-pay the favour”.

In 2019 St John Vianney’s Chaplaincy and CARITAS Team became recipients for the Cardinal Hume Award at the Celebrating Young People Awards. Million Minutes is proud to support St John Vianney’s who are empowering young people like Elliot to make a real change in their communities.

siLENT: Invest in young people, Change the world.

Be a voice for the voiceless – stay siLENT with Million Minutes

This Lent Catholic award recipient, Aaron Omotosho, aged 21, is speaking up for the voiceless by shutting up and staying ‘siLENT’. Kate Eastmond met him to find out why.

For Aaron Omotosho then aged 17, stopping at Manchester’s central library after college was an ordinary event, until one day something extraordinary happened - he met Pitchou, a young homeless asylum seeker and was inspired to act.

Aaron quickly realised the man spoke no English but was in desperate need of some food. From there, a friendship developed. Over the coming weeks Aaron put in place plans to make sure Pitchou was cared for. This included buying new clothes, contacting a local homeless charity who helped with finding local day centres, and even contacting lawyers to help him get on the right path to gather proper documentation. From those small beginnings, ‘Help Manchester’, a homelessness project was formed.

The project’s aim was simple: to encourage young people in the area to support day centres who feed and shelter homeless people. Supported by his college, Aaron promoted his work through assembly presentations. For Aaron, Help Manchester is personal as he sees homelessness so clearly in and around Manchester where there are 200 to 400 rough sleepers every year[1]. Aaron explains: “I'm fortunate enough to be in a position where I can do something to help people. But when I met Pitchou it made me realise that it could be anybody. That could be me. That could be any one of my friends, my family and I know if they were in that position, I would do anything I could to help them out.”

During Lent, Aaron will be joining with others who will be staying ‘siLENT’ with Million Minutes, aiming to collectively clock up 1,000,000 minutes of sponsored silence and in the process create a deafening silence for overlooked young people this Lent. All the money raised supports young people to change the world. Aaron is committing himself to 24 hours of silence by giving up his phone and social media accounts.

Aaron explains the difference he wants to make: “Sometimes actions speak louder than words. Sometimes we need a hands-on approach. It doesn’t have to be anything major. The smallest things can make a difference. With Help Manchester we just started doing things, we didn’t sit about talking, we were proactive. We had met a young man who was in need. We knew what we needed to do, and we got on with it. There is no better time than the present. That’s why I am joining siLENT. I’ll give up my phone and social media accounts for 24 hours and commit to action. I know every penny raised will go to help young people change the world.”

Through this action Aaron is directly supporting youth led grant-funded projects across the country. In his hometown of Manchester students with learning difficulties from St John Vianney SEN school have built an allotment project, funded by Million Minutes, which is helping feed young refugee families in the local area.

Aaron reflects: “Having arrived in the UK myself in 2011, I can sympathise with the refugees who live in my local area. Everyone deserves to be treated with dignity and respect, my work in Manchester is a symbol of that, and hearing about what St John Vianney’s are doing, the students often overlooked themselves, they are doing their part too. Together we are making our world a kinder and better place to live. And for that I’m really proud.”

This Lent Million Minutes asks you to join with Aaron as together we all take real time to give up the things that fill our lives with noise and restlessness. Not only will you allow time for silence, the sponsorship you raise over Lent will enable Million Minutes to make a real difference to young people across the country without a voice, for whom silence isn’t a choice.

Join siLENT today: millionminutes.org/silent.

[1] https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-42609753

MILLION MINUTES IS RECRUITING

New decade, renewed vision, a new CEO for Million Minutes.

We are looking for an ambitious, committed, and enthusiastic leader to help take us into the new decade. Could it be you?

After nine years of voluntary leadership the time has come for us to grow into the next phase of our development. Building on the success of the Celebrating Young People’s Awards, siLENT, Courtyard and our Catholic social teaching projects, this new role provides someone with a unique opportunity.

Founder and current voluntary CEO Danny says: “It’s been a privilege to help build Million Minutes to what it is today, but the time has come for someone else to join us and help share the impact of our work with many more young people. They’ll lead a small staff team and work closely with the founders, the trustees and volunteers. It is an ideal role for someone with a passion for young people, the Church and making a difference in the world today.”

We want young people to know that society needs them, that the Church needs them. They should know that their energy and vibrancy is valued and that we have faith in them to change their world. For this to be realised we believe we need a society and a Church committed to making a real change for young people. This means making young people a priority and taking real time for them. So, inspired by Pope Francis’ vision put forward in his letter on youth, Christus Vivit, we will work to inspire, accompany and equip the Catholic community to reach out to more young people and to support them to be the means of change in their lives. In order to bring this vision to life we are seeking their first full time CEO.

For more information please visit https://millionminutes.org/vacancies.

Deadline for applications is 27 January 2020.

Interviews: Early February (There will be a two stage interview process).

Listening to young people – taking time for real change

Three schools ­in Durham ­– St Leonard’s, St Godrics and St Thomas Moore, part of Durham Martyrs Parish – spent time this Advent delving deeper and exploring their views on the Church, their parish and being young people.

The ‘listening survey’ they used was created by Million Minutes in response to Pope Francis’s letter Christus Vivit, to challenge parishes to create opportunities to engage with young people in their local community in new ways. The survey is an opportunity to listen to the realities and challenges young people face, to learn from one another and to work together to make lasting change in local communities.

Tom from Year 7 said "I feel part of my parish community when I go to school Masses and when the priest visits my school. My message to the parish would be, ‘try to connect with the youth because they are the future of the world’”.

A Year 8 pupil said “I live in a small community with no local church, so it can be hard to get too. I think churches and parishes aim activities and services at older people who have more time.” Another comment that came back was it should be the young who should be in charge of the homilies at Mass!

Million Minutes’ hope is that parish communities will take up Pope Francis` challenge to go out to the peripheries - to be brave and to journey together. And the Million Minutes’ team is here to help, with resources and support to help discern how best to serve young people.

If you are interested in understanding your young people in 2020, pledge your time to making real change here: https://millionminutes.org/understandingyoungpeople

How are you working for peace this Christmas time?

Christmas doesn’t always seem like the most peaceful time of year- it can often involve us rushing around buying last minute Christmas gifts with seasonal music blaring over the tannoy. However, the great number of cards with images of doves and messages of peace and goodwill serve as a reminder of the deeper, more meaningful message of peace at this time of year.

Advent can be a chance to reflect on the issues of peace and justice in our lives and the world around us. Many of the readings from Isaiah and Psalms that we will hear during this advent season speak of God’s peace and justice. However, one of the most popular Christmas cards at Pax Christi features a quote from Howard Thurman, who says that it is after the glow of Christmas that the work for peace and justice begins: “When the song of the angels is stilled…The work of Christmas begins; to find the lost; to heal the broken; to feed the hungry; to release the prisoner; to rebuild the nations; to bring peace among people; to make music in the heart.”

On the weekend of National Youth Sunday, I had the privilege of joining the ‘Celebrating Young People Awards’ alumni gathering. We shared and reflected on their work for social justice and learnt about how other people have answered this call. The reflection, fellowship and learning resulted in some rewarding and challenging conversations. We were inspired by one another and felt even more keenly the call to work for peace and justice, that impels us to act.

So, before the Christmas music fades and the sales start, let us take a bit of time to reflect. Let’s ask ourselves how are we working for peace, how are the people around us working for peace and how can we inspire each other to continue to work for peace once Christmas is over?

By Aisling Griffin, Schools and Youth Education Officer, Pax Christi UK

Joy at the heart of Advent

Working in any Youth Ministry around advent is always an exciting time. A time of preparation, anticipation and - most of the time - generally accepted craziness. From one week to the next, in both our churches and schools, there are Christmas jumper days, Christmas film nights, Christmas parties, Christingles and a widespread atmosphere of kindness and goodwill.

 Now aside from the fact that the majority of activities run by youth workers and teachers are dictated by term time (if you are one of those people you know how crazy it is!), it is striking how we celebrate so many ‘Christmas’ things in the season of advent. Advent is a time of preparation, a time where we build our excitement for the arrival of the best gift humanity could ever hope for. 

 Now there is always that one person who says, ‘Why are they doing Christmas things in advent?’ and the first time you actually thought about it you wonder whether they’re right. However, if you spend time around young people in the weeks preceding Christmas and you catch glimpses of their happiness and excitement, they are truly infectious. The need to ‘celebrate’ Christmas throughout December, is not a wish to get it over and done with, but is instead an attempt to precede and prolong this wonderful season. 

 This infectious JOY, that is ever present in our schools and churches, is central to our lives as followers of Christ. Maybe if we pass it along this Advent, it can become central for others too!

 By Katie Flood, Youth Ministry Coordinator of Durham Martyrs Parish.