Hello everyone and I hope that you are all well?
So sorry that it has taken me such a long time to add a news item to the YouCAN Website. We have been extremely busy here at YouCAN!
Do you follow YouCAN on Instagram youngcatholicadultnetworkuk or now on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/youngcatholicadultnetwork/ ? There is so much happening that I cannot write about it all here! I would like to share our news with more and more people, as that would be a great gift to others. Being connected is so powerful!
So I hope that many more of you will follow, or better still, join one of our Regional WhatsApp Groups! Then you can start to meet people who live your way and maybe even get involved in organising more and more local events, so that we can connect with more and more young Catholic adults!
Details of our WhatsApp groups can be found on our group pages!
To make these groups a success, we need you to join in! We need people to participate in the chat and attend events! I can only set things up, and then it is over to you to get involved, and invite others. We achieve nothing if we are are an inwardly focused group: let’s invite new people, particularly those on the margins: those in danger of falling away from the Faith because they feel that they don’t belong. There are thousands and thousands of young Catholics who feel like this, so let’s find them and invite them in!
In addition to these local events, I, and members of the 27 person strong YouCAN Strategy Group will be running “national” events that anyone, wherever you live, can attend. Details of these events will be publicised first in our WhatsApp Groups, often at discounted prices.
This is for two reasons. First, it reduces the administrative burden, and second, I already know that these people are practicing UK Catholics in our age range. as they have already been checked out
So, here are our events for the coming year…so far…and you must join our WhatsApp network to participate! You cannot just turn up!
*28 – 30 October 2022, Retreat, YouCAN+ “The Four Last Things” at Brownshill Monastery with Talks from Sister Mary Philippa.
*18 – 20 November 2022, Retreat, “Icons, Icons, Icons” at Hyning Monastery with Talks and practical demonstrations from Iconographer, Sister Mary Stella
*In December 2022, each Regional Group will be arranging their own Christmas event. It will be interesting to see what they come up with!
*Towards the end of January 2023, we are organising a national YouCAN post Christmas party somewhere in the Birmingham area! I think that some fun dancing is involved!
*10 – 12 February 2023, Retreat, “Our Lady” at Brownshill Monastery
*10 to 12 March 2023, Strategy Group Retreat at Buckfast Abbey. The Strategy Group is the driving force of YouCAN, and anyone can join. You will however have to help out! Presently we are in need of someone to prepare posters for us. Any volunteers?
*5 – 14 April 2023 Easter Pilgrimage to Erbil. Awaiting details from the Chaldean Archbishop of Erbil, Bashir Warda.
*26 to 29 May 2023 Saints Way Pilgrimage Walk from Padstow to Foyle in Cornwall, the first leg of the English Camino de Santiago. Accommodation already booked near Helman Tor.
*9 to 11 June 2023 (Corpus Christi!) “Discerning and Responding to the ‘Voice’ of Christ”
Retreat at Pluscarden Abbey in Scotland. Bishop Hugh Gilbert, Bishop of Aberdeen and President of the Scottish Bishops Conference, together with Dom Anselm Atkinson, Abbot of Pluscarden Abbey, will be delivering Talks. This is a very important Retreat, so please save the date!
*26 July – 5 August, Holy Land Pilgrimage. Details and discount prices already offered to those on WhatsApp for one month only! Can’t believe that I am doing another one!
*September Pilgrimage to Iona. This is difficult to organise but we are working on it!
*Autumn pilgrimage to Lebanon. I am off to Beirut next month to agree an Itinerary with our contacts there, so will publish details asap!
This is all a massive amount of work, and I am grateful for the support of the Strategy Group. We had the most inspirational Retreat at Ampleforth the other weekend. It was full of joy and excitement, with more initiatives and ideas yet to come! So do join in! Apart from the events, it costs you nothing, and even then we can often help people out financially. We do what we do voluntarily and at cost price. We do not make a profit!
I look forward to hearing from you, and maybe even seeing some of you YouCAN+ Retreat next month at Brownshill!
Love Rina 😃🙏💜
29 September 2022
