BIRMINGHAM - 19 October 2006 - 460 words
CJM
at Oct.06
Two of Britain's foremost composers of contemporary Catholic music
welcomed the Church's push to inspire young people at a national
youth gathering last weekend.
Jo Boyce and Mike Stanley and the band from CJM Music led morning prayer at the Oct.06 festival at Birmingham,s National Indoor Arena last Sunday, and also helped plan and provide the music for the final Mass celebrated by Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor.
And they have given their support to what they see as a growing trend in attracting young people through similar events to be active in their faith.
Mike Stanley said: "Increasingly, we are being asked to do these gatherings, by other Christian Churches as well as by the Catholic Church. Maybe that's because, for young people nowadays, their gathering is done in isolation in chat rooms or on mobile phones, so it,s kicking against that trend. To get more than 900 young adults together in real life is quite an achievement.
"Like World Youth Day, such events are crucial to young people going back and evangelising their parishes or helping parishes to understand the contribution they can bring. Often in a parish setting, young people operate in isolation, so it gives them confidence and a sense of belonging.
"It's about getting young people together, telling them who they are, and why they are important, and sending them out. They may be going back to parishes where they are not always made to feel welcome. Gatherings like Oct.06 and World Youth Day offer the opportunity for them to be valued and e empowered at the highest level.
"We all know how difficult it is to get in touch with the 18 to 25 generation and this was the first attempt to re-connect with young people in this way in this country for 25 years. People were really fired up about faith issues and it was a great feeling to be among so many people who were hungry to know more about and celebrate their faith."
CJM were also moved by the keynote speech by J Glenn-Murray, so much so that some of the points he mentioned were incorporated into the final Liturgy.
Jo Boyce said: "It was one of those keynotes that spoke deeply to us, not just because the liturgy is one of the foundations of our ministry, but also because of the desire for the closing Liturgy to be an expression of the vision he shared with us. After hearing him, our first thoughts were we've got to respond to this or else he,s spoken for nothing. So we did change things a bit, and ended with the hymn 'Go Out in the World' to send them us out on a high, with a real sense of mission and purpose."
Source: Naughton Media
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