Catholic Olympic engagement keeps growing

Olympic Stadium

With 88% of construction of the Olympic Park completed over the past six years, the sporting aspect of the 2012 Games is clearly on track. And so is the wider aspect of community engagement with the Games which is the principle focus of churches up and down the UK.

After the winter Olympics in Vancouver, Canadian churches felt they’d missed a unique chance to engage with their communities. Now, with one year to go, the Catholic 2012 office of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference, working in conjunction with the umbrella Christian charity, More Than Gold, are gearing up to ensure churches here in the UK don’t miss out too.

James Parker, Catholic Executive Coordinator for the Games, said: "the opportunities for the Church to be truly relevant next year are numerous. The Games are actually less about sport and more about community engagement for the UK’s Christian community and we can offer many ways in which Catholic churches and schools across the country can get involved in linking with the Games. This can be anything from simply putting up bunting on behalf of the local authority, to showing hospitality on the streets – especially during the Torch Relay as it crosses Britain, providing bed and breakfast for athletes’ families, funding portaloos, having drop-in centres…’ He added that the excitement during the event would be ‘very similar to a month-long version of the Royal wedding’. ‘The Canadian churches weren’t ready for the depth of Olympic fever that hit them during last year’s Winter Games. We need to heed this warning and be sufficiently prepared!"

"With more than sixteen programme teams established under the banner of More Than Gold, including torch relay, big screen festivals, athletes family homestay and social justice, more than twenty denominations and over sixty para-church agencies are working in collaboration to ensure there is something big or small that every church and Christ-centred agency can do to best utilize this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."

"We’re not asking people to go out of their way to do the impossible. For some, this will be an occasion to try something new and exciting such as using sport at the heart of a parish day, but for most people, all we are asking is that they consider giving an Olympic and Paralympic theme to what they already do. The most important thing is to join the party that is definitely coming next year and, where possible, to host and lead it."

James said: "With the news that the BBC will waiver the need for a licence to show BBC coverage of the Games publicly, there are more possibilities for churches to use their buildings as mini-olympic viewing centres. ‘As long as BBC rulings are strongly adhered to, namely making no charge for entrance, not tampering with the feed or content and ensuring what is being broadcast is live, this is another opportunity to gather members of the community and to celebrate the display of God-given talent that will adorn our screens."

Issues of social justice are forerunners in More Than Gold’s planning. "The Ancient Games were a sacred event, with the purpose of building respect and honour between nations. The Modern Olympiad is often seen as being more symbolic than sacred: said James.

"In the past one hundred years the Games have been cancelled three times due to war, been the subject of mass boycotts on five occasions, terrorist attacks twice and the modern Olympic Truce has been violated on virtually every single occasion. For this reason we want Britain to take the Truce seriously, in the hope that peace ensues both domestically and also internationally."

Two such initiatives to help bring this about are the 100 Days of Peace and a civic peace rally to be held in Trafalgar Square on 09 June 2012. The former project is to encourage Christians to organise peace events with those around them and to make the 2012 Games an occasion to actively work towards and celebrate peace in individual homes and neighbourhoods, nationally and internationally. The latter will be a moment to acknowledge, affirm and strengthen the many ways in which Britain has worked, is working and can work towards being an example of building peace at home and abroad.

Inviting the Catholic community to be united in the world’s largest sporting event is also in the minds of organisers. "The vision of the 2012 Games is to 'inspire change'. This week we have been inspired with a new vision for prayer and liturgy resources that can be used across the globe to encourage every Catholic and each parish community to join with us in prayer and thanksgiving for this unique moment in history. Everyone has a place prepared at God’s table so we want to offer everyone a slice of the Olympic pie given to us as the host nation. Our hope is that this will also be a suitable legacy among many others that we can pass on to future host nations of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. "

More Than Gold are asking churches to appoint and sign up a parish representative, called a Gold Champion, who is the link person to ensure parishes and schools receive all the necessary information and training they need.

"Many parishes and schools have taken heed of the Canadians’ warning and have signed up a Gold Champion. However, there are still many who haven’t and we want to encourage them to get on board – and fast!" James concluded.

For more information see: www.morethangold.org.uk