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News News from the British Isles and around the world
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CELEBRATING PENTECOST Kristina Cooper reports on the Pentecost celebrations she experienced in London over the weekend of 9th-11th May this year.
The range was amazing, from a comedy Superstore showcasing Christian comedians at the Soho Revue Bar, to a Bollywood style telling of the gospel story at Westminster Central Hall and some scientific academic lectures looking at global warming and the links between science and faith presented by the Faraday Institute from Cambridge.Unfortunately I missed hearing Tony Campolo, who is an amazing speaker from the USA, and Graham Kendrick, from March for Jesus fame, who did two joint evenings in the City. This event like many others was sponsored by a Christian charity, in this case “Compassion”, which sponsors poor children round the world. Thus as well as being inspired and entertained, audiences were encouraged to support a charity too, which many did. Christian Aid, for example, sponsored The Big Heat Swing Dance down at Waterloo. This encouraged people to learn the boogie woogie and jitterbug to a live jazz band, drink fair-trade juice cocktails as well as discuss global warming in the interval! FREE EVENTS As well as paying events, there were lots of free ones around too. I spent a couple of hours sitting on the grass in Leicester Square listening to the St Patrick’s Gospel choir who were put through their paces by Tracey Campbell, a well known gospel singer, who leads the music for St. Patrick’s 5pm Saturday Mass. Interspersed by their very professional performances was a Christian rap artist with a couple of glamorous blondes in baseball caps and skimpy t-shirts and half a dozen body builders and weight lifters who shared their testimonies, about how Jesus had changed their lives. There were also no doubt lots of little private initiatives too. Several people I knew organised Pentecost vigils myself included. My parish priest was kind enough to allow me to have the Blessed Sacrament in my home for the night, coming himself for several hours. About a dozen or so friends and neighbours popped by for periods of time including one little African girl, a neighbour, who led the rosary and prayers. She enjoyed it so much that she insisted on staying when her mother went home. The following day we had a wonderful Pentecost Mass, which the “children’s ministry” and “fun club” in our parish had organised and involved lots of red streamers and singing. Afterwards there was a big shared lunch in the parish hall organised by Gabriele, who works for Goodnews and is in the same parish as me, his wife Sonia and a group of people. It was wonderful to see all the food from different countries. The yellow and orange and red decorations hanging from the walls also gave it a very festive feel. It was really great to have Pentecost well celebrated in a normal parish situation. GLOBAL DAY OF PRAYER After this I was also able to fit in a visit to the Global Day of Prayer at Millwall Stadium. This was linked in to 60 other events in the UK alone, and to those in 211 countries worldwide. The idea for a Global Day of Prayer came originally from a white South African businessman and has spread all over Africa and in more recent years, the rest of the world too. The London stadium event drew 11,000 people from all denominations and nationalities to pray for the nation, particularly the capital. The inspiration for the event in London came from black Pentecostal leader Dr Jonathan Oloyede. He ultimately hopes that it will be possible to bring the Christians of the capital together at Wembley Stadium for Pentecost in 2010. He has worked hard over the last few years to bring together as many churches and denominations as possible, including the Catholic Church. A real effort was made to include different prayer and worship styles, from classical and traditional, to contemporary praise & worship. Music was provided by the All Souls Orchestra as well as well known worship leaders like Graham Kendrick and Noel Robinson. REJUVENATION OF FAITH IN THE CAPITAL Among the surprise guests was Boris Johnson, the new mayor of London, who asked if the churches would help him in his effort to stamp out gun and street crime. In an interview with Cindy Kent from Premier Radio he said that he felt there was a rejuvenation in the faith based groups and faith itself in the capital, which needed to be supported and encouraged. He added “we have neglected the enormous abilities of faith communities to be the engines of recuperation in the capital.” Afterwards the crowd in the stadium prayed for him and his new role. The presence of the mayor and earlier in the week, the reception held for the organisers of the Global Day of Prayer at 10 Downing Street by the Prime Minister, were signs that the political establishment are beginning to realise what an important contribution the churches make to the life of London. Unfortunately this did not translate into legislation. And there was a crushing defeat for the Pro-Life lobby and the Christian position in the Commons in the debate over the Human Fertilisation Bill later that month. But this shouldn’t deter us as Christians, from continuing to pray for, love and serve the communities where we live. As Dr Jonathan Oloyede commented, “The Global Day of Prayer is being used by God to motivate the Church to pray and expect God to act. It is also encouraging Christians to become part of the answer to their prayer as they live out their faith in the communities in which they serve.” Next year Share Jesus International hope to do another Pentecost Festival in London, and there will be another Global Day of Prayer in a north London stadium. These are perhaps things that we as Catholics can either join in, or be inspired to emulate in our own situation. For too long Pentecost has been the poor relation among our Christian feasts and it is one that is eminently suitable for celebrating ecumenically!
When the Scottish contingent at the European Conference in Warsaw last September heard Marie Beirne, the Irish NSC chairperson, address the gathering they could not believe their ears. Marie quoted, almost word for word, a prophecy they had received in Glasgow a few weeks earlier. The call was to “lay a path in the wilderness for the Lord” and that a new thing was beginning. It was immediately felt that Marie should be invited to Scotland so that everyone could hear how to take the prophecy forward. The Scottish NSC decided that the best way to do this was to invite her to address the leaders and core groups in Scotland. Representatives from the prayers groups and communities from across the eight dioceses gathered in the premises of the Community of the Risen Christ, in Glasgow, to hear Marie call them to take practical steps to “lay a path in the wilderness” and claim back the nation for Christ. From the outset it was obvious that Marie was most certainly speaking under a powerful anointing. With not a note to be seen she called and challenged those gathered “to prepare a way for the Lord.” Referring to revivals that had taken place in Scotland in the past Marie said that now was the time for new beginnings. She emphasised that the Lord was calling people to take back the land, and not just Scotland and Ireland, where she had spoken to leaders a month earlier, but the whole of Europe. Quoting extensively form Ecclesia Europa she made it clear that this was in line with the thinking of the Church. Intercession for the Nation How? First of all she called SCCR to “fall on our knees in intercession for our nation.” This was followed by a call to examine how each of us was living out the grace of Baptism in the Holy Spirit in our lives. This, she said, was central to everything we do and that this gift we have is not just for ourselves but for the Church and all the people of the nation. It is our duty to be creative in our thinking and planning when looking for ways to do this. The Renewal had to be dynamic. This could not happen if we are not constantly pleading for our nation in powerful intercession pouring out from repentant hearts. There was no-one present who did not feel this to be a true call of the Lord and part of His plan, so, in the afternoon it was decided to split the gathering into working groups to organise this intercession. The country was split into four, two dioces working together. It is important that every person in Renewal takes this role seriously. It was hoped that the twinned dioceses would come together for days of praise and intercession. The importance of praise was underlined by Marie. She said this was our weapon to help us take back the land for the Lord. Having followed through the Newman Process the CCR in Scotland now stands ready on a new path in response to the prophetic call. As people left the conference there was a feeling that they were on the brink of something exciting. I believe the Lord will bring about the revival in His time but, as workers for the Kingdom, Renewal in Scotland is called to be faithful to its commitment to intercede; to be creative in its thinking and planning and forever listening to the Spirit.
MOVEMENTS AND COMMUNITIES LOOK AT WAYS TO PARTICIPATE IN CITY MISSION TO GALWAY 2009 Speaking at The Tine conference at the end of May (23rd-25th) Fr Pat Lynch from the Ceili community, called on the representatives of the various groups and communities present to work together in joint city mission to Galway City in July 2009. Tine, which began in 2002 is a Catholic leaders’ network for the New Evangelisation. It has run two national conferences with the aim of supporting and offering resources for the wide spectrum of leaders involved in the New Evangelisation. The network brings together people from very disparate backgrounds from more traditional but vibrant Catholic ministries like the Legion of Mary to the ecumenical Youth with a Mission Kerygma Teams headed up by Rob Clarke. The network traditionally meets in January when about 100 plus leaders gather together to discuss evangelisation and related topics. The weekend in May was a smaller gathering of about 50 leaders who came together at the Dominican Priory at Tallagh in Co Dublin. Michelle Moran, the ICCRS president and a member of the Sion community, was the main speaker at the meeting. She spoke about the importance of collaboration in leadership and the power of unity. Fr Pat Lynch also floated his vision that the various groups might work together for a city mission in Galway. The idea of a city mission already has had the approval of the local bishop, and the Tine leaders were invited to look at the way their groups, with their particular charisms might contribute to an overall event. City missions to Vienna, Paris, Brussels, Lisbon and Budapest, following the initiative of five cardinals, have already happened over the last few years. These have been very successful, drawing on the resources of various communities and movements as well as the local diocesan structures. The city missions have highlighted how the gospel has relevance in all areas of life from the arts and politics to spirituality and the environment. Fr Pat hopes the same thing could happen in Galway. Those interested in knowing more about this should contact Fr Pat Lynch on 00 353 86 817 2973 or 00353 57 9333222. The next Tine conference will be from the 30th January to the 1st February 2009
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I
began with a Pentecost novena saying the rosary each evening and inviting
a few friends and neighbours to join me. I was inspired to do this by
the call to intercession and prayer from ICCRS and Kim Kollins, who
in recent years have been trying to restore the tradition of the Pentecost
novena from Ascension to Pentecost. This was first called for by Blessed
Elena Guerra in the 19th century to pray for the renewal of society,
the renewal of the church and the unity of all Christians. In central
London there was an ecumenical Pentecost Festival organised by an evangelical
group called Share Jesus International. The vision behind this was similar
to the Catholic City Missions that have taken place over the last few
years in several European capitals(Vienna, Paris, Brussels, Lisbon and
Budapest). This was to bring the gospel into the streets in what the
organisers termed a “cross-generational, multi-cultural celebration
of the Church’s creativity and compassion”. There were literally
hundreds of things on offer all over the capital including music, sports,
fashion, debate, movies, food, social action, theatre, story telling,
clubbing, ecology and dance.