Archdiocese of Pretoria

World Youth Day 2016- Krakow Poland

Information Pack 1

This is the first information pack with as much information we know so far about World Youth Day 2016 in Poland. It is more than 2 years away and we do not have much information thus far.

Consequently much of the information is provisional at present. As more information becomes available, it will be communicated to you. Packs will be compiled with the latest information available.

This pack contains the following:

• Introduction to World Youth Day
• General information
• Fundraising
• Payment Plan
• Conditions for booking
• Booking Form

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World Youth Day 2016

Theme: Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. (Matt5:7)

Diocesan Youth Office contact details:

Fr Ellias Senona- 083 423 7185, Email: esenona@yahoo.com

Neo Rakoma 072 552 6212 Email: nrakoma@gmail.com

Introduction to World Youth Day

In 1984 Pope John Paul II invited young people to a special gathering on Palm Sunday in Rome. Three hundred thousand young people attended this Youth Jubilee. In 1985-the United Nations International Year of Youth- Pope John Paul II extended a second invitation to young people. This time 450 000 attended this second international youth gathering held on Palm Sunday in Rome. These events in 1984 and 1985 inspired the Pope to create World Youth Day (WYD) to be celebrated at diocesan level every year on Palm Sunday and on an international level every two to three years. It’s much more than a day- usually up to two weeks. This brings together young Catholics from around the world to celebrate their faith and learn more about it. It’s an encounter of the young people of the world with the Pope and the Christian community of the host country. Recently international World Youth Days have been held in Toronto, Cologne, Sydney, Madrid, and Brazil.

General Information:

When exactly is the World Youth Day?

The date for the WYD is from the 25 July- 1Aug 2016. World Youth Day is much more than a day. We envisage departing on the 19 July 2016 and returning on the 3^rd Aug 2016. The first part of the WYD is called ‘Mission week’ hosted by different diocese in the particular country. This gives young people a chance to experience the faith and culture of a country other than their own. The following week there is a program of activities based around the city hosting WYD, culminating in Mass with the Pope.

How much will it cost?  

At the moment we can’t give an exact figure, however we are estimating around R30, 000, including flights, accommodation, registration fee, solidarity fund for World Youth Day, donation towards the  ‘Mission week, extra insurance, bus transport to and from the airport and to venues etc. We will also need uniform as a group e.g. t-shirts/hodies etc. Pilgrims who attended different WYD will tell you how important it is to be recognized as a group when moving around in such large crowds.

Don’t let the cost of WYD put you off- IT IS WORTH IT!!!

We have many ideas for fundraising and a proposed payment plan. We would like to suggest one possible plan, that your family fundraise one third, your parish to sponsor one third. Many families and parishes may not be able to afford especially if there are many people going from the same parish but it might work for some people. You will probably find it easier to fundraise together with people in your parish or deanery. If you will be using any of the below fundraising activities make sure you get the right permission.

Fundraising Activities

• Talent Shows
• Fashion Show
• Battle of the choirs
• Collect and auction things off
• Gardening (parish members)
• Car Wash
• Cake Sale
• Valentines/ Easter/Christmas Ball
• Organise theme parties

For further information talk to people who have fundraised in the past

Registration & Payment Plan

This is a suggested payment plan to help spread the estimated cost of R30 000. If the cost is different, this will be adjusted accordingly. The final payment need to be made by 30 Nov 2015 which will allow a few months to save for some spending money. You don’t have to stick to this plan although there will be a ‘cut off’ dates by which a minimum amount has to be paid

Registration will open on the 30^th June until 31 Oct 2014

Registration requirements:

• A registration form with the signature of your parish priest to be filled out,
• A motivation letter stating why you would like to attend the WYD
• A valid passport (which expires 6 months after the return date)

To secure your place, by the end of Oct you should have paid a non-refundable deposit R5000. Following this, the below payment plan will apply.

Nov 2014- R2000

Dec 2014- R2000

Jan 2015- R2000

Feb 2015- R2000

Mar 2015- R2000

Apr 2015- R2000

May 2015- R2000

June 2015- R2000

July 2015- R2000

Aug 2015- R2000

Sept 2015- R2000

Oct 2015- R2000

Nov 2015- R1000

Remember that NO payments are refundable- if you decide to cancel on or after Oct 2014 this date depends on the deposit dates due from WYD and travel agents and tour operators for flights and accommodation. Once any money is being paid over to WYD/TA/TO no monies can be refunded as it will be out of our hands. Therefore contract and agreement form the travel agent and travel operators will be distributed to all to ensure that everyone is informed accordingly.

Conditions of booking

Please ensure that you read and understand the following before completing your booking form.

• You must be 16 years and older by July 1^st 2014

NB: Until we are able to give a definite price the deposit and other payments made will be fully refundable if you decide to cancel. However when we do have a definite price you will be asked to sign a ‘Commitment to Payment’ which will state that in the event of cancellation at any time, and if we are unable to fill your place, you will cover any payments the diocese has made (or is obliged to make) for your place.

Payment Details

Account Name: Archdiocese of Pretoria

Account Number: 011807008

Name of Bank: Standard Bank

Branch Code: 011245

Branch: Brooklyn

Reference No: WYD2016 (Name & Surname)

World Youth Day 2016 Official Booking Form

Click Here (PDF 145kb) to download the printable Booking form for WYD 2016

Dear Young Friends

How wonderful that we are able to meet in this virtual space in order to share the word of God. The internet and social networks make it possible for us to stay connected to one another, to share in each others’ lives, thoughts and feelings. Those who are fortunate enough to have access spend a lot of their time surfing the net and therefore we as Christians should utilize this opportunity to spread the Good News of salvation. This is the reason why three successive Popes have encouraged Christians to use the social communication networks and the internet for the common good and the proclamation of the Gospel. However it does not end there.

God also has an “interconnected network”. In fact, all of creation is a network of inter-dependable relationships. God himself can be described as an interconnected network of Persons. The Church is Gods way of staying visibly connected to us through word and sacrament and also his way of connecting us to one another through his Spirit dwelling in us and making of us the Body of Christ. The Church is that sacred space where people who would otherwise have no or very little contact with each other, can experience real community, friendship, forgiveness and healing. For this reason we sometimes have to escape from the virtual world and engage ourselves in the present physical or “real” world. We need to spend time “logging in “to God through prayer and sacramental encounter and to do what the word asks of us. Young people are powerful- we have the most time at hand and the most energy- to do good deeds.

However, from our experience of modern technology and the internet, we realize that no system is perfect. Sometimes our computers crash for unknown reasons or it contract viruses. Our mobiles freeze from time to time, hackers gain access to our accounts and can make life difficult for us. In a similar way (and I do not presume to exaggerate the similarity) the “network of faith” the Church fails to serve all our needs. This is due to the fact that we are the Church and we are all imperfect, unseeing, un-cooperating, unbelieving, unloving at times. This is when we fail to connect, to tap into the loving presence of God who has created this Divine –Human community for our wellbeing and eternal salvation (= the fullness of life).

What further complicates the matter is that we as young people have much more of a technological vocabulary and understanding than we have for instance a spiritual or theological understanding. Since all things are connected in the bigger scheme of things, we need to know and to some measure understand the “science of faith”. In this regard the YOUCAT can be of great help to us. In fresh and contemporary language it speaks the ancient words of faith to us, carrying eternal truths deep into our hearts. This is a great gift of the Church to her young, helping them to become, and remain connected to the Ultimate Source of life and the truths that God has transmitted to the community of believers.

Today, we celebrate the feast of St John Bosco, educator of the young. He believed that Christ’s love and our faith in that love should pervade everything we do- work, study, and play. When we allow this to happen, then and only then, are we fully connected and fully alive!

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YOUTH STRUCTURE

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Bishop TX Kumalo=Liaison Office
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Fr Sammy Mabusela=Youth Chaplain
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Sr Victoria Sibisi = Efl Coordinator
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Youth Chaplains and Youth Coordinators

Youth office is looking at three elements: Youth Ministry, Youth Program and ACTS:

Our Report will come as follows: Youth Ministry: We had a meeting with National Youth Council at Koinonia discussing about the Diocesan Youth events and their Structures: The preventative from Clusters were there.

The Aim of the National Youth Council:

We adopted the theme of the World Youth Day so that we can make our young people aware of what is happening in the Catholic Church : Theme of the World Youth Day: “Go and Make Disciples of all Nations” Mathew 28:19.

1. The council will make things easier for the National office to deliver the message and promoting unity of the Clusters.
2. To promote leadership to the Youth Coordinators, mentors and Chaplains
3. Helping each Diocese to grow and be able to practice self –reliance or self –support.
4. Having good relationship with our Youth Spiritual Leaders/Youth Chaplains.
5. To have more understanding about our Faith as Catholic\Messengers of hope

Objectives:

1. To develop relationship with other Youth Programs
2. To give new ideas of spreading Gospel to other youth within the Society.
3. To journey with all the Youth as we are going to work as Clusters.
4. To facilitate a process of Spiritual Growth within our Diocesan level and Clusters.
5. The Identity of who am I as young Catholic.

Diocesan and Clusters Events:

Tzaneen Clusters which contains: Witbank, Polokwane and Tzaneen

They had a good celebration of Education for Life and Year of Faith. The Bishops were there to support the youth, National Chaplain Fr Sammy and EFL National Coordinator Sr Victoria.

Bloemfontein Cluster: Which contains: Bethlehem, Kroonstad and Kimberley.

They celebrated at Mass at Welkom, Our local Bishops were there giving full support to the Youth, again National youth office. It was only Kimberly Diocese that was missing there.

UMzimkhulu Diocese celebrated Year of Faith and Education for Life and Bishop Stan was there and give support.

Mariannhill Diocese celebrated Year of Faith and I was invited as Education for Life Coordinator to give clarification about the structure of SACBC and Youth Programs that we have in the Catholic Church. Bishop was there to give full support.

20TH Association of Catholic Tertiary Students: July 2013

ACTS is affiliated to the International Movement of Catholic Students. It falls under the SACBC Youth Desk. The chaplain is the advisor of the National Executive committee. The executive made up of:

The agenda of the week was as follows:

1. State of the Organization
2. ACTS National Executive
3. Provincial Representatives
4. Programmes and Activities
5. Vision and Mission
6. National Visits
7. International Visits
8. National Conference
9. Policy reviews and Constitutional Reforms
10. Networking

Education For life Event and Preparation

March until June 2013: Education for Life Office met with Diocesan Coordinators at Mariannhill early this year preparing the National Event that took place in Durban. We invited other youth programs to join so that what we are saying we are putting in practice. The Venue was in Durban because of our Bishops’ Plenary we want them to be with us. We experienced the unity amongst the youth and this was encouraging. It was a first time to have such gathering with them. The event was successful.

We worked hand in hand with KZN Cluster to prepare the National event and local youth take a big responsibility.

We did a lot of fund raising for our own event and local Sodalities. St. Anne and Sacred Heart sodalities donated food for the youth. Thank you to the Archdiocese of Durban. The National office was less spend this time for the event. The SACBC office produce Golf Shirts and Mugs for the youth. We paid minor facilities that were needed such as accommodation and Catering of the Priests and Sisters at the Cathedral where they were spending a weekend for celebration.

02 August 2013 Friday: It was our day as youth of the SACBC Region to meet at Amatikwe, Inanda, and St.Joseph to celebrate our opening Mass of the Anniversary. Main celebrant was Monsignor Joseph Kizito and 17 Priests that night. Our youth came in numbers that weekend especial the local youth in Archdiocese of Durban. Thank you for that. According to our statistics the number was 519 we have noticed that the Tent was small that night. We used Eqinisweni Primary School for an accommodation and our Thembalihle Crèche. The Parish Priest at St.Joseph Parish and the Principal Mr Msomi gave us full support. The Daughters of the Charity of the Sacred Heart take care of Catering cooking for the Youth.

Others arrived in the morning on the 3rd of August where we celebrated the whole day at St.Anthony Durban Central and in after noon we moved to the Cathedral at St. Emmanuel
03 August 2013 Saturday: Our guest Speaker was Bishop Hugh Slattery and Sr Bernadette Duffy on Saturday Morning until Lunch time.

We had a Concert and listen the Testimonies to those who did Education for Life and share our Faith as Catholics. In evening we had a Holy Walk from St Anthony to the Cathedral where we went to welcome our Bishops as they were there for our 10th Anniversary Mass. It was difficult for them because of the long day but they come and we appreciated a lot to be with them as they are journeying with us in their respective Dioceses.

The Main Celebrant was Cardinal Napier help by Archbishop Stephen Brislin as we want him on board as President of SACBC. Our Liaison Bishop was with us too. We were happy to see our bishops coming together as spend that night with us. Bravo and Long live to our Bishops God bless you all.

Beyond 2013: What is the Way forward of the program or what is the future of the Education for Life. Planning and Taking Action:

1. We want to take Education for Life as a full time program and spread the message of Change from 08years upwards.
2. Faith reflection and do a lot of debates about our Christian and most Catholic Faith Issues.
3. We want to spread and make sure all the bishops especial the new bishops in the field must take this into their hand and journey with young people.
4. Bishop Emeritus Hugh Slattery, encouraged us that we need to take as one of our Pastoral tool so that it will be easier to sustain and implementation
5. Youth program coordinator must work hand in hand with the Chaplain, each leader must know his her role.
6. Monsignor Joseph Kizito he said Young people is time to Act not individual but let us go together to spread the Good News.
7. Cardinal reminds the importance of becoming a young Catholic and we need to spread the good news by living good examples. Both Cardinal and Archbishop Brislin encouraged the youth to be responsible for their life, introducing the GOD.LOVE, LIFE and SEX.
8. We want to encourage all those bishops who don’t have Youth Chaplain: e.g. Durban and Johannesburg and others of course just mentioning the two as my example.

CHALLENGES THAT WE ARE FACING:

1. Collaboration, Trust and transparent to our Youth Leaders.
2. Confused roles of leading >example chaplain don’t know his role as Spiritual Father to the Youth General.
3. Youth Coordinator tries to overpower Youth Chaplains if he is not doing his Job properly.
4. The bishops failed to find the good leaders of the youth because of the Masks that we are wearing in front of them appearing to them as good leaders.
5. Failing to face the truth even if we see wrong we pretend as if everything is going fine and smooth, in one word we are afraid to touch the reality.
6. Change of Chaplains and Coordinators without informing the office, we experience communication brake down by having such challenge.
7. Other Dioceses don’t have Chaplains and youth programs; we end up not knowing whom we contact.

SACBC Coordinators Training: Our New Link: Peace Education

09-13 September 2013

Education for life had a training for all Coordinators about Peace Education. The week program was conducted by three Facilitators from United State. The funds came from USCCB, thank you for that.

What is Peace Education? Is the program that helps to fight with conflicts: Anger Management and other negative attitudes? The aim of inviting them was to gain knowledge and have new ideas from other countries as we have to deal with kids in early stage.

16-20 September 2013: John Vianney Seminary with Education for Life: Summary

The Education for life is a program that helps people to grow: It is good that we give such Programs in the Seminary: There are many challenges that need to be address and help all the seminarians to grow and understand the need of formation. There are many things that sometimes we overlooked and thing that everything is in order. By doing that we are killing souls of other people. As I was journeying with them and this is my third year giving the program. I experienced the following:

Let me give few examples:

1. Like personal Formation
2. Competition between Formators and Students
3. Confused role of Formators
4. Imbalances of formation system.
5. Choosing a responsible person as Formators
6. Goodness of some Formators

21 September 2013:

KZN Cluster celebrated the Year of Faith: The SACBC Youth office was invited. We celebrated at the Stadium and the Main Celebrant was Bishop Kumalo as he is in charge of the Youth in SACBC region.

04-06 October 2013

Cape Town Cluster which contains De Aar, Keimoes-Upington and Oudtshoorn.

It was only two Dioceses there but the number was good as if there were all there.

They celebrated the year of Faith and Education for Life:

There was a discussion about issues of faith as young catholic and how we respond to those challenges.
Bishop Francisco was there celebrating Mass with all the youth.

“Go and make disciples of all Nations” (Mt 28:19)

“I came so that they may have life and have it more abundantly”: (Jn 10:10)

11-12 October 2013

Sr Victoria Sibisi and Fr Simphiwe Kheswa attended the Handover meeting of the ACTS: National Executive at Holy Cross Retreat Centre.

My personal Concern about ACTS:

We need to help ACTS so that they can understand the meaning of having ACTS and why ACTS at Tertiary level. We were happy that the new Executive is willing to bring back the reality of ACTS. They even said they want to go back to their roots as Young Catholics.
As SACBC Youth Office we need to help them to be more Spirituality than to become more political.

Spiritual exercises must be the first priority. Our ACTS Chaplains n and see the patron Saint that will help them to focus more in Study and know that before they become students they belong to the Families and they are coming from different Parishes or Dioceses.

They need to be reminded that they belong to the Spiritual group not political group. Why?

Firstly: The questions was: What is the ACTS Spirituality? The answer was Go Green?

They focus more in projects than their Faith as Catholics.

This is the end of our Youth office report: Youth Ministry, Youth Programs and ACTS.

Thank you!

Compile by:

Sr Victoria Sibisi FCSCJ
P.O.BOX 941, Pretoria
0001

Southern African Catholic Bishops Conference Youth celebration of Education for Life and the Year of Faith:

Venue: The Archdiocese of Durban:

Arrival St. Joseph Parish @ Inanda Matikwe Area

FRIDAY

2^ndof August 2013 starts @ 18h00 with Registration and   Refreshments.

20h00: Celebration of the Eucharist by Bishop Teddy Kumalo

22h00-12h00 Revival

01h00 sleeping time

SATURDAY

03August 2013

08h30: Morning Prayer

9h00 Breakfast on the move

10h00am, buses move from Inanda to Durban @ St.Antony

12h00Lunch on the move

11h00-until 14h30 Youth programme at St.Antony

15h00, Walk from St Anthony to the Cathedral @ST. Emmanuel Cathedral

18h00 Supper time, bring your own Supper, Office will serve refreshment

19h00 Practice for Mass Celebration

20h00 Mass Celebration by Cardinal Napier: Archdiocese of Durban

Archbishop Stephen Brislin: Archdiocese of Cape Town

Bishop Xolelo Kumalo: Diocese of Eshowe

You are all invited to join the Youth Office and this will bring us together as Youth of the Catholic Church:

Special Request please: Sms Education for life and you Diocese to this Number 38810, this will help us to get Lunch and SUPPER.

Any kind of Donation is welcome!

Notice

Accommodation will be at School: Eqinisweni Primary School@ Inanda for the all young people, together with Coordinators and Adult Support Body

The direction will be given soon:

Thank you for your Support