De La Mennais Brothers: Making Jesus Christ better known and loved by young people

Here’s a reflection I was asked to write for an Advent vocation discernment Zoom meeting on the theme of Shepherds + Wise Men.     The Shepherds + Wise Men (Compass in Advent - 18/12/20) Each group, in its own way and in its own context, responded to a call from God. We find the story of of the Shepherds in Lk 2 and the Wise Men in Mt 2. The Shepherds (Lk 2:8-20) It was not the most trusted profession, so why are they reported as being the first to witness the birth of this Saviour?  They were considered unclean and outside the law, not the poorest of the poor, but certainly mistrusted, sometimes making use of other people’s land to graze their sheep. But, as such, they chime well with Luke’s emphasis in his Gospel, where Jesus states that he came to save outcasts and sinners, people on the peripheries, as Pope Francis would say, people who would have been relatively uneducated. And yet, God saw something in them that he could work with.  For those who may feel that God is cal

Today is Vocation Sunday. May we each hear the voice of God in our hearts, calling us to follow him in a way that is unique to each individual: our personal path to “life in all its fullness”. And may the Lord grant to religious orders and dioceses fresh vocations to the religious life and the priesthood, so that we might continue to make Jesus Christ "better known and loved" (Jean-Marie De La Mennais).

Despite, or perhaps even because of the current environment in which teachers are having to work, the presence of religious orders in the education system in England seems to be potentially more important now than when I first joined our congregation 28 years ago.  The Catholic hierarchy in this country has overseen a return to a more formal, catechetical approach to R.E., especially in the public exam syllabuses for G.C.S.E. and A-Level, and rightly so, in my opinion. Long gone are the wishy-washy platitudes of the "Weaving The Web" Key Stage 3 syllabus and its like that were all the rage in the 1990s. However, a new G.C.S.E. syllabus that involves delivering content relating to the topics of Creation, Incarnation, Trinity, Redemption, Kingdom of God and Eschatology to pupils of all ability (we still teach R.E. as a compulsory G.C.S.E. subject in most Catholic schools), as well as a detailed study of beliefs and practices in Judaism, could be daunting to some R.E. teach

For Vocations Sunday: A Day in the Life of a Religious Brother (me!), filmed two years ago.

Here’s the beginning of Pope Francis' letter for Vocations Sunday (last weekend). For the whole letter, click here . MESSAGE OF POPE FRANCIS FOR THE 52nd WORLD DAY OF PRAYER FOR VOCATIONS 26 APRIL 2015 - FOURTH SUNDAY OF EASTER Theme: Exodus, a fundamental experience of vocation Dear Brothers and Sisters, The Fourth Sunday of Easter offers us the figure of the Good Shepherd who knows his sheep: he calls them, he feeds them and he guides them. For over fifty years the universal Church has celebrated this Sunday as the World Day of Prayer for Vocations. In this way she reminds us of our need to pray, as Jesus himself told his disciples, so that “the Lord of the harvest may send out labourers into his harvest” ( Lk 10:2). Jesus command came in the context of his sending out missionaries. He called not only the twelve Apostles, but another seventy-two disciples whom he then sent out, two by two, for the mission (cf. Lk 10:1-6). Since the Church “is by her very natu

Here’s an article written for our termly school newsletter/magazine about the first of the 2 "Living Joyfully" days: This day was organised by a group of female and male religious made up of Sisters, Brothers and religious order priests, and including Bro. James (SFX) as part of a weekend of events at the Cathedral celebrating the Catholic Church’s “Year Of Consecrated Life”. The organising team. On the Friday nearly 300 school children from Yrs. 9 - 13 took part in a series of workshops and other activities involving over 100 religious/consecrated lay people from different congregations and lay associations... Here are some reactions to the day from 3 of the SFX participants: "The “Living Joyfully” day at the Cathedral was very insightful and gave us the opportunity to ask members of different religious congregations questions about their vocations. It was also great fun especially the identity parade. The whole day made us think about these people and

Is God possibly calling you to life as a Religious Brother? Ask yourself the question.

Find below some links to resources produced by the National Office for Vocation in England and Wales for today’s celebration of Vocation Sunday that you can make use of throughout the year whenever addressing the question of vocation with pupils, young people in general...  *********************** Vocations Sunday: 11th May 2014 Good Shepherd Sunday is the moment when all the faithful are invited to pray for vocations to the priesthood and consecrated life. Teresa Carvalho, NOV’s newly appointed Discipleship Promoter, has worked hard putting the following online resources together: -  Pray for Vocations: Parish liturgical resources & aids for prayer -  Hear about Vocations: Testimonies from priests and religious -  Teach about Vocations: School resources -  Read about Vocations: Including links to Pope Francis' message for Vocations Sunday 2014 It is also possible to order the printed resources which have been created for this Vocations Sunday but are not

What is your own personal vocation? Spend time today listening to the promptings of the Spirit in your heart. Trust Him. "Each of you has a personal vocation which He has given you for your own joy and sanctity. When a person is conquered by … the fire of His gaze, no sacrifice seems too great to follow Him and give Him the best of ourselves.” Pope Benedict XVI (Thanks to Middlesborough Diocese Youth Mission Team for the following quote + picture) "Let us dispose our hearts therefore to being “good soil”, by listening, receiving and living out the word, and thus bearing fruit. The more we unite ourselves to Jesus through prayer, Sacred Scripture, the Eucharist, the Sacraments celebrated and lived in the Church and in fraternity, the more there will grow in us the joy of cooperating with God in the service of the Kingdom of mercy and truth, of justice and peace. And the harvest will be plentiful, proportionate to the grace we have meekly welcomed into our lives." -

As a member of a group of religious Sisters, Brothers and religious Priests here in the north of England who are keen to foster a deeper culture of vocation within the Church, especially among young people, I've put up a Facebook Page  (Vocations Network North West UK) for us to share with others all the initiatives that are going on in our part of the country such as "come and see" days, vocations events, Samuel discernment groups, etc... We have a major event coming up in Liverpool on March 22nd: Although it doesn't say on the poster (oops!) we are aiming this day at 16-30 yr. olds, approximately. There are lots of religious Sisters, Brothers and Priests in our area who are keen to share with others  their passion for Christ, for his message and for their ministry and community life. They are indeed Living Joyfully the calling they have received from God in the manner described by Pope Francis in his encyclical "Evangelii Gaudium".  Hopefull

The article that the below tweet links to gives a detailed account of how the church in this country is getting a lot right in terms of its vocations ministry and has been doing so for a few years now.  Yes, Pope Benedict's visit was crucial in setting the tone, but a lot of credit also has to go to the team at the National Office for Vocations under the direction of Fr. Christopher Jamison and Sr. Cathy Jones.  Heartfelt thanks to both of you! The Catholic Herald ( @catholicherald ) 11/10/2013 13:16 Mark Greaves: Religious life is dying out in Europe. But it's surging in England and Wales. Here's why tinyurl.com/kko5g2y Download the official Twitter app here