BIS # 3696 IN FAITH WE ARE FORMED

 by Cl. Nelson Mudaliar

NASIK-MAHARASHTRA, OCTOBER 10, 2013: The Youth group of St. Patrick, Deolali organized a one day Nashik Diocesan youth gathering for the various youth groups in their home parish on 2nd October, 2013. The theme for the gathering was "In Faith we are formed." The Youth group saw to the planning of the event under the guidance of Fr. Peter D'Souza- the Parish Priest, Sr. Maria Angela and Cls.Onimon Kanai  and Nelson Mudaliar – the youth coordinators.

Around 100 lively youngsters from seven parishes participated enthusiastically in the program. Fr. Robert Pen sdb in the first session of the day made the youngsters aware of the general thinking of the Youth in the world regarding God, prayer, love, relationships, family and life. He focused on the situation that a youngster faces and how to come out of it through trust in God and with the help of their family members. The session was interactive as it was interspersed with a lot of sharing, asking and answering questions.

The second session was taken up by Fr. Johnson Menezes, former youth director of Vasai Diocese. He highlighted the challenges that a youngster faces in his life. He divided the Youth into 6 groups based on the colour marked out in their badges. He gave each group an issue to discuss and asked them to come up with their views and solutions to meet the problem. This was followed by a common sharing among youngsters with adequate feedback from Fr. Johnson on each presentation.

After the second session the Holy Eucharist was celebrated with Bishop Lourdes Daniel as the main celebrant. The mass was well animated with each parish singing one hymn to participate well in the Eucharist. In the homily, Bishop spoke on the power of the Youth. He encouraged the youngsters to follow their passion, have a goal and to reach them. He also promised to sponsor the study of the youngsters who are interested in offering themselves to the field of Public Service. He also spoke on Vocation to Priesthood.

In the afternoon the youth gathered in the Auditorium Hall for the inter parish competitions namely, acting, singing and dancing. The items performed were full of life. A lot of effort and dedication could be seen on the part of the youth to prepare for the same. The skits were based on social issues. Christian hymns and bhajans were sung for the singing competition. And when it came to dance, all the parishes rocked the stage. Fr. Kishore, the youth director of the Nashik Diocese, in his speech congratulated the youngsters for their meaningful participation and encouraged them to carry on doing the good work in their respective Churches.

Fr. Peter, the Parish Priest, thanked the youth for the successful and meaningful day spent in view of their faith formation and urged them to continue participating in the various Church programs. The overall championship trophy was presented to the Youth from St.Patrick, Deolali for their awesome performance in their skit, singing and dance. 

After the thanksgiving ceremony the youngsters departed with a lot of joy and happiness in their heart.