Tag Archives: Youth Ministry

Local, international research to help guide youth ministry Office for Youth

Fr Chris Ryan MGL, chairman of the Australian Catholic Youth Council Research Task Group, will speak at the research seminar.

Researchers from Australia and the United States will present their findings on how young people perceive and engage with the Catholic Church during one of a series of significant events that will be held during the Year of Youth.

The Australian Catholic Bishops Conference’s Office for Youth, in partnership with the Archdiocese of Brisbane and the Australian Catholic University, will host the two-day youth and youth ministry research seminar in Brisbane next month. Continue reading →

Registration opens online for the Australian Catholic Youth Festival

Archbishop Anthony Fisher OP

Archbishop Anthony Fisher OP

With seven months to go, online registration officially opened this morning for the Australian Catholic Youth Festival (ACYF) in Sydney from 7-9 December 2017.

Among the first to register were a number of the Bishops of Australia while gathered in Sydney for their biannual Plenary Meeting.

The Festival registration process can be completed on mobile or tablet devices. Alternatively, groups and individuals can register online at, www.acyf.org.au.

Groups are encouraged to register early with an additional incentive of a complimentary registration per organisation, for all groups of more than ten, that register before 31 May 2017. Continue reading →

Church calls Australian youth to showcase their talents ahead of major youth festival

acyf17-logo_200Young people across Australia are invited to showcase their musical, artistic and film making talents ahead of the Australian Catholic Youth Festival (ACYF) later this year.

For all singers and songwriters out there, the Festival is seeking entries for the official theme song of ACYF. Do you have what it takes or do you know someone who could compose the lyrics for the official song to be professionally recorded and sung by more than 15,000 young people this December?

This exciting opportunity is open to all ages, however the song must appeal to young people by engaging them in a way that touches their hearts and minds. The song must reflect the joyful and exciting atmosphere of the Festival. As an agent of evangelisation, the song should draw young people to Jesus and the Church. Entries close on 26 May 2017.

The Australian Catholic Youth Festival is also seeking entries to a short film competition and an art competition that will be curated into an exhibition at the Festival to be held at Sydney Olympic Park from 7 to 9 December 2017. Continue reading →

One Year to Go to Australia’s Biggest Catholic Youth Festival in Sydney

acyf17-logo_200One year from today, thousands of young people will gather for the final Mass of the Australian Catholic Youth Festival to be held in Sydney from 7 to 9 December 2017.

The three-day Festival is a youthful and energetic celebration hosted by the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference in partnership with the Archdiocese of Sydney. The surrounding dioceses and Catholic agencies are generously supporting this whole of Church celebration.

The event will be held at Sydney Olympic Park and at other key locations in the city. It is expected to attract 15,000 young people who will celebrate their faith together while also acknowledging ten years since Sydney hosted World Youth Day in 2008. Continue reading →

Catholic Bishops of Australia Extend an Invitation to the Year of Youth 2018

acyf2015_day2_241_200The Catholic Bishops of Australia invite Catholics across the country to join in celebrating a Year of Youth from the beginning of Advent 2017 to the end of 2018.

The Year of Youth celebrates ten years since World Youth Day was hosted in Sydney during 2008.

It will focus on the theme, ‘Open New Horizons for Spreading Joy: Young People, Faith and Vocational Discernment’. The emphasis is on local discussion and dialogue in parishes, schools, youth groups and dioceses.

Delivering the invitation, Archbishop Denis Hart, President of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference said, ‘In 2018, we want to engage with youth in new ways and they with us, helping young people to encounter God in Jesus Christ and his Church. Open your hearts to the life God intends for you and so make a real difference in the world’.

On behalf of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference, Archbishop Hart said, ‘As Bishops we invite you, the youth of Australia, to open your hearts to Christ. You are deeply loved by Jesus and the Church. We appreciate your gifts and contributions, and we want to journey with you. Continue reading →

Diocesan Youth Ministry Coordinators gather as a community

youth-ministers_200The Australian Network of Diocesan Youth Ministry Coordinators (ANDYMC) was established in 1998 to support and advocate for the specific needs of Diocesan Youth Ministry and those ministering within it. Close to 20 years later the network works throughout the year to share ideas, resources and formation opportunities with its members.

Once a year ANDYMC gathers as a community specifically to share our joys and challenges of youth ministry, to collaborate on fresh initiatives and participate in professional development. Continue reading →

The Amazing Race, World Youth Day Preparations

The Victorian World Youth Day Pilgrimage gathered together in Melbourne on Saturday, May 23 to prepare for the pilgrimage to World Youth Day (WYD) in Krakow, Poland in July 2016.

Around three hundred pilgrims gathered for a day of getting to know each other, formation and prayer as well as the challenge of an Amazing Race! The day began with a Leaders’ Preparation and Formation session, then at 11am all the pilgrims gathered together for the first time. Continue reading →

Letter from Bishop Anthony Fisher – Australian Catholic Youth Festival

Bishop Anthony Fisher

Monday, 26 November 2012

Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

Australian Catholic Youth Festival : 5 – 7 December 2013, Melbourne

In December 2013 the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference will host the first Australian Catholic Youth Festival. The Festival is anticipated to be the largest national gathering of Catholic young people since WYD 2008.

You are invited to begin promoting and preparing for the Festival and supporting young people from your community to attend.

The Festival will be held from Thursday, 5 December to Saturday, 7 December. It will be held at the Australian Catholic University (ACU) St Patrick’s Campus in East Melbourne, as well as at the East Melbourne Catholic Precinct, including St Patrick’s Cathedral and other nearby churches and facilities.

The Festival will invite students in the age group from Year 9 to young adults aged 25 years from schools, universities, youth groups, parishes, groups and movements throughout Australia. The venues and organisational arrangements have a capacity for 4000 young people. With your assistance we hope to reach this limit. Continue reading →

Rockhampton Youth Minister wins inaugural Youth Ministry Scholarship

Media Release
15 December, 2011

The Bishops Commission for Pastoral Life (BCPL) in partnership with The Broken Bay Institute (BBI) is happy to announce the winner of this year’s youth ministry scholarship.

Ms Lauren Cole, the Diocesan Youth Ministry Coordinator for the Rockhampton Diocese has been award a full scholarship to study the BBI-University of Newcastle Graduate Certificate in Theology, specialising in Youth and Campus Ministry in 2012 and 2013. Continue reading →

Listening with her heart

By Beth Doherty

Eight years ago, Anna Chandler had a virus. The virus resulted in her full hearing loss in her right ear, a condition which has continued to deteriorate each year since in her left ear.

The charismatic youth minister, teacher and Centacare facilitator however has not let this enormous challenge prevent her from sharing a message of hope with those around her. Continue reading →