Courtney McGrailCatholics have an edge, because we are a sacramental people, writes Laura Cullen
One question I have been preoccupied with lately is how young Catholics can help to re-enchant Ireland.
This question was inspired some months back after I attended an event organised by young Catholics in Clarendon Street Church in Dublin called “His Mad Plan”. The theme was how we can use our creativity to reveal the beauty of God. In other words; how beauty can save the world. I was blown away by the creativity of the people there. Each person, with their own talent and vision, shared how they envisaged the evangelisation of Ireland through beauty.
We were empowered to use our God-given talents to spread the message of the Gospel, and importantly, we were reminded that as Catholics we have a very powerful tool at our disposal: the sacramental imagination.
That is our edge: we are a sacramental people. Catholics delight in seeing the distinction and differences in things. Men and women are different and approach the world differently and this is something that we celebrate because, quite frankly, it makes the world more interesting.
Worldview
There is an ‘earthiness’ to the sacramental worldview. It is not just about an awareness of the invisible. G.K. Chesterton tells us that living sacramentally does not depend upon how many exotic places we have visited or how many exciting things we have done. It is really a case of living in a profound and yet simple way.
Here is a great quote from his Heretics: “The man in the cabbage field has seen nothing at all; but he is thinking of the things that unite men –hunger and babies, and the beauty of women, and the promise or menace of the sky.”
The root of sacramental living is love and care. The cabbage man sees great beauties because he sees through eyes that love and eyes that love always see more. That is why Chesterton writes so beautifully about the world – because he loved it.
But having a sacramental worldview also requires a fearlessness. Recently Pope Francis encouraged the young people in Paraguay to have ‘free hearts’. A free heart knows that although not immediately visible – every one of us is surrounded by angels and saints who guide us on our way. Pope Francis was encouraging us, as young people, to embrace that naturally open and sacramental way that we approach our lives.
But how can we as young people practically go about this? I want to make some suggestions that have been fermenting in my mind and heart of late.
Firstly, the Holy Spirit works in deeply mysterious ways. Being at the disposal of the Spirit is important. Perhaps it will be within your group of friends that a new idea may spark. Let’s trust our intuitions and if your heart quivers with an idea go with it.
People today are hungry spiritually – but also intellectually. The Catholic intellectual tradition is unsurpassed in terms of richness, and book clubs and discussion groups are ways to introduce other young people to a stimulating world of wisdom.
For example there is a great G.K. Chesterton Bookclub at the moment being run in Dublin. Once introduced the continued cultivation of such knowledge can be aided by the Central Catholic Library on Merrion Square which is an absolute gem for Catholic literature.
I am reminded of St John Paul and his “living rosary” group with his mystic friend Jan Tyranowski. This group met regularly to pray the rosary and it was within this environment that JPII fell in love with the writings of the mystic St John of the Cross. Ten young priests were formed in that group, with St John Paul being the first to be ordained. Initiatives like these are what fan the flame of holy love and give birth to vocations. They also give young Catholics the confidence to talk about their faith.
Those who are artisitic may also be interested in the second installment of ‘His Mad Plan’ which is due to take place on the weekend of October 9-11. The location has yet to be confirmed.
The weekend will consist of a series of workshops from dance, music and pottery to beauty, crafts and writing. Like the last one, the thrust of the weekend will be to awaken each one of us to the beauty and wonder that the world is imbued with and how each of us can use our creativity to awaken others to this beauty, and most importantly – to its Creator.
For those who are not particularly adept at all things nimble and crafty there will also be talks and lectures as well as that priceless climate of creativity that is generated when enthusiastic souls meet. The hope is to also establish an active prayer group that will help guide the movement into the future and keep it firmly on the path God desires for it. Not only does this event promise to ignite and inspire, but it also reminds us that there is another way of dwelling on this Earth and that other way is the sacramental way.
Finally, let us remember that as young Catholics we have so much to offer. Amazing things can happen when there is a combination of youth, faith, love, a missionary zeal and the Holy Spirit at the helm guiding it all.
For more information on His Mad Plan see www.hismadplan.weebly.com