Catholic Family Days
After housing, clothing, feeding, educating, and raising our children to know, love and serve God ... what is the next most important thing we can do for them?
... no it's not a trip to Disneyland.
... no it's not a trust fund ... honest!
... no it's not locking them in a cupboard to save them from all evil influences in the world (though I have been tempted...)
It is to give them the community they need. It is so very important to know that there are others of all shapes, sizes, ages, abilities and interests - who pursue Heaven and love God. It is important for them - and lets be honest, for us - to know they/we are not struggling in isolation.
We may be fortunate in having a good parish - a holy priest - and many parishioners who are quietly living saintly lives - or even active and busy, publicly demonstrating their faith. But often this is far from the case. Through the Catholic events, email lists, websites, and Family Days that I have been involved with over the years I cannot begin to guess how very many Catholic Families are growing up in what amounts to a spiritual wasteland. My own family have been in such a situation, even when part of lively parishes.
As we strive to know and follow more closely the teaching of the Magisterium, we need the witness and friendship of others doing the same. For the parents, it is possible that long-distance support is adequate most of the time: blogs, email, websites, letters, phone calls. But, for the children, that is simply not enough. How many are in schools, often Catholic schools, where the Faith is hardly taught, or taught badly, or where secular values have clouded the truth? How many are fortunate in their teachers, but only know children from families where the Faith is little more than a habit, inherited - or worse, where it is beloved, but watered down with modernist misinterpretations among others. How many are home schooled, for the sake of the Faith, and need the society of like-minded families to reinforce their learning, and prepare them for the wider world.
That is the reason for the Family Days.
We meet up regularly to celebrate our faith together in the midst of shared food and drinks, games and catechesis for the children, prayer and when possible with a priest to give us a talk, confession, Mass and/or Benediction.
For a while I organised these every month - currently it is only 3 or 4 times a year. But even this builds strong and lasting friendships amongst families. My daughters' best friends are those they met as children through Family Days we attended in Birmingham and at Aylesford Priory - seeing them between one and four times a year for a decade and a half! These are lifelong friendships, through thick and thin, based solidly on a shared mission - in faith - and the assurance that they speak the same language! When they meet - even after months or a year or two without crossing paths - it is as if they were never parted!
Our fixed dates are the Sundays nearest All Saint's Eve, Epiphany, one in Lent and one other (The Ascension perhaps, or the Feast of the Sacred Heart). Sunday to make it possible for both parents to attend - although this does make it difficult to invite a priest - Sunday's being so busy for them! Having said that, we have been blessed in the past by wonderful priests who have made time to come and minister to us including Monsignor Keith Barltrop, Father Stephen Wang, Father Marcus Holden, Father Augustine C.F.R, Canon McDonald, Father Des O'Neill God rest his soul, Father Iain Matthew, Father Morty O'Shea and many others. Many religious have also come to help us - teaching the little ones songs, catechism for those a little older, discussions for the teenagers and so on.
Our Family Days mostly take place in Borehamwood which is easy to get to via train, or motorways: A1, A5, A41, M1, M10 and M25.
We have a nice group of teenagers, and a growing number of under 12s - lots of toddlers too! But overall we have a fantastic group of parents - Latin Mass people, New Mass people, Youth2000 people, Opus Dei people, some attending Catholic schools, some in state schools, many home schooled - all sorts of different spiritualities, lifestyles and traditions are represented among them. We need each other. Come and join us!
Email me for further details.
