A monthly publication of the Youth Department of the Diocese of Johannesburg

The poor can be rich in ways that the rich are poor!

In exactly twelve months’ time one of the major world youth-events in our time, one of the highlights of the Jubilee year, one of the mega-celebrations will be about to take place. Pope John Paul II invites as many young people as can make it from all around the world, to celebrate the Jubilee of our salvation in Christ with him in Rome from the 15-20^th August 2000. The youth department sets itself the challenge of organising and assisting a pilgrim group of 35 young people from this diocese to respond to the pope’s invitation. The JMJ’97 gathered over 1,2 million young people in Paris for the XIXth world youth day with John Paul II. The GMG2000, is expected to beat that figure by far. Together with this edition of the Y-Link posted to every parish, we distribute a Nomination Form for those who are keen to form part of that pilgrim group. Further forms are available from the youth office on request, though we encourage parishes to make copies themselves. A selection process will follow in March next year and the "finalists" will be publicised in April 2000. In the meantime we encourage, even those who hope to receive some financial assistance, to do some serious saving up, because there is nothing for mahala! Apart from that, they need to show serious commitment in their parish community or sodality/movement.

Also other young people between 18 and 30 years of age who are able to cover their own expenses completely, will be able to piggy-back onto the pilgrimage, but will need to register and pay the full amount (R6000) by the end of March 2000. Please note that the trip will not be a "touristy jol" at all and will require much commitment, sacrifice, prayer and witness of faith from each participant.

Our Father in heaven, may our work be easy;

May our managers go off on holiday and leave us alone;

May our desire be done at the office as it is at home.

Give us today a break, a week of recovery leave.

Forgive us our absences as we forgive those who make us work.

Save us from inspections and audits,

And do not submit us to taxation

But deliver us from tedious tasks.

For yours is the power to increase our perks,

The authority to declare salary increases

And the capacity to lessen our workload. Amen.

Dear Dad,

You who know us so well but whom I know so poorly;

You who are so close and yet so distant;

You whose name means more than we can ever imagine;

Help us to build here and now your kingdom of solidarity and hope and freedom.

May our will be just like yours here in our heart, our home,

our school, our workplaces and throughout our land.

Feed us today with food for body and soul, especially in your bread of life.

As we strive to reconcile ourselves with each other, reconcile us with you.

Guide us away from nonsense and corruption,

And never let us be the cause or victim of any evil.

For to you belong the beauty, the wonders and the mysteries

of the whole universe for ever and ever and ever!

Have you seen any of the bright yellow posters around? Have you started making plans?

So far five groups have booked a place on the Talent Parade list. That leaves a max of 11 other group slots! So hurry to reserve a space and don’t complain if you’re too late. Registration via the Youth Office only! The day is open to all youth of the diocese, whether in a group or sodality or not, altar servers, confirmation candidates, young adults, …. The day will begin with a mass celebrated by Bishop Reginald Orsmond and preached by the latest deacon of the diocese, Dc Peter Motshegwa.

All over the world, thousands of young people are coming together into a deeper spirit of joy in their faith and excitement for Christ through the medium of Christian music. They gather for FELLOWSHIP, to praise GOD and at the same time have FUN! That is the essence of a "PRAISE PARTY". A live band will lead this holy rave with praise vibes.

We, the youth of PLUGS (People Living Under God’s Spirit) Victory Park Parish youth group, invite young people from all around the diocese to join in our first Praise Party on the 28^th August, at 19h30 (7.30 pm) till late, at the De La Salle school hall, Road no.3, Linden. Entrance: R10 to help cover the costs.

Pass it on!

The Y-Link is meant to be passed on, photocopied, cut up into bits to paste into parish newsletters or even to be used as a basis for the editing of your own group, parish, regional newsletter. Also this month we mail-drop it to every parish in hard-copy and we include two bright yellow A4 sheets advertising the possibility of obtaining some financial help towards making it to the World Youth Day in Rome in August 2000 as representatives from our Diocese. Feel free to photocopy it and pin it to notice boards, etc. around the parish. At least pass it on to interested parties.

Also if you have an e.mail address – your own or a friends’ or parents that you can receive messages on, then please let us have it so that we can more easily inform you of happenings through our e.mail drops. Get connected!

"Would you push a bicycle loaded with 150 kgs of wood or maize in a miraculous balancing act along dusty tracks for twenty kilometers to the city, in order to sell your load for R3 or R5 at the very most, in order to buy a bit of soap or a bucket and return home along the same dusty track "taxi-ing" someone with you on the cross-bar or back carrier, several times a week. It is this image of immense physical courage of thousands of poor people, who are delighted to own a bicycle in order to earn a living transporting merchandise and humans, which remains engraved in my mind. I saw a funeral procession where the hearse for the coffin was a bicycle. The "salaries" of all civil servants, from clerks to soldiers to teachers to doctors varies little and never goes above R120 a month, and often these salaries do not actually reach those they are supposed to be paid to, because there is no banking infra-structure left at all! Thus, no channel for the state to pay it’s workers. And yet people believe in God and in the goodness of creation, and are happy with the little they have, while we here are so dissatisfied in this country, with all the luxuries we have: tarred roads (one congolese said:"Our roads are OK as long as you are able to ride beside them!"), cell-phones, television, supermarkets, cinemas and all sorts of leisure centres,…

The Congolese really taught me how much we should count our blessings, but also how we should be able to live much more simply, so that others can simply live. Over there, real soccer balls are as rare as chickens’ teeth, but the children make their own with great ingenuity – a small stone wrapped tightly with about 50 old plastic bags found at a dump, compacted and kept together with a few strips of rubber from the inside of an old tyre tube. It may need re-wrapping every now and then but it never punctures and it even bounces! Houses are tiny, but being blessed with wonderful weather [God fortunately does compensate those in hard times] everyone lives outside the whole day, which promotes a tremendous sense of community in each neighbourhood. Everybody still knows everybody. Sadly we here hardly ever even see our neighbours, never mind meet them. With half the population under 18 years of age, there is an infinite potential for youth ministry, and the church fortunately does not have to try to compete with any other entertainment around. Thus church activities are very well attended and I found that despite all their difficulties and absence of facilities, the young people are not at all dispirited, but truly God-filled. One Sunday morning just before mass a teenager handed the Parish priest a wad of notes adding up to R120 congolese francs (= a whole month’s wages) which she had picked up near the entrance to the church grounds, but in her honesty, she hoped it would be returned to its rightful owner. That for me is one of the many young saints found around our continent. Virtues worth more than all the advantages of our techno-society! One young guy, Venance, gave me a special written message in French for all the youth of Joburg Diocese, which I promised to translate and publish in this month’s Y-Link but I’ve unfortunately mislaid it. It was all about wishing you lots of peace, fraternity and faith, and dreaming that all the barriers of our continent could be broken down to promote the development and the solidarity of all young people in the various countries of the continent.

I could write 20 pages on my experience, but hopefully this little snippet will give you a taste to want to visit that part of Africa one day. Please pray that the civil war will soon end there, so that the massive potential of that country (much richer than ours in natural resources) may truly be developed to the benefit of all its people." (Fr Francois)

Instead of the regular format of the T-shirt rewarded game, this month we invite you to compose an original poem or (very short) essay – not more than 200 words

Alternatively compose an original prayerful or humorous version of the Our Father like the ones featuring on the front and back page of this edition of the Y-Link.

Prize? = "Surprize"! - apart from having your entry published in a future edition of the Y-link. Closing date: 30 September.

A creative, dedicated and enthusiastic young adult between 20 and 30 years of age is needed to fill the shoes of Xola Nqono who completes his one year contract with the department’s youth ministry team on the 31^st August. Twenty applications have already been submitted by candidates wishing to give a year of their life to serving God in this way. Any further applications must be in by the 9^th August! The next incumbent of the position will be announced at the DYF meeting on the 21^st August.

Please diarize and attend – DYF (Diocesan Youth Forum) meeting intended for youth reps from every parish who are in matric or 18 years old and more. Repeat for emphasis! On the 21^st August, be at the Cathedral Youth Group Room from 11h00 to 16h00 for the DYF meeting.

Attention Kathorus Region youth groups: our next rotation encounter will take place at Holy Family Catholic Church, Spruitview on the 15^th August, following on from the parish mass.

Bible I.D.s: Give each member the name of a bible character (with a few references in scripture) a week before the next meeting. Each is to prepare five clues about the character. On the evening divide the whole group in two (boys v girls or something like that. Award points to each team as it guesses who the clues are identifying (5pts for guessing on the first clue; 4 pts for the second clue, etc)

Fill two buckets, proportionate in size with the number in the group, with diluted orange squash… Everyone is given a straw. Divide into two teams. At the word go the two team compete in emptying their bucket by drinking up the squash… with the straws

The August weekend is booked out but there is still space on the last two weekends of the year: the September and October weekends!

You are cordially invited to an encounter day on Monday the 9^th August (public holiday in honour of women!), beginning with mass in the Cathedral of Christ the King, 3 Saratoga Ave at 09h00. For further info, contact Joe Dube at 403-4590 during working hours.

If June is Youth month;

August is Young-Adults’ month!

The youth and young adults of Orange Farm will have a full day meeting on the 14^th August at St Charles Lwanga parish to define the identity and roles of their separate age groups.

Carolina Xulu has been elected to be the representative of Tertiary Students on the DPC. She replaces Simon who has served for the last two years and who is continuing his studies overseas.

Son, in the street, consider every woman your mother;

In the workplace, respect every man as your father;

At school, treat every girl as your sister;

And on the sportsfield, regard every boy as your brother.