...Youth 2000 at Walsingham?
The Blessed Sacrament standing atop of a glowing stack of candles. Young faces, hundreds of them, lit by the glow. Music, singing, long periods of silence. All of this in a vast tented cathedral...and all in the glorious Norfolk countryside....
The particular theme of Youth 2000 is an encounter with God: their specially-made stand for the candles and the Blessed Sacrament evokes thoughts of the Burning Bush, and God's presence among men.
Young people come from across Britain: they bring their own tents and they camp, and large fields adjoining the Shrine at Walsingham are taken over for this purpose. In addition to to great Tabernacle Tent, there are other marquees - this year labelled Goodness, Truth, and Beauty - where talks, workshops and discussions are held. There is a full programme, with opportunities to learn about all sorts of things, from Lectio Divina to the Church's teaching on marriage, from poetry to monasticism...
Auntie Joanna's tasks included a talk on "The Gender Agenda" - a topic covered at the New Dawn event, and other Catholic gatherings this summer - and to lead a walk around Walsingham Village, telling its history...
All week the splendid Friars of the Renewal have been a ministering presence, and it is a joy to see them in their grey habits, along with the Sisters of the Renewal, Dominicans, and members of other religious orders, plus a great many parish priests from various parts of the country...
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