Festival 50

The Diocese's idea of a faith event

My idea of a Catholic faith event

Being a Catholic in the Diocese of Arundel and Brighton with some desk-top publishing skills, I decided to design a flyer for the AMEX event with images and events advertised that I would attend. If I wanted to go to an art exhibition, I'd go to an art exhibition in London. If I wanted to go to a flower festival, I would go to the annual flower festival in Chichester. If I wanted to go to a marketplace and book shop, I'd go to CTS and St Paul's in London. It seems to me that aside from the Mass (which will, I fear, be a liturgically abusive event of mega proportions) and adoration, God doesn't really get that much of a look-in on the AMEX stadium event.

The flyer produced by the Diocese hardly speaks of God, but more about a celebration of ourselves. So appalled am I by it that I happily spent a morning designing and fantasising about a Diocesan event that I would find attractive. I would happily attend an event organised by the Diocese that is about Jesus Christ, about the Catholic Faith, spread devotion to God and Our Lady, about how we can grow in holiness and love of God and it wouldn't be terribly hard to organise.

There are loads of good speakers in the Sussex and London region, good, dependable and holy people unstained by scandal, a recorded history of neglect of the Faithful, bad appointments and woeful and dangerous theology. These people are really not hard to find. There are very easy, simple, humble ways in which devotion can be nurtured and nourished in Catholics that ordinary parish priests do week in, week out. The truth of the matter is that those placed in authority over the people of God cannot be bothered to find inspiring speakers or encourage and foster devotion because they seem to have their own agenda, an agenda the reach of which can even extend to 'campaigning' for the election of a Pope.

I've changed my mind about the huge cost of this event. If the Diocese can put on an event that will lead the people of God to love Jesus Christ more, grow in holiness, give us good role models to share their example of prayer and love of God, increase the faith and devotion of the Diocese to Jesus Christ, teach us the Faith of the Church, foster greater devotion to the Holy Eucharist and encourage people to go to Confession all in one day, then no price would be too high. An event that did this would go some way in repairing the damage of years, if not decades, of neglect of the souls here in Arundel and Brighton.

Pray for the Diocese of Arundel and Brighton.