Students Shine at Youth Ministry Conference

The Shine Youth Ministry conference offers young people an opportunity to come together and encourage one another on their faith journeys, Catholic Education Canberra Goulburn Project Officer for New Evangelisation and conference event coordinator Nathan Galea said.

More than 500 Year 9 and 10 students from around the Archdiocese gathered at Merici College in Braddon for the conference, which featured a variety of keynote speakers, music, and workshops.

Mr Galea said Shine was a Catholic faith event for young people that they probably would not otherwise experience in their everyday or parish life.

“It is a chance for students to come together from across schools and to realise they are not doing this faith journey on their own,” he said.

“There are a lot of other young people on the same path, and they are all encouraged by that.”

Mr Galea said the conference offered a deep sense of belonging within the church.

“That is quite profound and encouraging,” he said.

“There’s a sense of formation of their own evangelisations, and they can go back to their schools now with a mission to animate the faith life of the school in their own peer groups.

“They have been equipped to do that. They are quite young in their faith journeys, and for them to be called on a bit, I think is really critical.”

The Shine conference, Mr Galea added, is particularly relevant in the Year of the Holy Spirit.

“It provides a great platform for them to be immersed in that and have an encounter with the Holy Spirit at these events,” he said.

“The Holy Spirit is the animator of their faith and their mission and their works.”

Shine is designed for students in the CSYMA Youth Ministry program. There is a program for primary school students in November, and another in March for senior students.