YOUTH CAMP AND CONFERENCE - 7-10 DECEMBER

We are reaching the final stages of planning for the Archdiocesan Youth Conference at the beginning of the school holidays, and we are appealing for help from all members of the Mission Committee, and anyone else concerned about youth and mission. We need YOUR help to encourage the youth of your parish to attend, and to let us know in good time that they want to attend.

We hope to have young people from every parish in the Archdiocese. One of the concerns that has been expressed by Orthodox youth is the difficulty of being Orthodox in a pluralistic society where Orthodox Christians are a tiny minority. Most of our young people have friends who are not Orthodox, and move in social circles where Orthodox Christianity is not understood or has never been heard of. This puts pressure on our youth, but it also gives them an opportunity for mission.

So an important aim of the conference is for our Orthodox young people to see that they are not alone: scattered among the parishes they may be few, but brought together, in one place, it may be possible to feel, even if only for a few days, what it is like to live in an Orthodox environment, with other Orthodox people.

On youth day (16 June) the youth also told us some of their concerns, and topics they would like to discuss in future conferences. We won't be able to deal with all of them in one conference, but we hope to deal with some, and to cover others in later youth conferences.

* Being Orthodox in a pluralist society
* Orthodox marriage, sexual morality, HIV/Aids
* Moral regeneration, crime and corruption
* Drugs and alcohol abuse
* Poverty, unemployment, racism in church and society

At the moment we urgently need to know who is coming, and to have application forms by 30 November at the latest, especially from those who need a subsidy for the conference fee of R100.00. His Eminence Metropolitan Seraphim will be going overseas on 3 December, and will therefore need to approve all applications for subsidies by 1 December at the latest. It would help if those who can afford the full conference fee could add some extra, to help subsidise those who cannot afford it.

One reason we need to know who is coming is to know the average age of participants, so we can plan the level of input. The age range is 15-30, but if necessary we will plan separate activities for those at the younger end.

We also need recommendations on who can speak on these topics, and would welcome the help of mission committee members who can do this.

The daily programme will be:

06:00 - First Hour
06:30 - Breakfast, washing up etc.
09:00 - Third Hour
09:30 - Lecture on theme
10:30 - Tea
11:00 - Discussion and questions on theme
12:00 - Sixth hour
12:30 - Lunch, washing up, free time
15:00 - Ninth Hour
15:30 - Lecture on theme or other activity
16:30 - Tea
17:00 - Discussion and on theme
18:00 - Vespers
18:30 - Supper, washing up
19:30 - General discussion, games, singing practice etc.
21:30 - Compline

This will be the same on Friday and Saturday

On Sunday there will be a different programme, with the Divine Liturgy, and we hope that His Beatitude Patriarch Theodoros will be present.