Who We Are Why We Meet Our Aims       Draft thoughts towards a mission statement. (This document is a work in progress which seeks to define the Thirtysomethings group.) When we conceived the idea of thethirtysomethings group, it was because we were aware that there are Catholics in their thirties, including ourselves, who are coming along to Mass, trying to live their Catholic faith in an increasingly secular society and sometimes feeling that its lonely trying to be a practising Catholic out there in the world. Because we know that it can be lonely, we wanted these thirtysomethings Catholics to find friendship, encouragement and support in the efforts they are making to live their faith and to grow in it. We felt a Catholic thirtysomethings group might offer support in two ways: firstly, through the friendship and encouragement offered by the members of the group themselves. We felt it would be good for people who are trying to be faithful to the Church to see that they're not weird; that there are other normal thirtysomethings just like them, 'out there', also trying to remain faithful to the Church's vision and teachings. They might be people who are struggling and falling at times; or people who are finding it hard to understand and accept this or that aspect of church teaching: but they haven't given up; they're still trying to understand and to be faithful. That's what we meant by ordinary- Catholics:- not Catholics who are largely unimpressed by Church teaching, or who see little need to respect it, but those who're still trying to understand and respect what the Church is saying. As I say, the first way we felt these ordinary Catholic thirtysomethings might be supported would be by finding that they're not alone after all: not alone among people who have no faith; not alone among Catholics who don't see any need to follow the teachings of the church. The second way we hoped our thirtysomethings might find encouragement would be by being helped to understand the Church's vision and teachings a little bit better. At the first meeting, where we welcomed everyone and explained the aims of the group, we asked people to recognise that, for all their questioning and doubts, (and they were and are very welcome, whatever their hesitations), they had nevertheless chosen to come to something that is quite specifically Catholic. We suggested that maybe they were tired of the secular liberal agenda and wanted to understand the vision and teachings of their Catholic Christian faith more fully. Quite right! After all, Jesus is the answer to all the longings and needs of the world. To proclaim Him is to proclaim life to the world. Nevertheless, as Paul VI said so poignantly, in his document, Evangelii Nuntiandi, to proclaim Jesus, to live our faith more effectively as Catholic Christians, we need to understand our vision more fully and to see how it lights up the darkness of our lives and of every aspect of our culture. In the same way, Pope John Paul II reminds us that the great drama of our times is that people who are Catholic Christian can often become so immersed in the secular values of an increasingly agnostic society, (it happens to all of us), - that they can no longer see that certain attitudes and ways of life undermine the gospel. So, to encourage young people, we must also explain the Catholic Christian vision to them with optimism, showing them how they can themselves apply that beautiful vision to every aspect of the contemporary culture. We must provide them with the tools for this noble task. Then they will grow in confidence, when they see that the Catholic Christian vision does make sense, that it is good news for the world, that it has something worthwhile to say to every aspect of the culture in which they live and of which they are part. Fr. Joseph Keenan
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