Friends,

In November, we will welcome thousands of young people from around Australia and from our parishes to the biggest Catholic festival in Australia right here in our Archdiocese!

Whether you are a member of clergy, staff, or a youth leader, this newsletter will cover all things related to the Australian Catholic Youth Festival for the Archdiocese of Melbourne. This is the culmination of our Jubilee Year. The Festival will be an opportunity for you to invite, form and send a group who will go on a journey to encounter the living Christ and experience a joyful, hope-filled Church.

Parishes throughout the Archdiocese of Melbourne will have received an ACYF Parish Pack in their letterbox this week! Containing a roadmap to the Festival, posters, a fundraising guide and more, this will give you the tools to start promoting and inviting.

The first step, however, is to start praying today for your Festival journey. Ask your community to pray for leaders and for young people to open their hearts and consider making this pilgrimage. Discern who your responsible, faith-filled leaders will be.

Registrations open very soon on the official Festival website!

Will you join us on this pilgrimage?

Friends,

This regular newsletter will keep clergy, staff and youth leaders in the Archdiocese of Melbourne regularly updated as we journey to the Australian Catholic Youth Festival.

In the last fortnight your parish should have received a hardcopy of the ACYF Parish Pack. This resource kit has been developed just for parishes, communities and movements in our Archdiocese, providing a roadmap to ACYF 2025.

The Roadmap proposes four phases on the journey to the Festival: pray and discern, invite, form and send!

Take the first step by praying for potential young people to open their hearts and consider making this pilgrimage. Discern who you will invite to be leaders and pilgrims.

Resources online

Access the Parish Pack digitally here.

Keep your leaders up to date

Pilgrims will register as a group. Have you nominated your leaders? Send their email address to proclaim@cam.org.au and they will receive this regular email.

We would love to visit you!

Proclaim: The Office for Mission Renewal are here to support you in formation, preparation and youth ministry support. We are eager to visit and to share about the Festival at your youth group or Mass. Arrange a visit through this form here.

'You have a place in our church. You have a place at ACYF.' Who will you pass the Archbishop's invitation on to? Watch the video here and share it with young people at your next Mass or youth gathering.

Ready to register? What's the Festival program? Who are the keynote speakers and performers? Registrations have opened, the Festival program and the first wave of speakers have been released including Sr Mary Grace SV, Katie Prejean McGrady and Fr Rob Galea.

Access the Parish Pack digitally here. In particular, the roadmap will help kickstart your journey of preparing a group to the Festival.

Keep your leaders updated. Have you nominated your leaders? Send their email address to proclaim@cam.org.au so they can receive this regular email.

Need support in getting started? Book a parish visit! Proclaim: The Office for Mission Renewal are here to support you. We are eager to share about the Festival to your community. Arrange a visit through this form here.

Registrations will open shortly and then it will be a time to invite! Here's what's coming up for young people as we make the journey to ACYF.

Here's what's coming up for young people as we make the journey to ACYF:

How are you promoting the Festival in your local community? Fr Jean-Sébastien Géry, from the Mulgrave and Wheelers Hill parishes, has a new ACYF bumper sticker! Thanks Father, for spreading the word about ACYF throughout your parish and beyond!

Get started on the Promo Challenge, found in your parish pack, and you will be in the running for some great prizes!