early 40 Catholic students representing 16 different university chaplaincies and Cathsocs from all over England and Wales arrived in North London
to take part in the annual Catholic Student Forum.
This year's weekend focused on "Simply Living". All were invited to "shake up their lifestyle and to choose to live simply, sustainably and in solidarity with people living in poverty." Pax Christi's Hilary Topp facilitated the main workshop looking at 'Peace at what Cost?' Students were invited to reflect on how peace could be encouraged, fostered and sustained through fair trade and the support of the world's poor. At the close of the weekend, each student was encouraged to make a simple promise to the wider community to "live simply".
"The Catholic Student Forum offers an opportunity for Catholic students to come together and share ideas at a national and international level. These meetings offer a "safe space" to build friendships, to question, to challenge and to grow in relationship with God. This year, students reflected on how they could live more simply in keeping with Gospel values and how they could then take this message back to their campuses to encourage others to get involved." says Adam Berry, Catholic Youth Services Development Officer.
God calls us to look hard at our lifestyles and to choose to live simply, sustainably and in solidarity with the poor.
In this way we can help create a world in which human dignity is respected and everyone can reach their full potential.
This would be true progress, worth more than economic growth alone.
This is the fourth meeting of the Catholic Student Forum (CSF) - an annual event aimed at bringing Catholic students together,
organized in collaboration with chaplaincies and Cathsocs up and down the country. CSF started as an initiative by the Catholic Youth Services (CYS), the Conference of Catholic Chaplains in Higher Education (CCCHE) and a representative student consultative body. Weekends are designed to both deepen relationships between chaplaincies and Cathsocs from different Higher Education Institutes and to challenge student to get involved in social action.
The theme for this year's Catholic Student Forum was chosen to mark the 40 years since the publication of Pope Paul VI's Populorum Progressio (On the Development of Peoples) and links in to the LiveSimply challenge.
Jessica Moorhouse, President of King's College Cathsoc, adds: "I would recommend any chaplaincy and Cathsoc to join the Catholic Student Forum, so that we can unite our efforts and promote true solidarity throughout England and Wales."
Next year's CSF will be taking place at Southwell House, London on 22nd 24th February 2008. For more information please visit the new Catholic Student Forum website at
www.catholicstudentforum.org.uk
or www.livesimply.org.uk.
(From Independent Catholic News)