Fanning the Spirit into a Flame
On Saturday 24 March, eight thousand young Catholics gathered at Wembley Arena for the Flame Congress, an amazing national event organized by CYMfed. The idea was to build upon the wonderful success of the Pope’s Vigil with young people at Hyde Park in September 2010 and to link the day to the upcoming Olympic Games with the themes of Respect, Friendship and Excellence. The day was a mixture of inspirational speakers, multimedia presentations, live music, personal witness, vibrant performances, and prayer. Amongst the thousands of young people at the event, our diocese was represented with groups from Cardinal Allen High School in Fleetwood, Our Lady’s High School in Preston and Our Lady and St Benedict’s Deanery in West Cumbria.
Daniel Nixon, 15, wrote about the experience: ‘The night before the event, we set off for the mammoth journey to London. The atmosphere of everyone travelling down to the event was amazing; there was some singing and a lot of laughing! We finally got to London and to be honest we were shattered (with 8 hours of travelling anyone would!), so we had a group meeting and a prayer and then went to bed, wondering what was going to happen at Wembley arena in the morning. We woke up bright and refreshed, with the sun beaming outside. We toddled down the winding stairs to the breakfast area where we were welcomed by Hannah (our awesome leader) with a box of face paints, it would have been rude not too! After breakfast we started the short walk to the Wembley arena! After getting a bit lost and having a ‘’good old look’’ for signs we thought that it would have made more sense to follow the huge amount of young people running with excitement to the arena. As soon as we walked in we were amazed! The music was amazing, the 
atmosphere was amazing – everything was amazing! Everyone was making new friends and speaking to people who they would never think of speaking to. Then the thumb went up and we were allowed to go in. As we went in, I just stood there! The size of the arena was amazing, the stage looked awesome. The arena quickly filled up with young people and the event started. This was the place to be if you were a young Catholic! There was live music, a welcome message from Pope Benedict and Lord Sebastian Coe and the most brilliant speech I have ever heard on respect from Fr Timothy Radcliffe (not only was he funny, he got the message over in a ‘’different’’ and way). Lunch time was the time when everyone met up, from young people to priests to monks to nuns and to scout leaders and to chaplains: everyone met someone new and made them feel welcome and blessed to be a Catholic in today’s world. After lunch we heard the inspirational speech of Margaret and Barry Mizen who had lost their son in a knife attack. It brought tears to many eyes and made us appreciate our family and friends in many ways. And then there was a brilliant speech from Sister Catherine Holum who was once a speed skater and now a nun ( what a change!). Then came the time for the adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, celebrated by Archbishop Vincent Nichols, the most peaceful time of the whole day. I am sure nothing like that had ever happened inside of Wembley arena before! We left the arena with the buzz: we want to keep the Flame alive in so many different ways! The next morning we got up bright and early to catch the tube to attend Mass at Westminster Cathedral. When we walked in we all said “WOW” in unison: it was the most beautiful building we have ever seen! Deacon Dave Skillen, Father Andrew Dawson and Father Darren Carden had the honour of celebrating the Mass at the Cathedral (they all acted cool, but we knew they were all excited!!) After a brilliant weekend we set off back home. We all went home knowing that we learned something about our faith and there is not just us and a few others!’
Other students on the trip shared their thoughts:
Josephine Thomasen – Aged 15 – writes, “I was a little nervous about the long journey to Wembley, but really enjoyed everything about the event; the speeches, the drama, the music and the Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. When it ended she was sad to leave and concluded by saying, “I feel like my heart is open to God now. I will never forget this wonderful experience.”
Rachael Thomasen – Aged 13 – writes, “Before we went to Flame I didn’t know what to expect. It was a beautiful place and the whole day was wonderful. When we had to go I didn’t want to leave, we were all having too much fun! It was a moving experience and I feel closer to God now. It’s a day I will never forget.”
George Benson – Aged 15 – writes, “The atmosphere was uplifting with high intensity and we all felt as one. I didn’t feel judged and was comfortable to be myself. The Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament was a very special part of the day for me and the inspirational music touched my heart and put me in a good mood.”
Emily Sumner – Aged 15 – writes, “The song and dance demonstrating different cultures was excellent. We felt like one family – the Church. The dialogue drama pieces were brilliant; they were thought provoking, spiritual and very powerful. One of the highlights of the day was the address given by the Mizen family. Even though something so tragic has happened to their beautiful family, they never lost their faith in God and look to him for strength in their grief. Margaret Mizon reminded us that we’re all special and that we should care for each other and to try to live a more peaceful life. We thought they were very brave to share their story with us all and we will keep them in our prayers. I loved the whole day!”
Abigail Short – Aged 16 – writes, “The paralympian Stef Reid’s testimony was inspirational and reminded us that in adversity God is always with us and we just need to look for his guidance. We were touched when she reflected on her life and said that in her darkest moments she had never asked God what his plans were for her. The Olympians showed us how we could achieve goals in our lives even if everything doesn’t go to plan, we just need to pray and ask God what he wants us to do. Debbie Flood, Champion Rower, was pleased with the gold and silver medals she has achieved , but she won’t take them with her to heaven because her real goal in life , the one that counts is her relationship with God.”
Grace Hudson – aged 15 – writes, “ Sister Catherine made us smile with her cheerful outlook as she told us how she went from Olympic medallist at Speed- Skating to joining a Holy Order.”