Proclaim 15 is the name of a new initiative being launched this year by the Catholic Bishops of England and Wales. It is a practical initiative which aims to support, enthuse and equip parish evangelisation by celebrating the good work already being done, by providing resources and by encouraging local events to support parish mission.

This initiative is inspired by the writings of Pope Francis, especially Evangelii Gaudium (The Joy of the Gospel) in which he writes: ‘I wish to encourage the Christian faithful to embark on a new chapter of evangelisation marked by this joy, while pointing out new paths for the Church’s journey in years to come’.

Cardinal Vincent Nichols writes: ‘This pioneering initiative is for all clergy, religious and lay people.
Why? Because we all share the one mission – to PROCLAIM the joy of the Gospel.’

Proclaim has five parts to it including:

• the provision of free parish small group materials;
• the organisation of a National Catholic Evangelisation Conference in Birmingham on 11 July 2015 for 850 evangelisation representatives from across England and Wales including two members of our parish – Sheelagh Pickles and Angela de Rosiers
• an invitation to parishes to host a parish Prayer Vigil on the night of 11 July 2015 with free prayer materials provided;
• the invitation to dioceses, deaneries and parishes to have their own Proclaim ’15 event in autumn 2015;
• the publication of new evangelisation resources as a fruit of the National Conference to equip local evangelisers.

There is a special prayer which we are all invited to pray in the days and weeks prior to the National Conference – the work of evangelisation relies on the power of the Holy Spirit ...