2020 saw the growth of digital ministry in our Church and in the Diocese of Parramatta, it overflowed with the launch of The Well and one of its regular features, Saturday Sessions.
What is Saturday Sessions?
We are constantly seeking opportunities to connect, deepen our faith, and share with others in a safe, friendly environment. How does this work online
Saturday Sessions is a weekly online community that meets to discuss a video, podcast or discussion paper viewed prior to gathering for an hour on Saturday mornings. The group started meeting in April 2020 at the onset of the COVID restrictions and since then, there have been over 100 people regularly attend over the next eight months, listening to and discussing 32 different speakers and topics – some local speakers and some from around the world.
In 2021, there will be two opportunities to engage with others online to discuss a featured topic – Saturday mornings from 9.15am to 10.30am or a repeated session on Monday evenings from 7.15pm to 8.30pm. There is no weekly commitment – you just attend when you can. Notices will be sent out the week before and you can register via the link for the upcoming topic.
The Saturday Sessions resource can be used in any small group setting.
Previous Saturday Sessions have been used in faith communities in a few ways.
Tessie James from St Luke’s Catholic Community in Marsden Park says, “It was great to access The Well as it is an amazing resource for our faith enrichment journey. It is a place that will initiate, inspire and ignite a deep encounter with Jesus. I looked at the Saturday Sessions series and was able to feel a sense of belonging to the Church and its Mission in simple and practical ways. I wanted our faith community members to enjoy a similar experience so that we could spiritually flourish together. Two sessions from The Well and the accompanying questions that best suited the theme were selected for our Spirituality Day.”
Miller San Pascual from The Good Shepherd Parish, Plumpton, used the Saturday Sessions both as an online format and face to-face meetings with his friendship circle. “We had friends gather each Saturday for a while. We watched the video together and then discussed the questions that were provided. It was great to have this contemporary and easy to use resource available to us.”
All previous Saturday Sessions can be found at www.thewell.org.au. Use these sessions in your own communities for faith formation, small group discussion, a follow up to Alpha or even a prelude to Alpha! Women’s groups, men’s groups, prayer groups, any type of small group are able to use Saturday Sessions. School communities can use them for staff reflection days, school retreats or to fit in with a particular topic in the teaching curriculum.
To join the Saturday Sessions mailing list, contact Lisa Bright at lisa.bright@parracatholic.org
or watch facebook.com/parracatholic for upcoming sessions.
Saturday Sessions begins on Saturday 27 February at 9.15am and repeated on Monday 1 March at 7.15pm.
Lisa Bright is the Project Officer for the Pastoral Planning Office for the Diocese of Parramatta.
