A group of parishioners from St James' Parish, Bootle, were privileged to attend the 2008 Religious Education Congress, organised by the Diocese of Los Angeles. It is arguably the biggest and best of its kind in the English speaking world, attracting 65,000 teachers, catechists, pastors and parish workers from across the English speaking world.

Left: Sue McCormick, Parish Music Team. Right: Carol Thompson, Co-ordinator of Children's Liturgy.

The theme this year was LIFT YOUR GAZE: SEE ANEW! All delegates were invited to look at their ministry and see ways in which they could make the Gospel Message more relevant to their specific ministry. The very theme forced people to look up and look around and then re-assess what they were doing. It was a call to be connected and to realise that we cannot work alone as some type of superman or superwoman. Indeed one of the workshops led by Salesian Past Pupil Prof Tom Groome (Boston College) said it all in the title: I am NOT the Messiah; he was putting forward the need for a strong dimension of collaborative ministry in all we do for the Reign of God. Salesians of the world unite!

All the usual suspects were there leading various workshops, such as Fr Tim Radcliffe OP, Fr Donal Cozzens (The Changing Face of Priesthood), the great story teller John Shea, Fr Ronald Rolheiser OMI, the St Louis Jesuits and Dr Megan McKenna (Not Counting the Women and Children). Keynote speaker this year was Fr Robert Barron from Chicago; he spoke of the power and challenge of change and our need as Church, and individuals, to face up to it in a way that brings life.

While the working element to Congress was excellent, the prayer and worship time made even more special. The liturgies were alive, creative and deeply prayerful and we were able to learn so much from our breaking the Word and sharing the Eucharist together.

We also worked with our partner school at SAN CARLOS in Monterrey where we spent as very full day with staff and children. We would like to thank Bishop Richard Garia and the Office of Faith Formation, led by our former retreat preacher Fr Roy Shelly, for their help and financial support. We spent another very useful day with the Faith Formation Team (Tish, Sheliag, Patrick and Roy) seeing ways in which ways in which we could share good practice.

The overarching principles that need to guide our Ministry are Evangelization and Stewardship. We are essentially a missionary Church. The principles of evangelisation spur us on to learn more about our Catholic tradition and how best to celebrate it and share it in today's society. We are most effective when we work together to build up the Catholic Community. Faith education often can be limited to those moments when we are preparing for a sacramental celebration (Baptism, First Eucharist, Confirmation, or Marriage).

As persons we continue to learn all through life in many ways. Congress 08 and our visit to Monterey Diocese will help us to promote a wide variety of ways for people to continue in their process of faith education. We believe that the parish is the very best place for faith development to happen. It is the place where families and individuals come together to pray and celebrate their faith.