Washington D.C., Apr 16, 2021 / 04:00 am America/Denver (CNA).
With the Maine Catholic Youth Meeting taking place virtually for the second year in a row, the Diocese of Portland is trying something new to engage young Catholics – a healthy dose of sheep puns.
“What we learned from last year was that we needed more opportunities for participants to interact more and not just watch,” Shawn Gregory, coordinator of youth ministry for the diocese, told CNA of the annual gathering of Catholic youth from around the state.
“This year we decided to go with a shorter and faster-paced gathering,” he said. This year’s event will occur on Good Shepherd Sunday and will be modeled after the popular game show “Jeopardy.”
“Because the event will be taking place on Good Shepherd Sunday, we had a lot of sheep puns going around, and that’s where we came up with the name ‘Shepherdy,’” Gregory said. “The theme of the event is One Shepherd, One Flock and the categories will focus on aspects of that.”
The Diocese of Portland is Maine’s only Catholic diocese, and its annual youth convention is an opportunity for young Catholics across the entire state to gather.