Scottish Catholic Observer

Each year NET Ministries (National Evangelisation Teams) sends young Catholics aged 18-28 to different countries around the world to evangelise high school pupils.

NET Scotland launched their new ‘500 for 5’ campaign this week, aiming to help raise £90,000 to bring US missionaries to Scotland to minister to the spiritual needs of young people.

Last academic year, NET Scotland missionaries conducted 112 high school retreats in 32 schools across six dioceses, ministering to 6,927 school pupils.

A third of the £90,000 will be funded by the missionaries themselves and a further £30,000 by retreat fees.

Campaign

However, the ‘500 for 5’ campaign is seeking to raise the remaining £30,000, which is essential to bringing the missionaries to Scotland, where they will stay and minister for eight months.

The money will fund 10 missionaries and three full-time mission staff.

NET retreats typically take place during a school day from 9am-3pm and include games, music, testimonies of Faith and prayer, which help to bring the young people closer to God.

The ‘500 for 5’ campaign was launched by Bishop Joseph Toal of Motherwell Diocese on Tuesday October 1 at St Andrew’s Secondary School, Coatbridge, as the organisation hosted its Commissioning Mass.

Seeking donations

The campaign is seeking 500 people to donate five pounds a month for NET to continue its work in Scotland.

NET Scotland director John Jackson said: “With schools paying for retreats and the missionaries bringing in a third of the funding, we’ve still got another £30,000 to raise, so what we’re doing is trying to get grassroots Catholics to understand what we do in terms of ministry in schools.

“It’s ministry from young people to young people, trying to teach them that God loves them and that he’s really trying to stir up the Faith in Catholic schools in Scotland.”

Shared mission

Encouraging people to donate, he added: “We want people to be a part of this mission, and the way they can help is by making a financial contribution—that way they become our partners in mission.

“If we can get 500 people to pay five pounds a month that would fill the gap.”

So far, NET Scotland has around 40 people signed up as donors, meaning they need around 460 more.

Although NET Scotland generally bring missionaries from the US, Mr Jackson also revealed they are looking to get more young Scots on board.

Scottish support

“I think we’ve had five people from Scotland involved over the last year years,” he said.

“The idea is to try and get more people from here on board in future.”

He said the Mass at St Andrew’s was ‘the springboard to spirituality that charged the campaign.’

He added: “It was quite spiritual launching the campaign at the Mass.

“Evangelisation is really what we’re all about so it was the best place to launch it. What we say to the kids, though, is that it’s not us doing the work, it’s the Holy Spirit who will make a difference for young people in today’s secular society.

To donate to NET Scotland’s ‘500 for 5’ campaign, visit www.netscotland.org, call 0141 370 5904 or 078879 18791.