In Evangelii Gaudium, Pope Francis calls the Church to ‘initiate everyone, priests, religious and laity, into this art of accompaniment’. This invitation has been reaffirmed by Pope Leo XIV, who urges the Church to continue this mission by becoming a ‘missionary Church’, that builds bridges, dialogue, always open to receiving with open arms everyone.”

In response to this call, all those connected to the Archdiocese of Liverpool are invited to take part in a series of workshops on Adventurous Accompaniment, delivered by national Catholic charity Million Minutes.

Taking place throughout February and March, the programme will be delivered through a series of workshops held at the St Margaret Clitherow Centre (SMCC) and St Joseph’s Church, Penketh.

The sessions offer an opportunity to explore how we can grow a culture of accompaniment within our parishes and communities, walking shoulder-to-shoulder with one another and enabling each person to flourish in their God-given dignity.

Adventurous Accompaniment seeks to encourage, develop and support a culture of accompaniment within Catholic communities across England and Wales. More than living in solidarity, it invites participants to approach everyday encounters in a way that is deeply rooted in listening, presence and openness to the Holy Spirit.

The workshops will explore five core principles of Adventures Accompaniment:

• Expect the Holy Spirit’s presence

• Stand aside

• Turn into the divine

• Gradualness

• Movement towards human flourishing

Kate Wilkinson, Chief Executive of Million Minutes, said: “For the last decade, Million Minutes has been exploring what it means to accompany and be an accompanier.

“Adventurous Accompaniment has been used by dioceses, parishes, religious orders and schools across England and Wales, and we are delighted to be bringing it to the Archdiocese of Liverpool.”

She added: “Accompaniment is a key theme in the Archdiocesan Pastoral Plan, appearing 26 times. This programme is not about training people to become spiritual directors or counsellors, but about offering a toolkit for everyone- clergy and laity alike- to help nurture a culture of accompaniment across the archdiocese.”

The sessions at SMCC will take place on 7th, 28th February and 21st March at 10am-2pm. St Joseph’s will host the sessions on 8th February and 1st and 22nd March at 12-4pm.

There are limited spaces left so if you are interested, please sign up below: https://archdioceseofliverpool.org/accompaniment

More information can be found here.