Members from Drawn from the Well, a young person prayer group which meets at Whitefriar Street Church. “They want something different to everyday life. They’re looking for something real, something rooted,” said Fr Simon Nolan, Carmelite Prior of Whitefriar Street Church, reflecting on the growing number of young people getting involved at the historic Dublin church.
Speaking at the Carmelite Novena to Our Lady of Mt Carmel, Fr Nolan said he was encouraged by the participation of young people. “It’s funny,” he said, “until fairly recently you would have parents and grandparents coming in worried about young people not practicing the faith. You still get that but more and more you find young people even praying for their parents to return to the faith.”
In response to this growing interest, the Carmelite community supported the formation of Drawn from the Well, a group of young adults seeking to deepen their faith. “They’ve made this place their home,” said Fr Nolan. “And a number of them are going with us for the Jubilee of Youth, we have a group of 50 going under the Carmelite umbrella.”
When asked about the draw of the Carmelite tradition, Fr Nolan said that it offers something which contrasts with the noise and business of modern life. “It’s the beauty of the liturgy and of prayer and of different spiritual traditions that they’re attracted to. The Carmelite kind of charism is a contemplative one. Its very much about space – giving yourself space, giving other’s space. Ultimately, its about space for encounter with God.”
He added that young people today may be more open to that than older generations, who can sometimes be disillusioned or cynical. “There’s a gentleness about the spirituality, I think, that enables them. When people come into our churches or our communities, they feel they can find a place there. It’s not too heavy. Everyone finds their place.”
The sacraments, too, are central. “They like the structure of the sacraments,” he said. “Even in a prayer group setting, they appreciate a structured approach to scripture and reflection. There’s a hunger for depth, and we’re seeing that more and more.”