Companions on faith journey
Local
Ben Cheesman, Brandon Vu and Deona Alby are three young people with very different backgrounds and experiences but they have found a common interest in the Preca Community.
All are members of the Come and See Youth group which meets every Friday night at Nazareth Catholic College senior campus and they regularly participate in faith formation sessions held at the Preca Centre at Brompton on Saturday evenings.
Ben, 22, went to school at Nazareth and is now studying bookkeeping and working part-time in airport security. His family isn’t Catholic but an interest in religion and the big questions in life prompted him to join the Henley Beach Antioch youth group a few years ago.
When that folded recently, he looked for something else and by chance he heard John Micallef, Preca’s national and local community leader, asking if any young people were interested in joining the Come and See Youth group.
Ben had already been exploring the Catholic faith through American podcasters Fr Mike Schmitz and Bishop Robert Baron, and reading books such as CS Lewis’ Mere Christianity.
“I’ve always been philosophically minded,” Ben said.
“I want to know what’s going on and what’s true and what’s not.”
At school he would “provoke” his teachers, especially about the interface between science and religion.
Not only did Ben join Preca, he has also taken the next step and entered the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults program run by the community.
“God willing, I will be baptised next Easter,” he said.
Brandon, 20, comes from a Catholic family heavily engaged with the Catholic Church through their local parish, Sacred Heart Findon-Hindmarsh.
The pharmaceutical science student started going to Preca with his family when he was 12, a big attraction being the soccer games. He now plays the electric keyboard every Sunday in his parish church.
“Preca has always been associated with my local parish, a lot of my friends went to Preca, and they tried to invite me to come but I never went,” he said.
“Then one day they invited me again and I said ‘okay, you win, I’ll give it a go’. Since that invitation I never looked back.
“When I suggested it to my family, we all went and never left.”
Brandon said the way he thought about Preca now was very different to when he first joined.
“When I was 12, honestly, it was mainly because we had a gym and it was soccer, soccer, soccer, and then I got to an age where more responsibility came.
“I remember I was here (at Brompton) one day with John and he told me you get to an age where you stop thinking only about yourself and start thinking about others.
“That really resonated with me…I started thinking about being welcoming to everyone in this community.
“But when my religious faith grew the most was when Ben came into the community.”
Brandon said the day that Ben “rocked up” and started asking lots of questions about the Christian faith, it made him question his own faith.
“As a young person you do this and do that because your parents tell you to. We had a session and we heard from Ben about how he had learned about Christ and all this questioning he had,” he explained.
“I was very sheep-like, just following the trail…but when Ben was mentioning his story it made me think, why do I go to Preca? Initially it was because of the soccer but now it’s to learn more about Christ and my faith.”
Deona came to Australia eight months ago to study nursing. At age 18, it was a big decision to leave her family in Kerala, India, and she didn’t think it would be easy to continue her Catholic faith in Australia.
“When I came to Australia I was searching for the church near my house and randomly they were having this Christmas event,” she recalled.
“I was seated with a group of youths and they asked me to come (to Preca).
“I didn’t do anything about it at first but I gave my number to one of the youth and she reached out to ask how I was doing.”
That reminded Deona about the invitation.
“I was really new to the country and didn’t have any friends so I just came to the (Come and See Youth) group and they were really nice and very welcoming,” she said.
“I’ve been a part of Preca ever since. It’s like my second family now, I’ve got a lot of friends and members who have supported me in times of difficulty, especially when I had to move house and was feeling really down.
“It’s great to have a community that supports you and is there for you.”
Coming from a strong Christian and Catholic background, Deona said her family was “really happy” she had found the Preca Community.
She liked the fact that it was not “rigid” and if you couldn’t attend for a while “the door will always be open to you”.
This reflects the Preca spirituality, which John Micallef described as a “gentle approach to ministry”.
“It’s like the apostles, they were called and they joined Jesus because they wanted to,” he said.
Founded in 1907 by Maltese priest St George Preca, who John said epitomised humility, Preca was brought to Adelaide by Maltese immigrants in the early 1950s and today is a multicultural faith community with more than 200 members.
John said Preca was primarily about faith formation and “making Jesus known and loved…being holy missionary disciples”.
“We target all age groups but the emphasis is on younger people,” he said.
“To have a friend who has your faith and you’re journeying together is a blessing.”
For more information about Come and See Youth and the Preca Community, visit precacommunity.org
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