Finding refuge in the Spoken Word

By Leela Ramdeen, Chair, CCSJ (http://rcsocialjusticett.org) & Director, CREDI

A key event organised by the CCSJ and the Catholic Youth Commission during Justice, Peace and Community Week (October 21–28) was the 3^rd Annual Spoken Word Competition on the theme: A Catholic perspective on the Development of Peoples aired on TCN on Friday, October 27.

Episcopal Delegate for Youth, Winston Garcia and I thank Kyle de Gannes, Mark Howell-Paul, Fidelis Iwueke, Serapion Jones, Michael Logie, Ngozi Lucas, Paige McCarthy, Naiyla Nakhid, and Leeum Quan Kep for their powerful pieces. Naiyla, Kyle and Leeum won first, second and third prize respectively.

In March 2017, Pope Francis said that youth should not be afraid to leave their mark on the world: “The Church and society need you.” Our youth are partners in the process of promoting integral human development. Here is the winning poem from Naiyla:

All I have are words,

Swimming around in my mind

So I am sailing out into this lyrical sea to find

Where one’s emotions flowed.

In the crests of rhythmic waves,

Diluting my thoughts to flood a page

Leaving me with paper drenched in melodic verses

As the waters of passion surges……. to no end

And submerges…..me in the depth of inspiration

Letting words flow from my pen.

I speak on behalf of all the youth

We hunger for what’s right,

And we thirst for the truth.

We all have voices and we want to be heard

So we found refuge in this here spoken word.

The Church keeps wondering

Deeply contemplating and pondering

Why she’s losing her youth

When all she sought after was to give them the way, the light, and the truth.

The statistics show that three in every five teens leave the church,

These three in every five teens are on a brand new search.

Searching for something real

Searching for a love so pure to feel.

You see, we no longer have to go to court to meet a judge anymore,

Nowadays all you have to do is walk through a church door.

Well if the Church opened up and the people woke up too

Maybe then they would understand that they are no better than me or you.

All of us are sinners,

Yes, every…single…one

But Jesus dying on the cross, well I consider my battle won.

So just stop for a minute and look

Yeah, drop that proud scoffed up look,

Take some time to read the Holy Book

And in shame, we will hang our head

Knowing some of the things we once said

But I am sure we will learn to show love and be humble instead

Is it that attending church makes you a good person?

You feel you better than me because you listen to a sermon?

Well hear nah,

As Catholics we should know who we are

Nothing but sinners seeking to heal our every scar.

For the church is a hospital for the broken, the sick and the weak,

Here we are taught to be kind, humble and meek.

Now hold up, hold up

You see the three out of five that leave the church,

On a brand-new search.

Well they are part of the problem too

Because instead of staying to worship from ground to steeple

They give and leave because of people.

Now I have a voice and I want to be heard

I guess that is why I wrote this spoken word

To prove that logics are worthy

But it’s like saying you back ‘Barça’ just cause you brought the jersey.

He died for us

So why not have faith and just trust?

Nailed to the cross he said “Father, forgive them, they know not what they do”

While on his mind he was thinking of me and you.

He dipped his paintbrush in the colour of glory

And that is how we became part of this wonderful story.

We all know the quote about giving credit where credit is due

Well let’s say thank you to the one who is right and truer than true

For he made old things new.

He made a masterpiece of me and you.

I’ll take the weight of your hate on my back

And use it as armour when I am under attack

The parts of me that died came back to life

As soon as I set my focus back on Christ.

Now I’ve got one shot at this

So I can’t just quit and walk away from it.