| We hope you enjoy your visit! You're currently viewing Catholic CyberForum as a guest. This means you are limited to certain areas of the board and there are some features you can't use. If you join our online cyberparish, you'll be able to access member-only sections, and use many member-only features such as customizing your profile, sending personal messages, and voting in polls. Registration is simple, fast, and completely free. Join our community! Messages posted to this board must be polite and free of abuse, personal attacks, blasphemy, racism, threats, harrassment, and crude or sexually-explicit language. If you're already a member please log in to your account to access all of our features: |
| No prayer meetings at Christian-founded hostel | |
|---|---|
| Topic Started: Friday, 26. June 2009, 14:15 (144 Views) | |
| Rose of York | Friday, 26. June 2009, 14:15 Post #1 |
![]()
Administrator
|
Link
|
|
Keep the Faith! | |
![]() |
|
| Rose of York | Friday, 26. June 2009, 14:17 Post #2 |
![]()
Administrator
|
THREE DAYS LATER, ANOTHER PRESS REPORT; LINK
|
|
Keep the Faith! | |
![]() |
|
| Rose of York | Friday, 26. June 2009, 14:21 Post #3 |
![]()
Administrator
|
This is all about inclusivity, the hostel is there to serve all, regardless of colour, race or creed. If they want to provide for all, they could give people of other faiths the opportunity to use the prayer room, that would be true service to all regardless of faith. The new managers want the residents to get their spiritual support from outside in the wider community. I would see the logic of that if they also told the residents that if they want to see the doctor they can go out to visit a local GP. No, they have their own in house facility for physical health, but must go elsewhere for spiritual health. Don't these managers understand that for some homeless people, prayer IN THE HOME was part of their lives before they became homeless? |
|
Keep the Faith! | |
![]() |
|
| Deleted User | Friday, 26. June 2009, 15:17 Post #4 |
|
Deleted User
|
The problem is where is the prayer space? Often in hostels it is the resident’s lounge and it would not be fair to move people every time you want a prayer service. I used to say mass in the dining room but again the timing was inconvenient for some and many faiths would not regard the dining room as conducive to prayer, the smell of bacon and cabbage may appeal to some but not I suspect the Rabi or Muller. Also this is a temporary hostel not a home and it is important that the distinction is made and kept otherwise the whole object of the project is defeated. The sooner the person is able to reintegrate into a permanent community the better and I suspect that the helpers and managers are involved in helping the people find a longer term solution and that will involve, counselling, financial advice, medical care and spiritual care but from the best and most appropriate source. A GP is a GP regardless of race creed or colour and priest or spiritual advisor is more specialized. They do not have a dentist or optician or physiotherapist but I am sure some of the residents will need the services of such specialists. I remember in the late 1980's when there was a proposed care in the community home being discussed in the parish I was working in. The CPN (Community Psychiatric Nurse) called on the parish and spoke to myself and the parish priest and we agreed that it would no trouble to us if some of the residents came to the 8 am Sunday Mass (which was without Hymns) or the 11 am Mass with hymns but that it would probably not be a good thing for them to come to the mass in the school hall at 9:30 because it might make some of the patients and children uncomfortable. The CPN was very supportive and said that even though not all the staff coming with the patients would be Catholic every effort would be made to ensure that the residents would be given the choice and accommodated. Sadly the local residents objected to the home and it was never opened. When at a Parish event the PP mentioned to some people that he was disappointed with the attitude of the locals he was told in no uncertain terms that he had no right to expose the young people of the parish to mental patients and it was a jolly good thing that they had not opened the home. I can see a parallel here. Some people will be very supportive of the homeless being put in a hostel but as to them being allowed to mix with the community "Oh no!" The Hostel is fulfilling its Christian duty by feeding housing and I suspect clothing these poor people and I further commend them for allowing them to integrate into whatever prayer service or worship is available in the neighbourhood and I hope the locals are more Christian in their welcome than the parishioners were back in '89. |
|
|
| Rose of York | Friday, 26. June 2009, 16:49 Post #5 |
![]()
Administrator
|
According to the newspaper report, the prayer space was in a room other than the main lounge and no residents objected. I quoted excerpts from the report, to keep within copyright guidelines.
|
|
Keep the Faith! | |
![]() |
|
| Deleted User | Friday, 26. June 2009, 17:17 Post #6 |
|
Deleted User
|
The question still stands, where is the prayer space, it was in a side room before refurbishment is that room still there? Secondly they are not banning prayer they are simply not providing the prayer meetings that used to take place. I also reiterate the point about the need to integrate and the fact that this is a Hostel not a home and the residents are temporary and in need of rehabilitation. I do not see that there is any cause for complaint the old firm lost the contract to run the hostel and it has been refurbished and placed under new management; I smell sour grapes rather than positive support for the residents. It is very easy to feel virtuous when conducting a service for people who are beholden to you for the food on their table and the roof over their head. I am sorry but I have read the articles and the comments people have sent in and it is as I feared a case of people wanting to hide the homeless rather than accept them into their midst. |
|
|
| william of bow | Saturday, 27. June 2009, 08:59 Post #7 |
|
I think the real story here is more about how the Langley House Trust, a national charity with a good track record of hostel management is encouraged to put a lot of work and money into developing a new Hostel only to have the fruit of that work snatched away at the last minute when the management contract is givin to two (local) organisations. Do I smell a rat here? At least, something not quite 'kosher'?The Local Authority will come out of it heads up since I doubt they put any money into this project but, hey, they get to run it albeit at arms length through the housing management agency which is (I suspect) their housing department in a different legal guise. Constructing and developing a hostel is not a cheap project. Keeping within the necessary Health & Safety, and Fire laws alone will put millions on the budget these days. And I can assure you that this hostel will have 24 rooms, with ensuite. This is not a dormitory as such things are no longer allowed. Penfold, this is not a 'temporary' hostel but a permanent hostel with 24 bed spaces. 'Temporary' hostels are bed spaces usually available only between, say November and February. Eg. Crisis at Christmas provide temporary hostels. This Torquay hostel will be a permanaent hostel open, we assume 7 days a week, 12 months of the year. Homelessness along the south coast is a chronic situation. The homeless and the derelict tend to migrate towards the coastal resorts from all over the country. It has a lot to do with being able to pick up temporary seasonal work (although not perhaps this year) and also the milder, warmer climates in the winter. William |
William of Bow[G.K.Chesterton] Check my Blog: http://www.williamonthehill.typepad.co.uk | |
![]() |
|
| Deleted User | Saturday, 27. June 2009, 09:08 Post #8 |
|
Deleted User
|
The maximum length pf residence is 6 months this is tempory because the Building may be perminant but it provides Tempory accomodation. William |
|
|
| Rose of York | Saturday, 27. June 2009, 12:16 Post #9 |
![]()
Administrator
|
I have lived in Devon. Outside the holiday period, seasonal workers find work on planting bulbs and, later, harvesting flowers, bulbs and vegetables. Some towns have a homelessness problem throughout the year. A lot of the people who go there for the holiday work have no home to return to, so they remain whether or not they can find work outside the holiday season. |
|
Keep the Faith! | |
![]() |
|
| Ned | Saturday, 27. June 2009, 16:40 Post #10 |
|
Interestingly the new management are Shekinah Torbay. From the name they might have religious connections ! |
![]() |
|
| Rose of York | Saturday, 27. June 2009, 17:18 Post #11 |
![]()
Administrator
|
Ned, they do have Christian connections. http://www.shekinahtorbay.com/
It is interesting to read the story of the founder http://www.shekinahtorbay.com/trustees.php
|
|
Keep the Faith! | |
![]() |
|
| 1 user reading this topic (1 Guest and 0 Anonymous) | |
| « Previous Topic · Archived Discussions · Next Topic » |





9:15 AM Jul 11