If you are interested in setting up a BtM group in your local parish or area, then go for it! As it's early days, there is no particular framework to follow. The basic elements are:
- The group is for any men who are interested in the Catholic faith.
- At the heart of each group is the growth of meaningful friendships in an environment of trust.
- The objective of each group is to learn, understand and share what the Church really teaches.
- The focus of each group is Jesus Christ, the essence of masculinity.
In practical terms, you should consider:
- Personally inviting a number of friends and acquaintances to start with. In this way, you begin with a core group or (more or less) like-minded individuals who you know will be supportive. I either spoke to my friends or went up to guys I regularly nodded to at Mass and said, "Would you be interested in joining a group for men?" There were 5 of us at the first meeting!
- Finding a meeting place that is private, but big enough and flexible enough to host a number of men. You may want to have prayers, talks and discussions and people need to feel that this can be done in a "safe" environment. Your church may have a decent hall or club attached to it; ours is a bit sterile, so we are fortunate enough to be able to book an RAF Association Club. With a bar ... (this is actually quite important, as a strong, social element is necessary for men to feel comfortable in each others' company).
- Establishing a schedule of learning about the Faith. What input will you have each month to stimulate learning and discussion about the teaching of the Church? Will you book speakers in advance (your parish priest; a representative from a local order of monks or nuns; someone from the parish with a particular interest or qualification in theology)? Will you run a programme like the CaFE series? Will you offer a structured course or series of workshops?
- Introducing an element of prayer to the meetings. Many of us are not used to public expressions of faith, so gentle forming a habit of prayer at the start and finish of meetings will be good practice. It only needs to be the Sign of the Cross and the Our Father at the beginning and perhaps the Glory be to the Father at the end - just to establish in people's minds that the evening is taking place in a particular context. We invited our priest to come along and to start us in prayer - it's a bit easier that way, than initiating it ourselves.
- Discussing the nature and charisma of your group within the first couple of meetings. Although the group should be relaxed and flexible in the way it approaches learning about the Faith, everyone in the group will come with their own views, ideas, preconceptions and requirements. In our group, some of us wanted to do practical things for the parish; some wanted a strong element of prayer and devotion; others wanted discussion and debate - while others still just enjoyed being at ease in a group with a deeper common bond. However, men like a sense of purpose and direction, so for people to feel there is a reason to remain in the group there has to be some sense of, "Why are we here? What are we wanting to achieve?"
