Something is changing in the way young adults are engaging with faith.
Guinness & God, a young adult initiative that has been running for nearly two decades, has taken on a fresh expression over the past year – and the response has been encouraging. The familiar Catholic event has evolved into a dynamic evening designed to create space for young adults to bring their questions, their friends and their whole story.
At the heart of the initiative is a team of 12 young adult leaders, representing different communities, backgrounds and walks of life. Guinness & God is a formal partnership between the Catholic Archdiocese of Canberra and Goulburn and the Australian Catholic University (ACU), with a deliberate emphasis on Gen Z leadership. Young adults aren’t simply attending an event created for them – they are helping shape the conversations, culture and experience for their peers.
This culture shift is also visible in who is coming through the door. Catholics are increasingly bringing friends who are from other faith traditions, or who have no faith at all. The event is planned and promoted with the expectation that a significant portion of the room may not identify as Catholic. The aim is to cast a broad net: to create an authentically Catholic experience that can also speak the language of those who are unchurched or exploring faith.
The new format combines engaging speakers with activities, conversation and interaction around the tables. The slogan says it simply: “Big questions. No pressure.”
Over the past year, three gatherings have welcomed 80, 90 and 70 young adults, featuring Simon Carrington from Fire Up Ministries and Fr Rob Galea from ICON Ministry. Simon explored Dating with Passion and Purpose, while Fr Rob shared his own story of discovering that saying yes to God doesn’t mean saying goodbye to your passions and dreams – but can open the door to something greater than you imagined.
Perhaps the clearest sign of the culture shift is Alex Wolfe from Corpus Christi Parish. Coming from a completely non-faith background, Guinness & God was Alex’s first exposure to the Catholic Church. That first experience led to further conversations, connections and encounters with the Church, eventually leading Alex to join the RCIA and become Catholic. Today, he finds himself behind the microphone, helping MC the very event that was part of his own journey into the Church.
Guinness & God is not shying away from Catholic teaching. Instead, it is finding new ways to share the richness of the Catholic faith through testimony, story, conversation and genuine encounter – creating a space where young adults can ask big questions without the added pressure, bring their friends and take their next step.