SCHERERVILLE – “Celebrating the gift that is you” gathered 59 high school youth for an evening of getting to know each other, sharing and adoring the Blessed Sacrament at a Christ Alive retreat on Nov. 19 at St. Michael the Archangel.
Hosted by the Diocese of Gary’s Office of Youth Ministry, the event was planned by youth ministry leaders from Northwest Indiana, said Vicky Hathaway, diocesan consultant.
“It is based on Pope Francis’ letter, ‘Christus Vivit,’ issued after his 2017-18 youth synod on the role of young people in the Catholic Church,” Hathaway explained. “He basically asked the youth to be the protagonists of their faith and concentrate on the gifts and talents they have and how they can use them to serve the Church and their communities.”
Toward that end, the young people from throughout the four counties of the diocese got to know each other through team-building games and small groups, attended Mass celebrated by Father John Scott and enjoyed a casual dinner before watching a video exploring the variety of gifts and talents young people can offer.
“I came with an open mind, and so far I like it more than I expected,” said Jude Knueppel, a freshman at Marian Catholic High School in Chicago Heights, Ill. and a parishioner at St. Michael, of the retreat.
“It was nice having a bunch of kids my age at Mass,” added Michael Wisniewski, also a Marian Catholic freshman and St. Michael parishioner. “I thought it would have just one theme, but it is different.”
Ben Zegarra, a senior at Munster High School and parishioner at St. Mary in East Chicago, found “everyone easy to talk to; it’s a friendly environment.”
Back in their small groups, the youth filled out a self-assessment by rating 50 in-depth statements about themselves – from “I see potential in other people,” to “Most of my conversations with other end up being about faith” to “It is important for me to support the missions with my money and time.”
After adding up their scores, the teens matched their top three “gifts” to those of popular saints corresponding to color-coded beads they gathered to make customized bracelets they can use to remind them of their strengths and interests.
“It’s a fun craft with a purpose,” noted Hathaway. “They learned about talents like encouragement, teaching, music, listening and generosity.
“We hope they look at the gifts and talents they have revealed and reflect on how they can use them,” she added.
Alina Soco, a parishioner at St. Mary in Griffith and a freshman at Andrean High School, said the questionnaire pointed the teens toward spirituality. “I had to think about the statements read to us (before answering); my scores pretty much confirmed what I knew about myself,” she said as she strung beads representing St. Joseph, St. Teresa of Calcutta and St. Martin de Porres.
“I liked making the bracelet, because we get to take them home,” added Devin Brantley, a Munster High School freshman who is a parishioner at St. Thomas More in Munster. “It shows my gifts and how they relate to St. Joseph, who worked with his hands, and Mother St. Teresa of Calcutta, who served others.”
Before Eucharistic Adoration and a reflection led by Father Greg Bim-Merle on “What now?”, the teens sat in the darkness of the chapel at St. Michael and received guidance on how to benefit from their opportunity for the sacrament of reconciliation and Eucharistic Adoration led by Deacon Robert Marben, who serves at St. Teresa of Avila Catholic Student Center in Valparaiso.
Speaking about fear, forgiveness and trust, Deacon Marben gave each teen a holy card depicting the Divine Mercy of Jesus and spoke about the visions of St. Faustina, who said to the people, “I want to heal your relationship with Jesus.”
The deacon stressed to the young people that Jesus brought the message: “There’s nothing you do that I cannot forgive, but can you forgive yourselves?”
In fear, “We are saying, ‘God, I don’t think you can (forgive me), and I don’t think you want to,’ but Jesus asks, ‘What do you mean, of course I can and want to (forgive you)’,” Deacon Marben said.
Admitting that “Eucharistic Adoration is very challenging for some people,” including Valparaiso University students who have told him, “I spent an hour and got nothing out of it,” the deacon turned the attention on the adorers.
“What are you asking for?” he challenged the young people. “Jesus asks you to sit, be quiet and listen. Jesus is alive in the Blessed Sacrament,” Deacon Marben said.
“When we receive the Eucharist, it is part of the continuous process of trusting and believing in God. In scripture, he added, “Jesus shows us he knows what it is like to be human like us. He came just for you.”
Luke Fugger, a Munster High School sophomore and St. Thomas More parishioner, said past retreats showed him the value of spending quiet time listening to God. “I enjoy Eucharistic Adoration. It presents the embodiment of Christ … you are thinking about your life and reflecting on how you can let Christ into your life more,” he said.