VALPARAISO – Totus Tuus is a summer Catholic youth program dedicated to sharing the Gospel and promoting the Catholic faith through evangelization, catechesis, Christian witness, and Eucharistic worship. It calls upon college students and seminarians from the Diocese of Gary and across the United States to carry this mission to every young person they encounter in the parish program.
Some of these students, who are hired for their energy, love for the faith and commitment to spiritual growth, are in the midst of completing a nine-day training at Camp Lawrence. Appropriately called missionaries, these men and women are preparing to bring the Totus Tuus program throughout the Diocese of Gary this summer.
Sean Martin, coordinator of catechesis and faith formation, explained that the training is important because it provides the missionaries with key information about the teachings of the faith. He said it equips them with the knowledge to go out and be able to teach and evangelize in the parishes. The missionaries receive training in the Totus Tuus curriculum. This year is on the Ten Commandments and the Luminous Mysteries of the Rosary.
The missionaries are also immersed in prayer and the sacraments and are asked to maintain that prayer regimen through the summer as a team. They also learn a variety of songs, skits and games that will keep the children they teach engaged.
“All of that is actually done in a really short time, in just a little over a week,” Martin said. “The big thing is that we teach them the curriculum, and then they lesson-plan. We teach them how to teach, and they actually create lesson plans.”
Martin said this summer Totus Tuss includes 18 elementary classes separated into three grade levels: first and second grade, third and fourth grade, and fifth and sixth grade. The missionaries create a separate lesson plan to target all of those age groups. They were also asked to develop five or six talks for junior high and high school students.
“We want them to be ready to go, teach the faith,” he said. “They're not experts, but they're certainly doing the best they can with what we equip them with. It's really quite amazing to see how they grow through the summer.”
Martin shared that the diocesan property of Camp Lawrence is a beautiful location, providing a secluded spot in which to work and pray, with still plenty of room to move around. He added that the grounds lend themselves to a retreat atmosphere.
“A lot of missionaries say one of their favorite highlights of their summers is coming here,” he said.
Joining the missionaries at Camp Lawrence the morning of June 2 was Bishop Robert J. McClory. He led a discussion titled “Keeping God’s Commandments” inside St. Raphael Hall, which was followed by the celebration of Mass inside Our Lady of the Woods Chapel.
Bishop McClory stated that for some people, what they fail to appreciate about the moral commandments of the Church is “the one who is giving us the commands for our benefit.”
“You have to know the one who gave the commandments to kind of see how that fits into the wider framework,” he said.
Bishop McClory defined morality as the objective standards authored by God by which we judge actions. These standards are studied as moral principles and applied to particular situations. The first three commandments, he explained, deal with our relationship with God, while the remaining commandments deal with our relationship with each other.
“There are some people who think of religion or Catholicism as just a bunch of rules,” said the bishop. “But I try to explain that the rules are for our good. They’re from a God who loves us dearly, and he wants us to flourish and grow into who he’s called us to be.”
Bishop McClory continued talking about human acts, forming conscience and the precepts of the Church. During the presentation, he explained that by following the commandments, people begin to realize they are happier, healthier and holier. They feel better the more they live in the light of God’s plan for them.
“A vibrant, joyful life is to say, ‘Lord, you love me. I will live my life in light of the love, and I want to share that love with others,’” he said.
Bishop McClory also expressed his appreciation for the missionaries’ commitment to the Church and Totus Tuus.
He said, “I’m delighted you’re here, and I’m delighted that you’re going to be serving our young people through Totus Tuus, which has been such a great blessing.”
Missionary Allison Pesce said she was handed a flyer for Totus Tuus, which prompted her to become involved with the program. She has a strong interest in teaching and is currently studying theology. She felt Totus Tuus would be the perfect blend of both fields.
Pesce liked that the training week challenged the missionaries’ prayer life. There is Mass, Holy Hour and recitation of the Rosary built into the itinerary every day.
“It's definitely the most prayer that I've ever done in my life,” she said. “It's challenging in a very good way, and it's definitely helped me grow.”
Pesce, who lives in Houston and attends Ave Maria University, said when she thinks about teaching, a particular saying often comes to mind, “Education is the igniting of a flame, not the filling of vessels.”
“I don't want to just be like telling them information,” Pesce said. “I want to get them excited and in love with the faith.”
Roy Graf said he enjoyed being able to meet some of the other missionaries. As a seminarian with the Diocese of Gary, he said being able to spend time with other seminarians from other dioceses was a great experience.
In addition to meeting other young Catholics, Graf enjoyed being able to partake in some of the liturgies. The music and the presence of all the other missionaries, he said, have been beautiful, especially in adoration.
Graf looks forward to teaching the children he will encounter during Totus Tuus. While he is hoping they will retain the information shared during instruction, he hopes to teach them by example, too.
“I’d like for them to see us and see our witness to faith,” Graf said.
An article introducing Totus Tuus for the 2026 year appeared in the most recent issue of Faith Northwest Indiana magazine. The article can be read online at https://faithnwi.org/news/inside-totus-tuus. For more information on Totus Tuus, visit https://dcgary.org/totustuus or email smartin@dcgary.org.
