Peace! The March Food Give Away went so well! Students from the University of Chicago were in for an overnight service/learning retreat (Friday to Saturday), joining us for Mass before the Food Give Away and a Eucharistic Holy Hour with other young adult volunteers afterwards. A couple of discerners also joined us for a chance to “Come and See” what life is like for the Franciscans of the Eucharist of Chicago.
After we finished Holy Hour, Lunch and clean up, Sr. Kate, Sr. Alicia and Sr. Stephanie hopped in the green Corolla packed with 200 carpet squares, a giant crucifix and a portable sound system (just in case!) to make our way to St. Ansgar Parish in Hanover Park. We were invited to lead a Confirmation retreat for the parish’s 200 confirmandi, and couldn’t have hoped for a better team to work with! The DRE, Esperanza, and her catechists were so organized and had a great rapport with the teens, and their pastor, Fr. Garcia, was very welcoming. Right before the retreat began, Sr. Jaime, Br. Matt and Jess joined us to help out. With the theme “Be an Excellent Christian Athlete”, we used athletic imagery and sports analogies to help teach the teens about the Treasures of our Faith, especially the Eucharist and the Sacrament of Reconciliation. To close the retreat, we had a beautiful Eucharistic Holy Hour with guided mediation and music. During the Holy Hour, seven priests took time out of their busy schedules to hear confessions and most of the teens took advantage of this opportunity to experience God’s mercy, forgiveness and love.
We are very grateful to the parish for their invitation, and most of all to Our Lord for His presence in the Eucharist. We beleive Jesus is always the “Retreat Master”, and we are simply there to be His instruments to help lead the youth closer to Christ. We are also grateful for the ongoing formation we receive both in our community with Fr. Bob and at Mundelein Seminary through academic courses that help prepare us to assist with retreat work. God bless you!
