By Erik Weber | Correspondent
With sand between their toes and God in their hearts, about 100 teens and volunteers flocked to the grounds of St. Catherine Laboure Parish, Middletown, to engage with Franciscan Friars and Sisters of the Renewal and learn how to grow closer to Christ through prayer, faith-sharing and Eucharistic Adoration – between rounds of beach volleyball and pickup games of touch football.
Hosted by Fearless Ministries Inc., the event was brought to the Jersey Shore June 1-3 by parish youth ministry coordinator Theresa Gibilisco after she and her now 16-year-old daughter, Angela, joined the first of several weekends over the past year in New York State and Connecticut that helped teach youth how to cope with their daily struggles through God.
Video: 2018 Fearless Retreat
Taking part in those retreats far from home, she said, made the idea obvious that their parish, located just blocks from an ocean beach with views of New York City, would be a great summer place to bring teens together with “friars and sisters and religious that you don’t typically interact with on a daily basis, as a teen.”
Indeed it was as ice pops were eaten and Frisbees flown over the sun-dappled parish campus field.
“It’s just such a wonderful place to be,” said Angela Gibilisco, who as part of her Sweet 16 birthday wish, invited friends from as far away as Mississippi, Georgia, Texas and Florida to be part of the retreat. “There’s just something about coming to this retreat that just brings you to such a deep relationship with Jesus.”
Two teens from New York state – Emma Edwards, 15, a member of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish, Middletown, N.Y.; and Josh Bates, 17, a member of St. Thomas the Apostle Parish, Delmar, N.Y. – talked about how the break from daily pressures at home allowed them to learn to grow within their faith and bring things on their mind to God.
“It’s good for your mental health as well as your spiritual health,” Edwards said. “In Adoration, you can pour everything that concerns you, everything that’s going on, everything that you’re thinking about – you can just bring it to God, and he takes all of that and just gets rid of it.”
“He just wipes it away,” Bates agreed. “God can help anybody, no matter what your struggles.”
“We’re kind of at this age where we’re not children anymore but we’re not sure how to act as adults, so coming here really is just so wonderful, to see all the counselors and all the religious just being good Catholic adults,” Angela Gibilisco said.
The retreat included Adoration through the night, a Eucharistic procession to the beach, witness talks, a question-and-answer session, music, fun and games.
Brother Shawn Conrad, a Franciscan Friar of Renewal stationed in St. Michael’s Friar in Paterson, and Sister Elizabeth Hogan, a Franciscan Sister of the Renewal based in the Bronx and Harlem, discussed the impact they hoped the talks had on the youth.
“We just started out talking about the Eucharist – the center of our faith,” Brother Shawn said, explaining one of the homilies given over the weekend focused on the Eucharist’s role in a priestly vocation. “It’s just a great experience for kids to hear that from other people, and to have a fellowship with kids their own age and a chance to ask questions about the faith and get answers. … Hopefully it’ll plant a lot of seeds, and they’ll be able to grow and mature in their faith.”
Sister Hogan explained that one of the weekend discussions was on virtue and how to grow in faith.
“We’re made in the image and likeness of God, so virtue is a way in which we can live out that dignity. People want to grow closer to God … they just need some tangible tools.”
Added Brother Shawn, “The number one thing we hope to do is to get them excited about their faith so they want to go to Mass on a regular basis.”