During summer break, Detroit-area youths abandon modern comforts to chase holiness through service, prayer and fellowship
OXFORD — In June, teenagers from St. Irenaeus Parish in Rochester Hills checked into the Subiaco Retreat House at St. Benedict Monastery in Oxford, Michigan. They handed over their phones and “lived as the monks live” for a week, according to Melanie Avila, youth ministry director at St. Irenaeus.
“There’s no air conditioning, and there’s no music other than what they sing together. We fast between meals and have dinner with the Benedictine monks there,” Avila said. “And yet every year, the kids can’t wait to sign up.”
This year, 42 high schoolers from the parish registered for the annual weeklong service effort called Project People.
Subiaco Retreat House served as their base for the week for meals, prayer, fellowship and rest. Each day, the teens ventured out with adult volunteers to serve at nursing homes, soup kitchens, community centers and the homes of people requesting assistance with yard work, painting and other tasks. This year, they volunteered at 28 sites.
For the youth who participated, Project People was a “mountaintop experience” — a time when one feels especially close to God. The term is a reference to biblical events such as Moses receiving the Ten Commandments on Mount Sinai or the transfiguration of Jesus on Mount Tabor.
“The kids are on fire for the Lord when we’re there,” Avila said. “Late one night, they asked if we could have Eucharistic adoration. They were hungry for that, and we made it happen for them thanks to one of the Benedictine priests.”
During their annual spring retreat, the teens choose a theme for Project People to help them be more present. This year’s theme: God’s love is infinite. They then spent the week looking for moments when they saw God’s infinite love, discussing the theme in small groups back at Subiaco each evening. They’ll continue to reflect on the theme until next spring’s retreat, when the Holy Spirit will help them determine a new one.
“Project People is the most special, most spiritual, most fun time for our kids,” Avila said. “It’s the pinnacle of our year. But then you help those kids stay on the mountain as much as you can with retreats, canoe trips, NCYC (National Catholic Youth Conference), youth Masses, and whatever you need to do to keep that flame burning.”
After the St. Irenaeus group returns from Project People, Avila takes them to Cedar Point to celebrate their good work, as well as their friendships, old and new.
Pursuing holiness in community
Also in June, 35 teens from Our Lady of Sorrows Parish in Farmington attended a Steubenville Youth Conference at Franciscan University in Ohio. Back home, they gathered in July for a bonfire and fellowship at the parish.
Tori Polhill, director of youth discipleship at the parish, says the community aspect of a mountaintop experience like Steubenville can be nearly as important as encountering Jesus there.
“Our young people feel alone,” Polhill said. “They are looking for a community that is going in the same direction as they are — the direction of holiness,” Polhill said.
Jack Vogel attended the Steubenville conference for his fourth time this year with Our Lady of Sorrows. He plans to go one last time next summer before he “ages out” as a graduated high school senior.
“It’s good to meet other kids from the parish, and it helps me feel encouraged to live out my faith,” Vogel said. “Some years, that motivation lasts longer than others, but it helps a lot, and getting together afterward with everyone helps, too.”
Since returning from the conference, Vogel has made a point to pray a rosary and the Divine Praises most days each week, and he looks forward to youth group meetings this fall when his busy schedule allows.
“It’s good to have that community where you’re all Catholic, and you have that in common,” Vogel said.
For teens at Our Lady of Sorrows who were looking to dive deeper into their faith this summer following the conference, a young adult at the parish volunteered to lead them in a discussion of Pope St. John Paul II’s 2002 apostolic letter, Rosarium Virginis Mariae.
Support from the parish is a key to fruitful youth discipleship, Avila says.
At St. Irenaeus, the Knights of Columbus council and parish families make meals for the youth group during Project People. Each month, one Sunday Mass is deemed a “youth Mass,” in which all lay liturgical roles are filled by the youth — including lectors, Eucharistic ministers and ushers. At the beginning of the year, Avila, their pastor, and an adult volunteer set aside time at youth group meetings to train the teens in each role.
“We have name badges made for each of the kids, and I put a note in the bulletin asking parishioners to learn their names and say hello,” Avila said. “It’s all about relationships, and it has to be intergenerational. Then the kids know they are part of the community, and they’re more likely to be involved in a parish or campus ministry after high school.”
When it was time to go home at the end of this year’s Project People, some of the teens cried, not wanting to leave. Avila asked one of them why she was sad to go.
“She told me, ‘Because I feel God’s presence here,’” Avila said. “And so, we talk about these events that are mountains, but we don’t see that there are small mountains that happen, too. We need to help our kids notice the smaller moments where God is working every day, all year long.”
