Retreat offers youth a chance to make a difference

Intermountain Catholic

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Young adults from Saint Patrick Parish in Salt Lake City attend the Fall Youth Retreat of the Catholic Diocese of Salt Lake City at Juan Diego Catholic High School. The theme of the retreat was "Make a Difference." IC photo/Laura Vallejo

DRAPER — With the slogan "Make a Difference," the Catholic Youth Fall Retreat took place at Juan Diego Catholic High School in Draper Sept. 29.

Almost 200 young Catholics from 15 communities throughout Utah gathered to celebrate.

Samantha Almanza, Youth and Young Adult Ministry director for the Diocese of Salt Lake City, welcomed the participants and thanked them on behalf of Bishop John C. Wester for their presence.

Among the Catholic youth were representatives from the parishes of Saint Andrew, Saint Francis of Assisi, Saint Catherine of Sienna, Saint John the Baptist, San Andres, Saint James the Just, Blessed Sacrament, Saint Patrick, Saint Therese of the Child Jesus, Holy Family, the Cathedral of the Madeleine, Saints Peter and Paul, Saint Joseph, Saint Francis Xavier and Saint Rose of Lima. Youth from the Catholic community at Hill Air Force Base also were present.

Deacon Ricardo Arias, director of the diocesan vocations office, led the opening prayer.

"It’s a great joy for me that you are here today, that you had time to join your brothers and sisters in Christ and to reflect especially on the theme of today, ‘You Can Make a Difference,’" said Deacon Arias. "It’s a blessing that you are here because you can make a difference by being a prophet to many young people that don’t believe in Jesus Christ, or maybe those who do not attend Mass anymore." Deacon Arias also invited the participants to consider what it is that God is calling them to do.

"It is very important to think about that. We are created by God and we have a mission in this world. We have to pray to really know what God wants from us," said Deacon Arias.

Anna C. Huth, a representative of Catholic Relief Services, was the guest speaker at the retreat.

Between talks, practical exercises and the sharing of personal stories, Huth urged the participants to realize the difference that each one of them makes in this world and in their families, communities and in their parishes.

"Think about the practical ways we make a difference through the kind of loving that Jesus did," said Huth, who shared her own story by telling the youth that her sister had a severe mental illness.

"She was violent, she was schizophrenic, and back then people did not know how to handle mental illnesses. She tried to kill us and herself. I am alive here today because my angels protected me," said Huth.

However, in her very chaotic household, Huth found a person who made the difference: her grandmother.

"She used to hug me and made a special kind of cookie. She brought us all peace. Everybody was at peace in her house. Life and love are possible," said Huth.

The participants were then invited to think about a person, whether living or dead, who made a difference in their lives.

"The youth, for one thing, have a powerful energy and creativity; they also have a heart that is being formed right now and have a mind that is being formed, too," said Huth about the importance of the young people’s participation in these retreats. "The activities that either they chose to do or not to do are helping form that heart and mind, especially as Catholics. We want them to really be in touch with the Gospel, to be able to experience Gospel love. They need to know the difference that they can make in their own families and community."