CHECK OUR MINISTRIES AND SEE WHICH MINISTRY BETTER FITS YOU WITHIN YOUR AGE GROUP!

Our Youth & Young Adult Ministries are a great opportunity to learn about our faith while joining in community.
For middle school students we offer the Saints Nights. For high school students we offer the Soul Nights.
For young adults we offer the SOULYA Young Adult Ministry.

Go Forward in Love

I’ve found myself getting easily frustrated with the echo chamber of negativity that seems to be telling the narrative of the COVID-19 era in which we live. I constantly ask for the world around me to change, but forget to recognize my own opportunity to serve out of love.

This ordinary world is made extraordinary by the sacrifice of Christ. Love isn’t just an act anymore — it’s an intentional way of living. While we do not know when we can return partake in the Eucharist again, we can still be witnesses every day to the Sacrifice of the Altar, allowing that Mass — virtual or not — to be our daily offering for someone else. We understand that the greatest commandment to love means to be inconvenienced by someone or something, that because they are a work of the Father, we must care for them anyway. Just as we have been following the recommendations to slow the spread of the virus and preserve the health of our neighbors, our role as the Church is to love God and love others unceasingly and regardless of the circumstances, for the “love of neighbor is inseparable from love for God” (CCC 1878).

It is these simple truths that Christ is asking us to carry with us as we move forward:

1. Human contact is precious. Nothing can compare to being in the physical presence of one another. When social distancing becomes a past thought, remember to appreciate the gift of simply sitting with someone.
2. We have a responsibility to care for our health and the health of one another. Some aspects of our health are uncontrollable, and health complications have existed long before the COVID-19 pandemic. These matters should always be taken seriously.
3. The natural world needs attention, too. Our love for creation is not limited to God’s people. As members of the Church, we ought to recognize our role in fostering the gift of nature. Pope Francis reminds us, “you are called to care for creation not only as responsible citizens, but also as followers of Christ.”
4. Cling to the sacraments. These treasures of the Catholic life sanctify us and build up the Body of Christ. Our hunger for the graces of the sacraments should be motivation for us to receive them willingly and often when we are allowed to do so.
5. All life is a gift and should be treated as such. Even the most vulnerable. By living in accordance with the truth that every human life is sacred, we can better serve, love, and pray for one another.

Life after COVID-19 doesn’t have to look the same as before. In fact, it won’t. As a good friend once told me, “Now is the time that saints are being made.” If we truly believe that we are all created for and capable of living in sainthood, we will be more inclined and excited to change the world, both with and without a global pandemic.