Encountering.....

54 students, six student leaders and five faculty members are at St. Methodius Retreat House north of Concord, NH, encountering self, one another and Jesus Christ. 10 more students rushed to pick up applications for a Marist Youth Encounter Christ experience in Esopus, NY at the end of the month, and three more are hoping we can squeeze them in. What this says is there is a hunger and thirst for a deeper connection with Jesus and the Encounters provide the vehicle. The leaders have trained for this event for several weeks, and countless details occupy the adults before and during the Encounter. People from all over offer prayers that God's grace be poured out lavishly. And all this works...when the students return, they have Encountered Christ and their lives have changed, their mission as Catholic Christians is clear. What a blessing! Our current website homepage for Central Catholic reads, "BLESSING is my word for Central Catholic". The students do see their years here as a blessing.
The varsity hockey team, despite it's definitive loss to powerhouse Malden Catholic, looked positively on the season and the "brotherhood" of the team. Coach Jankowski referred to the wholesome and caring atmosphere in the locker room. I myself have encountered it. Although not all our students have made or will make the Encounters we offer, they are absorbing its message as part of the school culture and are living this blessing in everything they do. It's the way we do things here, it's the way to live. Let us pray that the Encounter experience remains an on-going encountering.
Bro. Rene