Serving, playing, and praying together

What makes a teenager get up early on a Saturday morning, go to Mass and pull weeds in 100-degree weather? The company and… a higher power! Twenty teens from different parishes in Corpus Christi came together on Saturday to get a taste of World Youth Day in their hometown, accompanied by young adults and volunteers. They lived an entire day with service, prayer, watching WYD, games and fun.

The day started with Mass at the Corpus Christi Cathedral, concelebrated by Fr. James Stembler and the newly ordained priests, Fr. Raymond Pendleton and Fr. Thomas Swierc. In his homily, Fr. Raymond reminded the participants, "Heaven is the reason we are here.” No matter how young, “Jesus has called us, and that gives our life purpose.”

Three locations were awaiting the helping hands of the teens and young adults: one group served at Mother Teresa Shelter, handing out meals and connecting with the clients; one group went to Catholic Charities, and group no. 3 helped at Our Lady of Perpetual Help parish – weeding two playgrounds and applying wood stain at a ramp. Gardening and painting in the sun around noon were demanding, yet besides water breaks, everyone was eager to finish the work.

In the afternoon, the group followed the footsteps of the Corpus Christi pilgrims, watching some of their Vlogs and personal greetings. The message of Pope Francis at the Opening Ceremony in Lisbon, that “Jesus calls me as I am, not as I would like to be. We are the community of brothers and sisters of Jesus, sons and daughters of the same Father,” stayed with the participants, who shared in small groups what the pope’s words meant to them.

An hour of adoration, animated by a choir of young adults with contemporary worship songs, and the possibility of going to confession provided the opportunity of connecting with God profoundly.

Fun games and free time to play basketball, ping pong, Jenga or Uno helped them to get to know each other. A rosary procession concluded the day – and most of the participants were not only happy to participate in the local event but got a taste to dream of going to the next WYD in person.