From the West coast and now to the East coast... Sr. Gwen is at it again. She traveled to Atlanta, GA this past weekend to help with a Nghĩa Sĩ – Hiệp Sĩ (13 - 17 yrs old) Retreat for Đoàn Lê Bảo Tịnh at Giáo Xứ Mẹ Việtnam.
The theme of the retreat was: "Divergent: Going Against the Tide of Contemporary Culture" based on the scriptures Ephesians 5:15-20 & Romans 12:2. She gave three talks: "Knowing Your Identity: What are your roots?"; "Discovering Your Friends: Who is your support system" and "Embracing Your Community: How can you live out your mission?". They were very interesting topics sparking great discussion and thought. Pope Francis in his opening homily at WYD 2019 in Panama touched on the same theme of going against contemporary culture and daring to dream:
"Encountering one another does not mean having to look alike, or think the same way or do the same things, listening to the same music or wearing the same football jersey. No, not at all… The culture of encounter is a call inviting us to dare to keep alive a shared dream. Yes, a great dream, a dream that has a place for everyone... A dream named Jesus, sown by the Father in the confidence that it would grow and live in every heart. A dream running through our veins, thrilling our hearts and making them dance whenever we hear the command: “that you love one another; even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another” (Jn 13:34-35). It means pursuing the dream for which he gave his life: loving with the same love with which he loved us."
On Sunday, Sr. Gwen visited with the entire TNTT group and other youth at the parish to talk about vocations like "What does a nun do?? What do nuns do for fun??" She greatly enjoyed her visit and the hospitality of Giáo Xứ Mẹ Việtnam. It is a beautiful thing to witness the joy that Jesus brings to our lives... and especially the energy and excitement of the youth! Let us continue to pray that we all live God's dream for us - to radically love one another.
Check out the Photos below!
Photo Credit: Tr. Joseph Công Lý Phạm (Thank you!)
