More than 200 Catholic youth gather at an encounter

MIDVALE — More than 200 Catholic youth gathered at Saint Therese of the Child Jesus Parish to celebrate a bilingual youth encounter on Nov. 23.

Reverend Arokia Dass David, parochial vicar of the parish; and Jennifer Benitez, a member of Adore Ministries, who also belongs to the Catholic Charismatic Center in Houston, Texas, were the speakers for the event.

Adore Ministries uses new media and social networking to impact youth.

The event was attended by youth from a number of local parishes, who enjoyed a day of talks, dancing, Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament and Mass.

The event was organized by the St. Therese of the Child Jesus prayer group "Lluvia de Rosas" (Rain of Roses). Father Joseph Frez, pastor, was in charge of the opening prayer and the Mass.

Carlos Martinez, one of the event organizers, said he was very happy with the response from the youth and parents.

"God uses us as a bridge to communicate with our youth," said Martinez, adding that this event was a beautiful experience for them as organizers.

"They [the youth] have heard the message," said Elena Soto, another of the event organizers. She said that even if some of the youth might have been forced to attend the event, "just the fact that they are here is a big win."

During the event, Fr. Dass offered a moment of Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament in which all the people knelt and prayed together as one.

Before presenting the Eucharist, Fr. Dass told the participants that all of them were united to God by Christ’s blood. He told them that day they were celebrating the Solemnity of Christ the King.

"Praise the Lord! Alleluia! We have to remember that God will be present here with us and we need to be respectful. … Do you believe that he can heal you?" Father Dass asked.

Silence invaded the room as one by one the attendees were kneeling.

"Pray as much as you can; especially pray for your parents and also pray for you. We are going to be in front of God," said Fr. Dass.

Some of those present held hands, others closed their eyes, while others hid a tear as they sang. "The angels sign and praise the Lord. … Blessed, blessed is God."

"Jesus, we kneel before you. … God is here with us," said Fr. Dass. "I surrender, Lord."