By Corbin Hubbell
Social media coordinator
New ministry for ages 21-39 provides events for those in ‘gap,’ to bring a greater sense of community to a wide range of people so they ‘feel as though the Church is walking this journey with them.’
A retreat, “Contrite of Heart,” hosted by the new Salt & Light ministry, convened at Camp Shiloh near Lincoln March 16, attracting close to 100 participants from Nebraska, Kansas, and Iowa.
The event focused on prayer, penance, and peace. It included Mass, adoration and confessions, and talks were led by Dominican Friars Father Gregory Pine and Father Joseph-Anthony Kress. Father Jacob-Bertrand Janczyk was originally scheduled to join, but was unable to attend due to pastoral obligations at his home parish.
The friars are members of the Order of Preachers, and well known from the friars’ “Godsplaining” podcast.
The first talk was given by Father Joseph-Anthony, on the topic of prayer. The next two talks were given by Father Gregory Pine, on the topics of penance and inner peace. The day concluded with a live recording session of the “Godsplaining” podcast, featuring the friars.
That evening, Salt & Light, along with the friars, met at the Backswing Brewing Company for “Pint Night.” There, the friars had the opportunity to talk with the young adults more casually and shared stories and laughter and encouraged each other to always stay close to the Lord. They reminded the attendees to always pray, to practice penance, and to find their inner peace through faith in God.
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The following morning, Salt & Light invited all retreatants to attend Mass celebrated by the friars at St. Mary Church in Lincoln. They also invited all to join them for breakfast afterward, to wrap up the weekend retreat.
Tyler Matson, one of the primary volunteers for the event, said there is a gap where young adults often find themselves, between graduating from college, married life, and also those who are settled into a career.
“Salt & Light is for those who are 21 to 39 years old, so we are all across the board, vocationally and professionally,” Matson said. “We recognize that there are a lot of retreatants here in different stages of life, so the goal of Salt & Light is to bring a greater sense of community to a wide range of people.”
Deacon Matthew Hecker, the director of Salt & Light, emphasized the importance of a beautiful space for the retreat – the beautiful weather allowed retreatants to explore the Camp Shiloh grounds during breaks. Deacon Hecker said it can be hard for some young adults to go from the beauty of the St. Thomas Aquinas Newman Center in Lincoln after graduation for example, and end up “in a church basement” for their young adult group.
“That’s just the nature of parish life, and that’s okay,” he said. “But we want to offer an opportunity for young people to feel as though the Church is walking this journey with them.”
The key thing Deacon Hecker hopes young people can take away from this retreat is that “Jesus Christ knows them, loves them, wants them to know that He knows them,” he said.
“That’s why we’re doing what we’re doing for young adults.”
Brittney Ullman, another primary volunteer for the event, hoped retreat-goers could deepen their relationships with Jesus.
“At the end of the day, it’s the Lord,” she said.
Ullman and Matson were the two main volunteers who planned the retreat, but they were supported by the Salt & Light core team, and a number of volunteers who help schedule, plan, promote, and run events and retreats like this.
Salt & Light started earlier this year and began hosting “Abide” worship nights at St. Mary Church in Lincoln. The adoration and fellowship nights are held every other month, on the first Friday. The Abide events thus far served as the “soft launch” of the ministry, and the March 16 retreat marked the “hard launch” of the ministry.
The next Abide worship night will be Friday, April 5, at St. Mary Church. Other upcoming events include pickup volleyball at St. Peter Church in Lincoln April 11, 18 and 25, from 6 to 8 p.m.
To stay up to date on the ministry’s events, follow Salt & Light on social media: Salt and Light Young Adult Community on Facebook, and @saltandlightlnk on Instagram.
