Prayer & Action

Registration now open

A mission experience in your own backyard!

Register Today

Dates:
Week 1: June 8-13
Week 2: June 15-20

Participants: Students who anticipate graduating 2025-2029 *finished 8th grade through graduated seniors

Mission location: Holy Name, Winfield & St. Mary, Oxford parishes

Cost: $199/person

For every 6 students, 1 chaperone must attend. For the weeks listed above, parents are asked to find a chaperone.

Some parishes are providing financial support, please contact Heidi below for more information.

The Essence of Prayer & Action

Prayer & Action is a week-long alternative proposal to the standard Catholic American way of life

We pose the question; are we, human beings, happier in a life lived for others, serving others, in community, or am I happier engaged in an ultra-busy, fast paced, self-interested way of life? This transformative experience encourages participants to relinquish their own designs to the workings of God. Central to this journey is the gentle query that echoes: “How has surrendering to God’s will transformed me in just this simple week?”

Embracing the Question:

At the center of the Prayer and Action encounter rests a contemplative question: “Why does letting go and engaging in acts of service or communion with others bring a sense of fulfillment much deeper than the life I have lived previously?”

The Christian Proposal:

There are five avenues through which Christ imparts His Risen Life to those participating in Prayer & Action. These dimensions form the foundation upon which participants can grasp and wholeheartedly embrace the true essence of the Christian journey.

Focus on the Essential:

Prayer and Action calls for setting aside distractions, allowing participants to focus on foundational Christianity. No phones, no outside voices, no social media are allowed to distract us from the here and now, the face of Christ present in the person in front of me.

Guiding the Journey:

Missionaries direct participants’ attention to their innermost desires, helping them to align those desires with Christ’s.

Cultivating Discernment:

Evenings come alive with experiences shared of God’s goodness (GIGs), offering participants a platform to humbly share reflections and experiences of Christ’s presence. These sessions hone the skill of discernment, helping distinguish fleeting emotions from genuine encounters with Christ, encouraging decisions rooted first and foremost in a surrender to God’s will and goodness.

The Culmination of Surrender and Decision:

As participants journey through Prayer and Action, they are prompted to evaluate experiences and make informed judgments about the Christian Proposal for Life. This introspection forms the basis for personal commitment, allowing them to address the question: “Has surrendering to God’s will made me feel more alive and fulfilled?” This process invites introspection, paving the way for a purposeful life, surrendered to Divine guidance.

Prayer and Action transforms from a program into a voyage of surrender, empowering participants to yield their aspirations and actions to God’s work. Participants are poised to make surrendered judgments, guiding them toward a life of purpose, fulfillment, and an abiding connection to the resplendent presence of Christ.

The Christian Proposal

There are five avenues through which Christ imparts His Risen Life to those participating in Prayer & Action.

Sacred Mysteries: The program delves into encountering Christ through the Sacraments, where ordinary elements become vessels of transcendence, bridging the physical and spiritual realms in ways we cannot fully control.

Sacred Community: Christian fellowship reveals its role as a source of support, camaraderie, and spiritual growth. Participants feel Christ’s presence through their connections with others, surrendering to His guidance in those relationships.

Sacred Poor: Serving the marginalized aligns with Christ’s teachings. Acts of selflessness become encounters with Christ, bridging personal desires and outward actions through humble surrender.

Sacred Scripture: To recognize the face of Jesus, we need to recognize His voice. Participants are inundated with the Sacred Word, to better recognize His voice.

Sacred Silence: We’ll never know Jesus if we don’t spend time listening to Him. Missionaries model and teach participants how to listen and speak to the Lord in silence.