Well I recently got back from the National Catholic Youth Convention (NCYC) in Indianapolis and I have to say, "What an experience!" Over 23,000 young people and adults gathered together in Lucas Oil stadium, the home of the Colts, singing and praising the Lord! The speakers were so informative and the teenagers and I were mesmerized by some of the stories we heard. To me, one of the highlights of the weekend was the closing Mass in which I was able to concelebrate along with over 200 priests with the Archbishop of Indianapolis who reminded me of the actor John Goodman. After communion, there was a moment of silence. Suddenly, to my astonishment, all of the teenagers in the stadium arose from their seats and began to scream and applaud Jesus Christ! Then the priests got to their feet followed by over 30 bishops clapping and yelling. It was the most amazing experience I have ever seen. This went on for a full five minutes until the Archbishop finally began to say the prayer after communion. I thought to myself, "only the youth can bring out the inner child of a bishop!" But the most precious moments of the weekend for me was spending time with our youth from St. Mark. They are incredible people with extraordinary faith and I was so thrilled watching them embrace their Catholic faith with so many others their age. I wished we had this experience when I was their age, maybe the world would be a better place. But I have been bitten by hope after seeing this young Church become an example for us older folk. I'd like to thank our Youth Minister, MaryAnn Weigel, for her leadership and keeping us all in line. Also, the chaperones who gave of their time, talent, and treasure in making this experience an awesome one to behold. At this point I'm exhausted after trying to keep up with all this energy of youth, but deeply satisfied and fulfilled to have been part of their lives at least for a few days. NCYC meets again in two years at the same location. I hope and pray that more teens will be able to join us in 2015 and experience this remarkable sight! Save your pennies! It is well worth the investment.
Peace,
Fr. David
