Kneading Faith
By Fran Lavelle
There are some things about working directly with college-aged young people that I will forever miss.  Clearly on the top of that list are the opportunities to be present and to really hear their stories.  I recently had the opportunity to spend some time with the National Evangelization Team (NET) who came to our diocese for a high school retreat entitled, “Fully Alive.”  The retreat was held at Lake Forrest Ranch in Macon. The team spent Friday night in Starkville and, still having my home there, I invited them to come to dinner.
It was a lovely evening. The team was made up of 12 members aged 18-23.  Members represented several States from California to West Virginia; and, from Minnesota to Florida and various States in between. My heart filled with gratitude as each bright, cheery faced young person disembarked from the van, hand extended, followed by a warm, “Hi, I am…”
These types of gatherings a few years ago were quite common at my home.  I have been away from full time campus ministry for two years now and it was quite clear that I miss these opportunities.
Abbey Schuhmann, Coordinator for the Office of youth Ministry was responsible for bringing the NET Team to the diocese.  She was also the leader of the caravan to my house. It was truly a gift and blessing to share not just a meal but our mutual love for God’s young people. Abbey brings so many gifts to ministry, including a gentle reassuring presence.  In addition she is has excellent organization and planning skills. Since day-one she has been busy planning and preparing for a full calendar of events for the youth in our Diocese.  The Fall Retreat was her inaugural diocesan youth event since she joined the chancery staff in May.
Having had experience with NET Ministries in her youth ministry job in her parish she knew NET would be a great fit for the diocese. Word on the street is the weekend was well received by youth and the adult advisors. The take away from a weekend like this, especially for youth, is recognizing that they are not alone.
There is no substitute for taking the opportunity to be present to God in a truly magnificent environment with amazing youth and a great retreat team. Our youth heard great talks, spent time reflecting and sharing in small groups, playing games, singing, going to Reconciliation, and celebrating Mass with friends old and new.  Times like these create touch tones that both youth and adults will think back on for years to come.
In thinking about the gift of the weekend and the many graces shared, I was reminded how important it is to encourage our young people to think about this kind of service. NET is one many ministries our young people can volunteer for a more extensive experience.  NET teams, for example, are formed in mid-August and complete their work in mid-May. No matter what your interest, education, health care, pastoral care or evangelization, there are so many opportunities to spend a year or two after college graduation or in between college.
A great resource for finding volunteer ministry experiences is the Catholic Volunteer Network (https://www.catholicvolunteernetwork.org/). They publish an annual book, RESPONSE, which lists volunteer opportunities.  The website also includes a database of opportunities.  In being exposed to these sorts of options, young people are given a greater insight into how they may come to serve the Church and one another as adults.
I have known many young folks over the years that did one or two years of volunteer service.  Face it young people, you have years of gainful employment to look forward to. Why not give of your time and talent to serve the Church in a way that you personally find meaningful? Often times these volunteer opportunities provide loan deferment so you can put off paying back student loans until after your volunteer service is completed. In meeting the dynamic NET Team that came to Mississippi I was also reminded of how good it is to be exposed to people from other regions. It breaks down stereotypes and challenges us to see one another as part of God’s family.
If you are looking for a retreat opportunities for youth or need more information on volunteer service opportunities, shoot me an email: fran.lavelle@jacksondiocese.org.  I would be happy to help.
(Fran Lavelle is the Director of Faith Formation for the Diocese of Jackson. See page 15 for a story and photos from the Fully Alive Retreat.)

Reflections on Life
By Father Jerome LeDoux, SVD
Whisperings were here, there and everywhere. “I have deep misgivings about the funeral. We must be very careful,” some were saying. “This thing is not over yet.”
“They have not yet found the killer,” others were saying ominously. “Revenge killings are sure to follow.” There was a general malaise in the air about the execution-style killing of 19-year-old Shawn Parish and 21-year-old Nakia Ramer, Jr., both of Opelousas, Louisiana.
The hit went down, not in a big city but in the small, unincorporated community of Plaisance, Louisiana. One shot fired into the car penetrated the back of one man’s head. When the second turned to see what happened, a second shot blew into his forehead. Ironically, Plaisance is the French word for pleasance. Sad to say, this kind of marksman belongs in the Mideast theater of war against ISIS.
Unfortunately, I had been to the well more than once before when I served at St. Augustine Church in New Orleans. The worst funeral was that of a 19-year-old who was shot to death on the elevated I-10. The 700-seat church was full and even the standing room was jammed. Six young men dressed impeccably in white with pink trim 3-piece suits, bow ties and white shoes moved in unison with whatever the folks in church did. But their reverence ended with the conclusion of the Mass.
Denser than Mardi Gras, outside the church people were packed like sardines for a couple of blocks in every direction. Although moving among the thousands was extremely difficult, I had to muscle my way to the lead car. Once there, we witnessed in shock the impeccably-dressed young men leap onto the hood of two limousines, then onto the roof, break-dancing and crushing the roofs in. They inflicted $7,000 damage to said limousines before dismounting and melting away.
With Police Chief Donald Thompson and Officer Baxter Iford at hand on October 8, with Holy Ghost Church only about 2/3 full, with no crowd outside, all the young folks there, as well as the old, sported a sad, serious mien, expectant of words of some consequence. I began the funeral sermon with the talk around the town.
“’This is not over yet.’ ‘They have not yet found the killer.’ ‘Revenge killings are sure to follow.’ I’ve been hearing about vendetta – revenge. I do not want to hear this. You do not want to hear this. We do not want to hear this. More killings will not solve or heal anything. On the contrary, more killings will aggravate and make more raw the sorrow, pain and hurt that need a mighty healing!
“What we need to hear from all the adults here, especially the more mature, is our resolve to help take care of what we call the extended family or the village. We  have heard repeatedly, ‘It takes a village to rear a child.’ Indeed, we all know just how difficult it is to rear a child, particularly in these days when we have to contend with drugs and the fast, loose life that threatens us even in small towns nowadays.
“We need to hear our resolve, our commitment right now! We need to hear from one another our pledge to one another, but, most importantly, to God that, with God’s help, we will stand next to, stand behind in support, stand before in defense, counsel them in whatever way we can, and defend our children from infancy, to the toddler stage, from childhood to adolescence, to young adulthood. We want to defend them at the risk to our own safety and the possible cost of our own lives.
“Do I hear a pledge from you? Say, ‘I pledge!’ A weak ripple of ‘I pledge’ followed. I repeated ‘I pledge!’ The ripple grew stronger. When I again repeated, the ripple increased to a firm ‘I pledge!’ We just want our children to know that we, the entire village, are firmly and resolutely with them!
Once again, I said, “I pledge!” There was resonance in their pledge. Once more, “I pledge!” An enthusiastic chorus followed. One more time, “I pledge!” That time there was a bit of rumble and drum-like hand-slapping on the seats. It is our fond prayer and hope that a seed of God’s Word and human solidarity is growing into constant care of our children.
Since the hearse had left without me, church head usher Joseph Butler drove me, overtaking the funeral cortège that was mysteriously going in the wrong direction to reach Serenity Memorial Park cemetery. But the route was planned, stopping to transfer Nakia’s body to a horse-drawn hearse, passing the Briford White Eagle in The Hill section of town where Sam Cooke and other singers once starred, stopping at the home of Nakia’s mother, Lisa, where Gospel pieces were sung, reaching the cemetery after an hour and 15 minutes.
After the grave blessing, a sore-foot, barefoot relative read her last tribute to Nakia whose life had come to a premature end. Then dozens of children and adults sprinkled each other with holy water, saying aloud how much each of them needed a powerful blessing.
“God is love, and all who abide in love abide in God and God in them.”   (1 John 4:16)
(Father Jerome LeDoux, SVD, has written “Reflections on Life since 1969.)