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Father Steve Norton, who delivered the keynote presentation at the annual High School Youth Congress, had a novel way of commanding the attention of the more than 500 young people in attendance. He first tossed three balls marked with the words “evils,” “sins” and “temptations” into the audience. He also brought out a red stick he dubbed the “devil-bopper.”
Teens who caught the balls were called forward to pitch them to other volunteers swinging the devil-bopper. In some cases, solid contact was made with one of the balls bearing the vices; in other instances, the ball was missed.
“It’s not always going to be easy,” Father Norton said. “We need to keep ourselves rooted in Christ, firm in the faith.”
“Rooted in Christ, Firm in the Faith,” from St. Paul’s Letter to the Colossians, was the theme of the sixth annual congress, which took place April 9 at Archbishop Stepinac High School in White Plains. The theme is the same as the one to be used at World Youth Day in Madrid this summer.
Father Norton, who is pastor of St. Benedict’s parish in the Bronx and a former principal of John F. Kennedy Catholic High School in Somers, said Catholics have access to the spiritual power of the Mass and of the sacrament of reconciliation that help us in our battle against temptation and sin. Noting that priests were available to hear confessions during the congress, he added, “Don’t let anybody stand in your way.”
He also emphasized the glory that can be present in the actions and prayers of the liturgy, from the sign of the cross that we make as we enter the church to the Eucharist that we receive in which “simple bread and simple wine become for us, in our faith, God.”
“The power of the Mass is so powerful, so strong,” Father Norton said, “that everything about the Mass has power in it.”
Archbishop Dolan celebrated Mass for participants near the end of the daylong congress, which was sponsored by Catholic Youth Ministry of the archdiocesan Catechetical Office.
He led participants in recitation of the World Youth Day Preparation Prayer.
As the day began, Father Joseph Espaillat, pastor of St. Peter’s parish in Yonkers, serving as master of ceremonies, welcomed the young people from all across the archdiocese in a friendly and upbeat way, along with New Name Ministry, which provided music then and during the afternoon Mass. Members of St. Raymond’s Life Teen group from the Bronx performed two skits utilizing multimedia presentations.
The young people had an opportunity to pray before the Blessed Sacrament, which was exposed in the school chapel throughout the congress.
Participants each attended three workshops based on the four main parts of the Catechism of the Catholic Church: Profession of Faith, Celebration of Christian Mystery, Life in Christ and Christian Prayer.
About 25 young people took part in a workshop titled “Earthquakes, Tsunamis, Scandals and War: Keeping Your Faith While the Earth Is Shaking!” It was led by Charles Chesnavage, who has taught religion at Cardinal Hayes High School in the Bronx for 17 years. The workshop featured moments of silent prayer leading to small and large group discussions about “reasons for rejecting God and losing one’s faith.”
In tough times, when your faith is challenged, Chesnavage said that one of the best things you can do is pray. “You have to have that strong foundation in prayer.”
One of the small groups focused on how riches and material possessions can cause a person to lose his or her faith. Group members generally agreed that the consumer culture often undermines the bonds of faith.
Dashiek Hogans, a 20-year-old youth leader at Immaculate Conception parish on East 151st Street in the Bronx, told CNY that he found it “surprising” to encounter so many others who share his ideals about God. Even when differing points of view were expressed, he said that he and others seemed to be able to appreciate the perspective of the other person.
