Communion with God - Young Adults Retreat 2025
In mid Lent, 14 young adults aged between 18 and 39 gathered at Llangasty Retreat House to reflect on how the Sacraments of the Church draw us into communion with God.
Fr Mark Griffiths, who retired last year after more than 40 years of parish ministry, led the retreat by offering a series of short reflections on the Sacraments, illustrated with art and poetry. The focus of the retreat was how God draws humanity into a loving relationship with Himself, prizing open our interior lives and filling us with Himself. Filled to brimming with God’s graces, we in turn become a source of transformation for others.
Although we had slightly less than 24 hours together, time was set aside for quiet reflection, for walking in the stunning landscape around the retreat house, and for enjoying the library at Llangasty. There was a chance for stillness before the Blessed Sacrament, to join together in prayer, to access the Sacrament of Reconciliation, and to feed together at God’s Altar.
One retreatant commented that: “In this modern world, we hardly spend time talking to God or praying on our own time other than Sunday mass. I felt closer to God in those 24 hours than I felt in a long time having had the time to reflect, to pray and talk to God.”
Part of the impetus for the retreat was to bring together young adults from across the diocese who might find themselves alone in their local parish church, the only person of their age demographic. It gave the opportunity to build friendships and to hold each other in prayer.
There is a renewed interest in the deep traditions of the Catholic faith among younger men and women. Ministering in Swansea I have found more young people coming to Mass, and we now have a group of young men who meet weekly to discuss different aspects of the Faith. Retreat and deep prayer is an integral part of the life of the Christian, so I am especially grateful to the Diocesan Mission and Evangelism Fund for helping to cover the costs of this retreat in full.
Let’s pray that God continues to draw more young men and women into a loving relationship with Christ in His Church.
Fr Sam Aldred