too experience God’ s love and continue to spread to different lands and soils of the world.
Coming back from the gathering, Danny and I continued our Precious Blood Spirituality by reading the book Saint Gaspar del Bufalo: Saint of the People by R. Barnardo and Everyday Christian Spirituality by Fr. Ernest Ranly, c. pp. s. with Fr. Steve Dos Santos, c. pp. s. As we read and discussed each chapter of these books, it opened my heart more in living with Precious Blood spirituality. We had so many ideas and aspirations for our parish. Danny focused on working with the 1:30 Mass youth choir and exceedingly improved the St. Agnes School Performing Arts Program. I continued to work with the Young Adult Ministry, in which we began a food drive for the homeless and organized concerts to fundraise for nonprofit organizations. It improved my confidence, and passion for youth ministry.
Another encounter that boosted my Precious Blood spirituality happened in the summer of 2015 at the Precious Blood Center in Kansas City, Missouri. Another gathering that Danny and I attended together to contribute to our beautiful growing garden of our faith. Here we learned about the Companions, in which again the Missionaries of the Precious Blood left me mind blown! We discussed about ways to engage today’ s youth to Precious Blood spirituality through the Companions Movement. It’ s everything that I felt passionate about Precious Blood spirituality as a layperson and learned that there is more to the congregation besides being religious a priest or brother. It gave me a sense of inclusion and enthusiasm to the congregation. I felt that it was a“ there’ s an app for that” moment. Again, I went home confident, passionate, and with new ideas for the youth ministry. Unfortunately, shortly after, with a broken heart, the young adult ministry had to close. While this was happening the teenage ministry was also hanging on a thread as the youth leader had to relocate and there was no one to support them. Holding on to hope and ambition, I volunteered to take on the teenage youth
Precious Blood Companions
ministry: J. C. Krew. The timing of the transition was completely unplanned but worked out perfectly.
Since February of 2016 to now the numbers have grown from 3 to 10. Words cannot explain how grateful I am to be with them. They have taught me so much in terms of pop-culture, friendship, and faith. They are always given the option of“ What do you want to do?”,“ What do you want to learn?”,“ What do you want to know?” Our gatherings are held on Wednesday nights, along with weekend events. So far our weekend events have consisted of having snow cones sales on Sundays, and going to the beach. This year we are preparing to attend the Archdiocese of Los Angeles Religious Education Congress- Youth Day. An event where thousands teenagers from California gather for prayer, worship, workshops, and fun activities. Our gatherings consist of game night, karaoke night, homework night, spirituality topic night, and personal / social topic night. From being together for almost a year through all these gatherings I learned one thing, oh man do they love to eat! Secret to a youth ministry is food, activities, opportunity for them to make their own choices and more food. Precious Blood Spirituality has been presented by first watching the bicentennial video in which explains and introduces the congregation, then we have adapting the companions workbook and transforming it a little bit more to hands on activities. We are almost done with the reflections and looking to do the“ Companion Welcome Rite” soon.
In words of Fr. Barry Fischer,“ Through the unity of Precious Blood, youth can discover their identity. Jesus spoke to the hearts rather than the heads of those encountered.” My heart beats and pumps with Precious Blood Spirituality, which drives me to do more for these“ kids.” It is a wonderful feeling to see that the seeds from your garden have flourished in a different location. One never knows where exactly, it can be another garden, open dry land, or even the cracks of pavement. No matter what the circumstances, the most impossible can be possible by acceptance to all, and love. W
February 2017 • The New Wine Press • 9