College Grads
From someone who has been there before:
Candidate Jim McGivney reflects on his experiance of the Post-Grad Discernment Retreat:
I went into the retreat hoping to see what life in a seminary was really like and to learn more about Holy Cross... Looking back on the retreat, I found the experience to be very helpful in my discernment. I left the retreat desiring to learn even more about Holy Cross and to meet seminarians in the formation program so that I could determine whether Holy Cross was really for me.
At times in the course of our lives, we may begin to wonder if there is something more in life. Further, we may struggle with the more immediate question of what we are supposed to do with that feeling. It may be especially difficult if our restlessness relates to a sense of calling to priesthood and religious life.
The Graduate Discernment Retreat offers college graduates under the age of 35 who are considering a vocation to priesthood or religious life the opportunity to engage these questions of discernment with the Congregation of Holy Cross.
The retreat, which begins on Friday afternoon at 4 p.m. and concludes Sunday at 1:30 p.m., takes place at Moreau Seminary on the campus of the University of Notre Dame. It includes sessions on discernment, prayer, seminary life, and religious and priestly ministry. These sessions are designed to help the participants discover not only the right questions to be asking of themselves and of God, but also how to listen for the answers.
The daily schedule of the retreat includes a rhythm of communal prayer centered on the Liturgy of the Hours and Mass. There is also ample time for personal prayer and reflection as well as for individual conversations with members of Holy Cross, including the vocation directors.
During the retreat, meals are shared in common with the members of the Moreau Seminary community as well as other retreat participants. These shared meals, which give a glimpse into community life, provide a casual setting in which to learn more about the mission, charism, and community of Holy Cross as well as to draw strength from the faith of other men discerning a similar calling and asking similar questions of God in their lives.
Registration Information and Dates
For more information on the retreat, please contact Fr. Jim Gallagher, C.S.C., or Fr. Andrew Gawrych, C.S.C. in the Office of Vocations at (574) 631-6385 or vocation@holycrossusa.org
The next Graduate Discernment Retreat will take place: June 1st - 3rd, 2012. Graduate Discernment Retreat Registration
To learn more about seminary formation in Holy Cross or to take a virtual tour of Moreau Seminary visit our section on Seminary Life.