Thrive. A Day-Long Retreat for Juniors/Seniors

Goal

The goal of this retreat is to help Juniors and Seniors take a greater ownership in their faith as they head toward high school graduation. Using Colossians 2:7 and Pope Benedict’s World Youth Day message as the basis, this retreat will challenge the participants to look at the roots of their faith, what it is growing into and how it will thrive through the storms that inevitably come. The retreat also seeks to remind the upperclassmen of the importance of the Sacraments and active participation in the life of the Church in order to truly thrive in the years to come.

What is a Junior/senior retreat?

This retreat is written as a day-long retreat for Juniors and Seniors in high school. It will be much smaller than a normal retreat and should take on a different feel than the full youth group retreats. The purpose of a retreat just for upperclassmen is twofold: first, it allows a greater depth and level of challenge geared specifically for an older audience. Second, it provides a way to keep the upperclassmen involved in the youth ministry program, and is something for the underclassmen to look forward to. Due to the age of the teens and the smaller retreat size, there is more freedom in planning this retreat; it can easily be tailored to meet the needs of the group. We recommend this retreat be offered towards the end of the school year or during the summer. If it is offered in the summer, it should be graduated seniors and rising seniors that make up the retreat.