April 4, 2010 edition

TAPT 2010
YOUTH LEARN TO SEE CHRIST, BE CHRIST FOR OTHERS
by Steve Euvino

VALPARAISO – One teen spoke about trying to live up to an older sibling. Another young woman discussed family challenges, including illness and unemployment.

These were among the talks given at the 22nd annual TAPT (Teens Are People Too) retreat at the Camp Lawrence, March 19-21.

For three days 50 high school students had the opportunity to “learn about the Incarnate Christ, see Christ in their everyday world and in one another,” said Bill Kaminski, a co-director of TAPT.

A parishioner at Sacred Heart, LaPorte, Kaminski added, “It’s great to see kids seeing Christ for the first time or improving their relationship with Christ.”

TAPT, open to youth in grades 9-12, is based on incarnate theology and Christology, explained Kevin Driscoll, director of the Office of Youth and Young Adults. It is also designed to inspire parish leaders to take these retreat skills back to their parishes.

“God became flesh,” Driscoll said. “He gave us His Holy Spirit so we might see Christ in one another and be Christ to one another.”

This encounter with Christ does not end with the retreat, Driscoll continued, as youth will go home and also see Christ in others in their local settings. Through various talks at the retreat, young people discussed secular issues, e.g., making tough choices, which they face in school. Led by peer ministers, teens broke into small groups to discuss the talks.

Emily Dominguez, a high school sophomore form Nativity of Our Savior, Portage, discussed the “pancake of pressure” she felt toward an older brother who excels in many areas. Eventually Emily realized it was OK not be like her brother but rather follow her own path.

“Sometimes, when you’re forced with things like this, when someone is better than you, in all this pressure, God is there. God has to be there,” Emily Dominguez said, calling for choosing God in all one’s decisions. “Whether it’s risky or safe, God has to be in your decisions.”

Between retreatants and peer ministers, TAPT drew young people from 24 parishes. For Father Ian Williams, a TAPT veteran, the retreat’s value lies in the formation of its adults and peer ministers “to be able to take this formation and go back into their parish communities as youth ministers and leaders for their parishes and schools.”

Much of TAPT took place in the camp cafeteria, where teens sang, prayed, received the sacrament of reconciliation, and celebrated Sunday liturgy with Father Williams. Teens added their personal prayers on poster boards place in the cafeteria dining area, where TAPTsters wrote about relatives battling cancer, their parents, and friends who’d committed suicide.

Tara Ward, 22, a college junior form St. Joan of Arc, Merrillville, spoke to the entire group about keeping God in a life filled with challenges, including her father’s unemployment, a relative hooked on drugs, and her battles with depression and cervical cancer.

Despite all these problems, Ward had an “angel” in her younger sister. Through her sister, Ward stopped feeling sorry for herself. She continued praying an offered her challenges up to God. Through her faith and her sister, Ward saw these challenges not as punishment but as “crosses we have to bear…to make us stronger persons.”

Praising her sister, who was 9 at the time, Ward counseled teens to “not just see Christ in other people, but be Christ for other people. God will always be there for you; you just have to look for Him.”

Since then, Ward’s life has improved. She continues to pray and visits nursing homes regularly. She concluded with this advice to teens: “Each and every one of you will find Jesus this weekend, Open your eyes and minds and hearts.”

Commenting on the weekend, Samantha Cummins, from St. Edward, Lowell, called the retreat “amazing – being with everyone who knows your faith.”

Shana Sutton, from Our Lady of Sorrows, South Haven, said the talks were “touching – you understand more about you and your faith. It’s getting to know yourself better.”

Maria Sanders, from St. Mary, Kouts, appreciated the talks and small-group discussions. “They were interesting – they helped.” She said. “I learned I don’t have to be in church to pray.”

David Diaz, from St. Patrick, Chesterton, could relate to some of Ward’s challenges, including unemployment. “I Know what she was going through,” he said.

Following the final small-group discussions Saturday evening, teens returned to the camp cafeteria for a formal dinner. Heading to the meal, Joe Kern, the new youth minister at Our Lady of Consolation, Merrillville, said he hoped teens leave TAPT “on fire for Christ.”