Why a day a retreat?
A day-long retreat is a great way to engage young adults in a sustained, communal experience of prayer and reflection. A day retreat allows for greater depth than a single lecture, more intentional community building than a casual social event, and responds to the common critique that a full weekend is just too much time for a young adult to sacrifice.
But when should I host it?
There are obvious moments in the Church calendar when young adults are looking for deeper engagement with a particular spiritual theme. Advent and Lent are two such moments, and retreats can be built around themes that dovetail with those seasons: prayerful waiting, fasting as justice, and so on. But since these are natural moments when young adults are looking for retreats, these day-long experiences can also tap into any number of themes: heroic saints, care for creation, the Catholic imagination and more. Using key moments in the liturgical calendar is a natural fit, but that doesn’t mean other seasons are out of bounds!
What does a retreat involve?
Think of a successful day retreat as balancing upon three pillars: meaningful input, personal reflection and communal sharing.This means you’ll want to plan a series of talks, presentations, activities and guided meditations that illuminate your chosen theme. But don’t overdo it. Retreatants need time to pray on the theme, to listen to the Spirit at work and simply to rest in God. What’s more, young adults often come on retreats to meet other young adults—so don’t skimp on small group sharing, large group activities and time for socializing.
Getting down to details.
A day retreat can be led by an individual or a team. If you have a team of leaders, be sure each one has the chance to offer something meaningful throughout the retreat. Leaders may also be tasked with facilitating small group conversations.
Depending on the size of the group, small groups may be assigned before the retreat begins. Offer full retreat guidelines or touchstones as a way to protect and sanctify the conversations (i.e. what’s said here, stays here; we’re not here to correct; and so on).
A simple but powerful retreat structure is as follows:
- Offer a talk or guided prayer experience
- Provide time for personal prayer on what was shared
- Invite participants to share the fruits of their prayer and reactions to the talk in small groups
- Facilitate a large group processing of general themes that emerge
Repeat those steps as many times as your allotted time allows. If you’re hosting a retreat from 10 AM to 4 PM, you might follow that structure once in the morning and once in the afternoon, padding the day with an icebreaker and a closing activity that gathers the graces of the day. Make sure to leave enough room for meals, coffee and bathroom breaks! Ultimately, remember that the goal of a retreat is to facilitate in each attendee a deeper experience of God and understanding of self within the community.
