A Report from Down Under

At this point, hopefully LB and company are safely Down South in Mississippi. My guess is that they are INFINITELY warmer than we are since the Australians don't believe in heating their buildings in the winter. Despite the very cold nights, we've been having a wonderful time at the Ignatian Gathering here at Riverview reconnecting with our experiment group and with others.

Today was a day for networking and finding out what ministries are going on for people in their 20s and 30s all around the world. I was simultaneously amazed at how much similarity and how much diversity there is in young adult ministry internationally. We shared how important it is to build a community where people feel welcome and empowered to live out their faith. I also learned about the ways that different cultures view the term "young adult" and how that impacts the type of programs they offer. It also amazed me that people from other countries had already heard about Charis and the work that we are doing. We even got a shout out from Fr. Dave of the London Jesuits. I had over a dozen people ask me afterwards if they could talk more about Charis' ministries and how they could adapt them to their country. It was definitely inspirational as we prepare to leave the Ignatian Gathering and join with the rest of the group from the Archdiocese of Chicago tomorrow afternoon.

-Lauren G.