What is the Value of Two Senior Retreats for Catholic High School Students?
In my role as a youth ministry coordinator, we have the opportunity to run senior retreats for both Year 11 and Year 12 students. Most Catholic high schools do not offer two retreats, but there is significant value in conducting both.
In Term 2, we run the first retreat, designed with the students' needs in mind. As they begin to take on more responsibility as school leaders, it is crucial to break the ice. Often in junior school, barriers or obstacles between different friendship groups can make students uncomfortable. The Year 11 retreat includes activities like BMX bike riding, archery, high ropes, outdoor challenge courses, or laser tag to help break down these barriers. According to the Catholic Schools Youth Ministry Australia (CSYMA) model for evangelization—Connection, Proclamation, Response (CPR) framework—connection is the initial part. In some ways, connection is the most crucial because, without it, the later stages of proclamation and response become superficial and only work at a shallow level. Connection challenges students to step out of their comfort zones. By placing students in an unfamiliar environment where regular school routines and bell times do not structure the day, students can explore new ways of seeing the world. Challenging students and placing them in activities that may stretch them requires teamwork and develops a sense of solidarity among different students.
The senior retreats need to meet students where they are. It is better to have an overarching theme such as “Awaken†rather than a more formal title like “Senior Retreat†or “Christian Discipleship.†Students are at different levels and stages of their faith journey—not just as liberal or conservative Christians but as students of many faiths including Buddhism and Islam, and also as atheists and ag nostics . By accepting these differences and acknowledging them at various points, we allow students to be more open and thus more readily engage with the spirit of the retreat experience. This does not mean we discard our Christianity, Catholic spirituality, or charism, but the objective becomes broader so that everyone fits. If we take a more conservative approach to evangelization, using a doctrinal or catechetical approach where we present answers even before the questions, we fail to recognize the fuller process of faith formation. Essentially, Jesus did not come with a list of commandments; rather, he met people where they were. Thus, most students come from secular contexts and cultures. We must not view secularism as a threat but as a doorway. It is our job as teachers, mentors, and retreat leaders to build connections and make meaning. In effect, the secular world is the vehicle for divine revelation. We can discuss science, the latest movie or Netflix show, or maybe an experience in our own family or friendship group, and see this as a way that God speaks to us. Thus, our spirituality becomes the lens through which we see and interpret what is happening.
The Year 11 retreat then follows the theme of “Awaken.†The sessions include:
Introduction: Students gain a sense of what a retreat is. The concept of stopping and stepping out of our busy lives.
Awaken to Who We Are: Students explore their identity and complete a personality type test. These tests help them discover other students who share similar characteristics, motivations, and needs. Working together, they present their personalities, such as the Advocate, the Architect, the Director, and the Debater, to the cohort.
Awaken to Family: Students explore the concept of family and realize there is no such thing as a normal or typical family. The concept of family soon becomes about those we deeply care about rather than just our blood relations.
Awaken to Friends: Students explore the dynamics of friendship and the fact that over time, both in high school and afterward, the constant with most friendships is change. As we grow, we change, and so do our friendships. Are we willing to accept these changes? Are we willing to accept the other as they are?
Awaken to the Masks We Wear: Masks are an important part of a person's identity. At times, masks can prevent us from being who we are called to be. Masks create our façade or a superficial appearance or illusion. How can we take our masks off? Why is this important? But also, from a mature perspective, why sometimes we must keep our masks on.
Awaken to the Shadow and Awaken to Faith: Sometimes in life, there are things that block us from who we are called to be. We can hurt each other. We can hurt God. We are reluctant to recognize the concept of “sin.†Sin has become a dirty word. Yet, sin plays its part. Like a snake hiding in tall grass and wrapping around our lives, it can be very subtle. Through stories and providing our own witness, students explore the role of faith and how as people, we need to look beyond ourselves for a way forward. God can play a part.
Awaken to Leadership and Awaken to Service: Each student is called to be a leader. In the various contexts of our lives, we need to take more responsibility. Like Jesus, who washes the disciples' feet, we must learn to serve. There are different styles of leadership, such as autocratic leadership (top-down) or servant leadership (focused on the growth of the whole team). It is important for students to recognize the differences and begin to model leadership for each other.
In the Year 12 retreat, we explore the theme of “Journey.†Students are beginning to realize that high school will soon finish and that there is a bigger story to their life’s purpose—that is, their life’s journey. This second retreat explores the transition from high school but then looks out beyond high school to see a pathway that may not be straight and narrow. How do we explore life choices? What happens when things do not go to plan? What are our dreams? Putting our lives into perspective prepares students to enter the liminal space of transitioning from school into the wider world.
Affirmations form an important part of both retreats. Students are given the opportunity to write positive comments and affirm each other. This creates a dynamic that builds up positivity across the community. Even if teachers need to check the affirmation envelopes the night before, affirmations provide a platform where we can support each other.
Meal times are very important. When we sit down and share a meal, we connect in ways that would not otherwise be possible. Often in Jesus’ ministry, he would connect by sharing a meal. Meals are an opportunity to let our hair down a little and see the other as a human person.
During both retreats, structured free time plays an important part. Structured free time is when students are out of their cabins but choose to do an activity, like go for a walk, play sports, write affirmations, watch a movie, etc. This structured free time is just as important as structured time. Often conversations can occur without the rigid structure of a session or an activity. This structured free time provides space to digest what has happened, but also time to reset and prepare for what comes next. Sometimes students and teachers say, “Is there too much free time?†However, this structured free time is very important because in school, we operate at a very fast pace, following bells, meeting deadlines, and doing work. The structured free time gets to the heart of what the retreat experience is—a different mode. A time to stop, reflect, and be. A retreat is a time where we can just be and provides opportunities for further connections.
On both retreats, we provide the opportunity for the sacrament of reconciliation. This can be a very powerful experience. The retreat can create the atmosphere and platform where the sacrament of reconciliation is more accessible. A short session before reconciliation stations can help provide students with an understanding of the realities they face, but also the healing presence that Jesus can bring into their lives. In my last retreat, a number of students asked, “Can we have the sacrament of reconciliation at school?†Inside, I agreed, but I realized it is difficult to create the same atmosphere that allows students to more comfortably step into the space. Each retreat often has a large group of students who goes. The sacrament of reconciliation can be a turning point in their lives.
The retreats conclude with Mass. The celebration of the Eucharist, where we celebrate Jesus and God in our lives, brings together all the elements of the retreat. Before the Mass begins, students can opt-in to help prepare the various aspects, such as the music, writing universal prayers of the faithful, readers, and setting up the sacred space. Thus, the Mass celebration is something they do not simply attend, but rather, something they lead. The celebration of the Eucharist is the high point of the retreat. It is really where students taste Jesus in their lives. Often there is a deep sense of joy that comes from this experience. Students are now ready to go out, back into the wider world.
Overall, the retreat is like the mountain-top experience. Like Jesus who takes the disciples up the mountain, it slowly builds. But once students are on the mountain, there can be moments of transformation and change that would not happen during regular school time. The changes can come in many shapes and sizes, but often there is a deeper sense of connection where walls and barriers between friendship groups are brought down, but also giving them a new sense of faith and their own spirituality.
I would strongly advocate for two retreats as the Year 11 retreat prepares them for their role as servant leaders. They take on more responsibility, which must be done both individually, as a community but also with a deepening sense of maturity. The second senior retreat in Year 12 provides students with a way forward. To transition the final part of Year 12, providing them hope for the future and a new sense of who they are called to be as children of God.
In our busy worlds, we often prioritize marks and finance to guide our directions. By providing two senior retreats, we create an opportunity where a deep sense of what it means to be catholic can be explored. Notice I have used a little “câ€. Universal. We need to accept students where they are at, build connections, and then help them discover the richness of the “Catholic†tradition. But realise, this is something they can choose. Not by force, but by providing them with an opportunity. What it means to be catholic can mean many things. Not just do I attend mass on Sunday. Rather, how do the pieces of the puzzle of my life fit? The retreat provides them to awaken to these pieces and to come back down the mountain with a new sense of who they are.
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