Young adults from parishes throughout the Diocese of Allentown gathered on May 1 for a special First Friday Young Adult Holy Hour with Bishop Alfred Schlert at the Cathedral of St. Catharine of Siena, Allentown.
Each First Friday Holy Hour features Eucharistic Adoration, music, and Confessions, followed by a social hour. The events are organized by young priests; the diocesan Commission for Young Adults; and Zelenda Hodgskin, diocesan Director of Youth and Young Adult Ministry.
Bishop Alfred Schlert offered words of encouragement on the feast of St. Joseph the Worker. “It is a great privilege for me to be able to be with you tonight to pray in front of Our Lord, present Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity in the Holy Eucharist present on the Altar,” he said.
“For me, it is a tremendous thing to see young clergy and young members of the faithful taking the initiative to spend time in worship and Adoration of Our Lord in the Most Blessed Sacrament. That is where the fruitfulness of the Church will be given to us – on our knees in front of the Most Blessed Sacrament – bringing our own needs and petitions to Our Lord.”
More than 50 young adults participated in the Holy Hour, kneeling in prayer as music was led by Cassandra Boccardi, a young adult and parishioner of the Cathedral.
Assisting were Father Aaron Scheidel, then Assistant Pastor of the Cathedral, and Father Matthew Kuna, Chaplain at Berks Catholic High School, Reading and St. Christopher Newman Center, Kutztown University.
“The First Friday Holy Hours have been very well attended,” said Father Scheidel, a founding organizer. “It’s been very encouraging.
“If it's of the Holy Spirit, if it's something God wants, then it will kind of all come together. That's very much what happened. The [Holy Hours and social] does not take a lot of work to put on; they've been so well attended, and the feedback has been so overwhelming.”
He believes these opportunities address what young people and all people need most: “the Lord and the Sacraments,” “[coming] together as a community of prayer,” and “fellowship.”
“So seeing how many people are coming out for it and sacrificing their Friday night is very encouraging, and it's also very uplifting as a priest,” said Father Scheidel.
Anna Bergman, a recent graduate of The Catholic University of America (CUA), Washington, D.C., attended a previous Holy Hour and social. She said during her time at CUA many people were “going to Mass and Adoration” together.
Upon returning to the Lehigh Valley, Bergman was concerned she might not have similar opportunities. “It means a lot that there are events and talks like this,” she said, “and that the Bishop is involved in talking to young people as we all gather in communion like this.”
Zach Myers, parishioner of St. Thomas More, Allentown, entered the Catholic Church at the Easter Vigil, and this was his first time attending an Adoration service.
“I honestly didn't know what to expect,” he said. “I just kind of sat there and took it in. I think it was really peaceful because I could just be there, be with Jesus Christ, and pray with Him. For me, it was moving.”
The next Young Adult Holy Hour is scheduled for Friday, Aug. 7 from 7:30 to 8:30 p.m., followed by a social. Click here to sign up.
For more information, email Zelenda Hodgskin at zhodgskin@allentowndiocese.org.
Photos by Vargas Photography.
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