The Mornese Experience
Living in the Spirit of Saint Mary Mazzarello
June 10, 2022
We were fortunate enough this June to celebrate the Salesian Sisters of Saint John Bosco’s 150th anniversary with them- and what better way to support and celebrate than with a retreat!
The Salesian Sisters of Saint John Bosco’s mission is to work with and for poor youth throughout the world. Through education and formation, the Sisters seek to bring Christ closer to young people so that they can live a deeper, more courageous relationship with Him. Their mission statement goes on to say that the Salesian Sisters aim to form “honest citizens and good Christians” in true Salesian spirituality: centered on the Holy Eucharist, devoted to Mary, and faithful to the Church’s Magisterium. This is done by “living the Preventive System of [their] Founder St. John Bosco and Co-Foundress St. Mary Mazzarello.”
We were invited to the retreat which took place over the course of four days, June 10-13, 2022. It was open to all women ages 18-30, not just members of the Kean community, and was held at the Salesian Sisters’ beautiful retreat house in Newton, New Jersey. Overall, it was a time to reflect on ourselves and our faith, share our faith journey with other young women, and have some fun outdoors at the Camp at the same time.
The retreat was a wonderful way to end a busy and exciting school year, and was a rejuvenating start to the summer break! Attendees were able to focus on prayer and the sacraments through daily Mass, Eucharistic adoration, morning and evening prayer, and opportunities for confession. In addition, we had the chance to learn each day more and more about the Salesian history and mission- Who Saint Mary Mazzarello was, how Mornese, located in Piedmont, Italy shaped her life, and how we as Catholics and Christians can live by her joyous spirit.
What’s a summer retreat without s’mores? To end day one, we enjoyed a campfire, games, and did some praise and worship before a weekend of bonding and teamwork activities to bring the group of about 20 women closer together. Low ropes courses, volleyball at sunset, hiking and paddle boats continued to bring the group closer each day.
We are thankful to the Salesian Sisters who are Kean graduates who invited us on the retreat, and we are already counting down until the next Mornese Experience weekend!
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