Youth learn about Our Lady during Marian day

IC photo/Marie Mischel

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A group of youth participating in the Marian day enact the Annunciation, when the angel Gabriel appeared to Mary and spoke of the Incarnation.

CEDAR CITY — Two dozen youth gathered at Christ the King Parish to learn about the Virgin Mary during the afternoon of Dec. 8. Teens came from Cedar City, St. George and Las Vegas for the day, which had the theme  “Mary: The Yes that Changed the World;” .

“All of us are on a holy journey,” said Junuee Castro, director of the diocesan Office of Youth and Young Adult Ministry, who organized the event, as she explained the purpose of the day.

The Bible records Mary’s journey beginning with the Annunciation, when the angel Gabriel appeared to her and told her she would bear a son.

Mary’s “holy ‘yes’ to the world brought us Jesus Christ,” Castro told the youth, adding that the Holy Mother’s journey included standing at the foot of the cross on which her son was crucified, “and there she was. And what did Jesus say?” she asked, and answered her own question: He gave her as mother to the beloved disciple, and by extension, to all humankind.    

The Holy Family was forced to flee to Egypt out of fear of persecution from Herod, so Mary’s journey included being a refugee and immigrant, Castro said.  

The event featured activities such as ice-breakers, a video about Our Lady of Guadalupe, and having the youth respond with either a skit, artwork or song about a Biblical passage dealing with the Virgin Mary, such as the Annunciation, the Nativity and the Crucifixion.

The event ended with the youth writing petitions to the Virgin Mary and placing them in a basket at the foot of a statue outside the church as they prayed for her intercession.

At the Mass that followed, Father Adrian Komar, pastor of Christ the King Parish, said that Mary’s yes “made a big difference in our lives. Our ‘yes’ to the Lord will make a big difference in our lives, and in someone else’s life. Someone told me once that if you want to change the world you have to change yourself first, and through your changes people will change; through your love for them, people will love; through your faith, people will have faith. The greatest gift that God has given us is his Son Jesus Christ, and that is a gift that keeps on giving.”

During the  youth event, “I learned about Mary more – to know her history and everything,” said Kimberlyn Kanba, a Christ the King parishioner.

Likewise, Erick Tabia, another Christ the King parishioner, said he got more insight on Mary, “and I also got a little bit of solitude as well, because nobody brought their phone. I thought that was really nice.”