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A new initiative from the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA, is engaging young adult Catholics in uniform through authentic relationships that grow into discipleship with Christ. Called Team Saint Paul, the project places support chaplains near military bases in order to organize Catholic events and engage service members in the Catholic community.
Based on the work that FOCUS performs on college campuses, Team Saint Paul facilitates gatherings and events to connect young adult Catholics with their peers in order to form relationships. Their support chaplains discern how to foster an encounter with Christ that leads young adults to become more firm in their faiths. Their goal is to empower the faithful to live out their baptismal call to evangelize.
In an interview with CNA, Team Saint Paul member Regina Fontana explained that much of the day-to-day work of the Team is based in prayer. Every day features Mass and Holy Hour, but then they might organize other prayer events, like Eucharistic Adoration:
“One of the first things we started implementing when we got here was adoration. We held adoration twice a week for the soldiers,” she said. “That was just something that we really saw they needed. We’re going to be starting a Bible study finally in January. We meet one on one with them. They have questions; we respond to them.”
Fontana went on to note that Team Saint Paul has forged a close relationship with the Nashville Dominicans (the Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia Congregation), who invite the Team to join them in Vespers. Once the prayers have concluded, the sisters even accompany them to line dancing. In this way, they help to connect Catholics all over to create a tightly-knit and light-hearted community that prays together and plays together.
Father Lukasz Willenberg, military chaplain for the 5th Group Special Forces (Airborne), explained that the service members who have attended Team Saint Paul’s events have responded very well to the initiative, driving Mass attendance among them up by at least 50% since it began:
“Seeing more active-duty members in uniform attending daily Mass brings great joy to our hearts,” Willenberg said. “It is wonderful to observe how Caroline [McDermott, another Team Saint Paul member] and Regina use their gifts to personally engage with random Mass attendees, creating moments of encounter and bringing them closer to the Lord. After Sunday Masses there is a circle of young adults chatting, getting to know each other, and making plans to keep each other encouraged in the faith.”
Visit the website of the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA, to learn more about Team Saint Paul.
