There is a beautiful tradition in many Catholic schools that of offering students in the last year of high school the opportunity to do a closed retreat.  This programme has been developed with a view to facilitating a 60-hour closed retreat experience, beginning on the morning of the first day, and ending on the afternoon of the third day.

The focus for reflection during the retreat is the students' life situation of being on a THRESHOLD: the threshold of teenage, the threshold of puberty, the threshold of the unprotected environment out of school, the threshold of youth called to be active in the Church, and the threshold of youth called to be involved in society. In an atmosphere of a closed retreat, the entire reflection centers on the person of Jesus Christ, whose paschal mystery is relived during these 60 hours, in a way that is meaningful for these students on the threshold of youth, through liturgical and para-liturgical experiences.

To enable the students to have a memorable experience, the sessions are conducted with the aid of a journal in the hands of each retreatant. The liturgical and para-liturgical experiences will have to be planned with great care.  Another axis that will deepen the retreatants' participation as youth is good religious music - hence a couple of singing practices and sessions of praise and worship have been proposed in the time table. Time must also be given for the students to experience spiritual direction.

Much as it is difficult for youth to experience silence and solitude, this is not impossible for them. It is a great challenge for the animators of this programme to distinguish it from a mere camp, investing all their energies and grace to make it a "closed retreat". Those who have gone through this experience have been grateful for having been given an opportunity to "be with the Lord". May many more of our students in the final year of high school be blessed with the personal feel of the Lord's presence.