GOD, HOW BEATIFUL YOU ARE!

April 30 to May 2 young people belonging to ?Champagnat Groups? from Marist schools around Italy came together at Nocera Umbra.

By the end of the first day, having gotten to know one another, the youth immediately entered into a zone they referred to as ?magical,? and jumped with abandon into all the activities of those three days.

The theme of the Encounter, ?God, how beautiful You are!? was a challenging one for all involved, Brothers and young people, because the topic seemed not only a challenging one but also complex. But everything turned out very well, for both veterans and newcomers.
The encounter was marked by friendship and the joy of living together, yet there was no shortage of times for fervent prayer, such as the vigil and Mass, personal and group reflection, and the activities planned in different workshops, powerful moments during the entire three days. Each young person had the opportunity to discover and experience features of God?s beauty expressed in the large group through ballet, musical compositions and performances, theater, and painting. By the time the curtain came down, the musical extravaganza had inspired not just the young but the oldsters as well. When it came time to leave, you could see an intense joy on everyone?s face and happiness for having participated in such a rich Encounter.

Before concluding, the little girl about whom Seán wrote in his Circular springs to mind. She was told to draw a picture of God. We don?t know about that little girl, but we?re sure that after the Encounter in Nocera Umbra, the young people came away with a very heightened experience of God?s beauty in our world.