NY Encounter: Education, Dialogue, Friendship

Sixteen seniors and a handful of staff, faculty and parent chaperones attended the New York Encounter February 14-16 -- an annual three-day cultural event in New York City that offers opportunities for education, dialogue and friendship.

The weekend features exhibits, panel discussions and cultural events covering a wide variety of topics, this year all of which were under the theme: “Where Everything is Waiting for You.” 

During the weekend, the students listened to a Ukrainian Bishop describe the terrible conditions in his war-torn country and the church’s pastoral care for people who are “simply trying to survive the day.” They also heard a Jewish publisher and an Egyptian Muslim scholar discuss what belonging and home mean in their respective cultures. The panel discussion on the Church and AI featured a META employee responsible for ensuring a safe experience across all their platforms.
 

Perhaps most directly relatable to the students was the session featuring 20 high school students from Atchison, Kansas, who asked the Abbot General of the Cistercian Order, Fr. Mauro Lepori, questions about the relevance of faith to their daily lives. Our students enjoyed joining in with these and other high school students for a sing-along later in the day (see video HERE). There were also sessions on poetry, physics, and the role of religion in society today.

Mass on Sunday was celebrated by Cardinal Timothy Dolan, the emeritus Archbishop of New York City. A dozen or so other bishops and cardinals and many priests concelebrated the Mass with him.

The weekend also included a visit to the 9/11 Memorial, a hike across the Brooklyn Bridge and a return walk across the Manhattan Bridge into Chinatown for dinner, as well as visits to Times Square, Rockefeller Centre and Central Park.

Head of School Mr. Keith Kiser, who was among the chaperones, said the students "were enthusiastically engaged every step of the way during the Encounter."

"The whole experience made me think of our Saint Joseph’s Way," he said, "and in particular the second point, the Positivity of Reality, which states that we 'embrace all of reality, believing that it comes from God and therefore reveals signs of his presence in the world today.' "

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