Junior Retreat - The Heart of Social Justice

Hosted by Sr. Diane McSherry OP, '78, Director of Campus Ministry and the Theology department, the theme of the retreat was “Social Justice.” Fr. Manny Gallo, SDB led the retreat, and he was assisted by Fr. Sasika Lokuhettige, SDB.  The retreat day began with the celebration of Mass. In his homily, Fr. Manny told the Juniors that it is fine to be successful, but it is important to pray to become significant in life. He reminded the students that they are blessed, and everything they have is a gift, but they become significant when they offer service to someone in need. 

Fr. Manny’s keynote talk was “The Heart of Social Justice.” He challenged the students to become aware of instances of injustice people face in their lives. Fr. Manny showed a short video of people in his homeland of Nicaragua and their difficult living conditions.  After showing the video, he said to the students, “I want you to wake up and say, ‘This is injustice, Fr. Manny. This is wrong and we’ve got to do something about it.’”

After his talk, Fr. Manny organized the students into groups to focus on one of the principles of Catholic Social Teaching. Students in each group interpreted the principle, compiled a list of issues today that deal with the principle, chose an issue and offered a solution. The students came out of this exercise realizing their need to be aware of how other people live, to care about their suffering, and to do something about the injustice.

During their junior year at Albertus, students focus on the Dominican Pillar of Community. Fr. Manny helped the students to realize that injustice of any kind affects the quality of community. He reminded the students that community is strengthened when we are concerned for other people and show them care and compassion.