EMMITSBURG, Md.—The largest-ever eucharistic prayer and catechetical gathering of regional youth was held at Mount St. Mary’s College and Seminary Feb. 23-25. Exceeding all expectations, over 2,400 young people, from 13 to 33, poured into Knott Athletic and Recreation Center for a weekend of spiritual conferences, eucharistic adoration, the sacraments of the Eucharist and penance, and musical and other performances.

The Franciscan Friars of the Renewal, a New York-based community of priests and brothers, delivered rousing talks aimed at awakening the young people to the love of God and bringing them back to the church and the sacraments if they had been away.

The weekend was run by the seminarians and, to a lesser extent, the college students of Mount St. Mary’s. The general chairman was John Shramko, a third-year seminarian of the Archdiocese of Atlanta, assisted by a support staff of countless other future priests.

Father Kevin C. Rhoades, seminary rector, pointed out that the evangelization efforts at work that weekend were a shining example of a contribution to the “new evangelization” of the contemporary world and culture that Pope John Paul II has entrusted to the church, especially to its youth.

The highlight of the weekend was the closing Mass, celebrated by Cardinal William Keeler of Baltimore, who praised the weekend’s success and who drew parallels between the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at the event, called Mount 2000 and Beyond, and that at the first Pentecost.

A young participant in the weekend summed up the general tone of the experience when he said, “I felt like I had no direction in my life, and after coming to Mount 2000 and Beyond, I felt God helping me with my direction. I felt like I found the true meaning of life in the Eucharist.”