14th September 2026: “Faith is the only antidote to fear”—a fear which pulls us back from launching into the deep for God. Building on this theme, the youth ministry of the Crusaders stepped into the youth overnight camp held at St. Teresa’s Retreat Centre in Margao, on 13th–14th Sept. The public holiday on Monday, the 14th, was an added advantage which provided the opportunity for many, otherwise caught up with exams and projects, to set these aside and give their full attention to the Word of God preached.
With lively praise and worship setting the tone for the sessions, the resource team focused on topics which enabled the youth to go deep into the Catholic faith, to look beyond their boundaries, and to get a glimpse of the reality of the glorious eternal life Jesus spoke of. The teachings provided valuable inputs on examining the quality of our own faith, and how a true faith in Jesus Christ enables us to overcome the Goliaths the youth face—such as temptation, unhealthy relationships in a digital era, stress, anxiety, and peer pressure in the present age—besides creating awareness of the need to belong to a spiritual community.
Visuals shown during the sessions shed more light on the essentials of our faith, such as the role of the Virgin Mary and the Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist. A memorable session around a campfire brought together many among the Crusader youth to give their life-conversion testimonies, each boldly speaking on the goodness of the Lord working in their lives and how being a part of the youth cell is leading them to an inner transformation. Towards the end, fired by the Holy Spirit with a new zeal for the Lord Jesus, many among the youth expressed their gratitude for being the “chosen few” for whom the Lord opened the way to be a part of this overnight camp.
