✨ We’re thrilled to announce Fr. Ricardo as one of our keynote speakers for Destination Jesus - “Sound of the Saints” 🎤!
☀️A native from San Diego, CA, and a Notre Dame graduate (where he played trumpet 🎺in the iconic Band of the Fighting Irish ☘️🏈), Fr. Ricardo felt called to the priesthood from a young age. After joining the Fathers of Mercy in 2008, he was ordained in 2013. He’s served as a pastor, missionary preacher, and now as Treasurer General and local superior at the Fathers of Mercy Generalate.
Get ready for an inspiring message of mercy, calling us to live as saints in today’s world! 🌟✨
✨ Big News! ✨
We are thrilled to announce that Kim Zember will be the emcee for the 30th year of Destination Jesus! 🎉
Kim’s life is a testament to the transformative power of God’s love. With her vibrant faith and authenticity, she has made it her mission to proclaim the Belovedness of all God’s children. Through her personal journey, Kim has come to know the greater love found in Jesus, and she is passionate about helping others experience that same love. 💖
Kim speaks internationally about the love and freedom she has found from leaving a homosexual lifestyle. She loves people and strives to be totally transparent; to help others know they are safe to do the same. When Kim is not at home she is most likely found in Ethiopia, surrounded by her 400+ children through her ministry Unforgotten Faces.
We can’t wait for Kim to guide us on this special milestone in the history of Destination Jesus. Prepare your hearts for an unforgettable experience as we come together to celebrate and grow in the love of Christ! 💫
Registration is OPEN! Stay tuned for more updates! 🕊️
#DestinationJesus #DJ30 #FaithJourney #BelovedByGod #KimZember #GodsLove #CatholicYouth #SoundoftheSaints
🌟 Destination Jesus: Celebrating 30 Years 🌟
As we journey through this sacred season of Advent, preparing our hearts for the coming of Christ, let us draw inspiration from the wisdom of the saints who have gone before us.
This week, we reflect on the words of St. Teresa of Calcutta:
“At this Christmas when Christ comes, will He find a warm heart? Mark the season of Advent by loving and serving others with God’s own love and concern.”
St. Teresa, lovingly known as Mother Teresa, dedicated her life to being a vessel of Christ’s love, serving the poor, the sick, and the marginalized with boundless compassion. Her life was a powerful testimony to the transformative impact of love and service rooted in faith.
As we reflect on her words, let us consider how we can prepare a warm and welcoming place for Christ in our own hearts by reaching out to those in need. The world is yearning to see His love in action, and our small acts of service, when done with God’s love and concern, can have a profound impact.
This Advent season, may we slow down, open our hearts, and be intentional about seeing Jesus in everyone we meet. Let us embrace the call to love and serve, preparing not just our homes, but our hearts, for the coming of Christ.
📖 How will you reflect His love this Advent? Let’s prepare Him room together.
#DestinationJesus30 #AdventReflections #StTeresaOfCalcutta #PrepareTheWay #LoveAndServe #SoundoftheSaints
✨ Destination Jesus 2025: Sound of the Saints ✨
For 30 years, Destination Jesus has been a powerful Eucharistic-centered retreat for teens in our diocese, and we’re excited to invite teens from every parish to join us this year! 🙌
This year’s theme, Sound of the Saints, calls us to remember the “cloud of witnesses” (Hebrews 12:1) who have gone before us, and to answer the call to go out into the world and preach the Good News. As we run the race of life with perseverance and grace, the Eucharist is our source of strength and the “sound” we make today echoes through time, impacting a world desperate to know the Lord. 🌍✝️
Let’s come together to experience the power of His presence and be inspired to live a life that reflects the beauty of the saints. Join us at Destination Jesus 2025—a retreat to encounter Christ, embrace our call, and carry the Good News to the world!
👉 Teens, contact your youth ministers for more details!
#DestinationJesus #SoundoftheSaints #Eucharist #TeensForChrist #RunWithPerseverance #CloudOfWitnesses #DestinationJesus2025
Lord, grant us the grace to be rooted in you.
#rootedinChrist #destinationjesusrooted #destinationjesus2024
We are excited to add Mary Carmen Zakrajsek to the #destinationjesus2024 speaking team!! Her heart is truly full of joy and zeal for the Lord! She picked a great topic "You Only Live Once - Why Holiness Matters Right Now."
Mary Carmen Zakrajsek is a pro-life leader passionate about challenging young people to be bold in their Catholic faith and life. She is in love with the person of Jesus Christ and desires to make Him known, no matter the cost. After graduating from Marian University, her dedication to preserving truth and confronting the culture inspired her to work full-time with Students for Life of America and now as the Outreach Associate for Women’s Care Center. Mary Carmen is most passionate about the goodness, beauty, and truth of the Catholic Church and loves strengthening the faith of high school students around her.
#destinationjesus2024 #rootedinChrist #djspeaker2024
We continue to praise God for all the wonderful people He is bringing to the speaking team for DJ, and we`re happy to introduce you to Eric! #destinationjesus2024 #djspeaker2024
Eric Wiitala is a seminarian for the Diocese of Lafayette in Indiana and parishioner of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish. He has a bachelor`s degree in Sports Management and a long career in the sport of Lacrosse, playing from 6th grade through college. Since his reversion back to the faith, however, he enjoys sharing above all the excitement of being in a relationship with Jesus. He has developed a passion for returning to the basics and working out our faith`s fundamentals just like sports.
So excited to announce that this amazing couple is part of our speaking team for 2024!!
Joe and Katie Moran met while working as missionaries with FOCUS, the Fellowship of Catholic University Students. They are celebrating 7 years of marriage and have 2 little kids with 1 on the way. Katie grew up in the area and is a Guerin Catholic Alum while Joe was raised in Denver, CO.
They recently moved from down south to Indy and are trying to survive their first cold winter in a while. They are passionate about Alabama football (Roll Tide), Mexican food, and helping others know the love of Jesus.
#djspeaker2024 #destinationjesus2024
Tag your friends!!!
Destination Jesus is open to all high school teens from 9th to 12th grade. If you`ve been tagged by a friend in this post, you should know that friend really cares about you and wants the best for you!! We hope you`ll join us for the 29th annual DJ. You may just find what you are looking for!
Link in bio for more information and to register!
#destinationjesus2024
We are excited to welcome @cassienoeker to our Destination Jesus speaking team for 2024! Her breakout session will speak to "Why Your Story Matters - Healing of Identity!" #djspeaker2024 #destinationjesus2024
Cassie is a world traveler enthusiast with 10+ years of ministry experience. She has worked in youth ministry, street evangelization, and mission work across the Midwest and Texas, and has been associated with ministries such as Adore Ministries (where she was a full-time missionary for 2 years), Blessed Is She, and St. Paul Street Evangelization. She currently works as the Director of Evangelization/Youth Ministry for 3 parishes in West Michigan. Her powerful, healing encounter with Jesus when she was 19 has given her a mission to bring the love of Christ to everyone she meets – whether that be a friend over coffee, a teen in the classroom, or the homeless on the street. Captivating hearts for Jesus and facilitating encounters with the God who loves each person so intimately and uniquely is what makes her come alive! She uses her gifts of passionate and sassy storytelling to bring the love of Christ to help set young people free.
This year the theme for Destination Jesus is "Rooted." Jesus, help us to live in you, rooted and established in the beauty of our faith and full of gratitude! #destinationjesus2024
Twenty parishes are currently registered to bring teens to Destination Jesus 29! Ask your youth minister if your parish is registered too! #destinationjesus2024 #rootedinChrist #destinationjesusrooted
Whether or not you are a person who makes resolutions in the new year or not, we invite you to make a resolution to attend Destination Jesus 2024! Registration is live and ready for you to sign up!
This is your reminder to add DestinationJesus 2024 to your calendar! This 29th year is sure to be grace-filled! Registration is live at www.destinationjesus.org
#destinationjesus2024 #rootedinChrist
We are happy to welcome Jocelyn Alcalá Gomez to #destinationjesus2023! Join her as she discusses the topic of living fully our Identity in Christ/Identidad en Cristo.
If we are not personally struggling with mental health, we probably know someone who is. We are grateful that LMHC Justin Griswold (@native_grizzly) will share with us how our faith better helps us to understand Mental Health and how Jesus wants to heal the wounds in our lives.
When we entrust the desires of our hearts to the Lord He is faithful to give more than we could ever hope or ask for. Join Rosary and Alex Laguaite as they share what they have learned about Discernment & Desire: Taking the Fear out of Discerning God`s Will for Your Life. #destinationjesus2023 #destinationjesusunveiled #djxxviii
We love the joy that fills Julia Eckrich and we are so grateful that she`ll be sharing a bit of her story with teens at DJ. Join her as she shares the importance of surrender and the beauty of what happens when we give our "Yes" to God!
It`s a gift to be able to welcome Robert Kloska to share his witness of "A Life Unveiled through the Eucharist and a Heart Attack." Join this session at DJ and let God remind you of the power of His love and healing that is always available to us! #destinationjesus2023 #destinationjesusunveiled #djxxviii
Everything changed for @chandler_edwards after an accident that left her unable to continue her soccer career at the University of Evansville. Join her at Destination Jesus to hear how in the midst of the pain and loss God has still provided and given great purpose to her life. #destinationjesusunveiled #destinationjesus2023 #djxxviii
Our wonderful speakers are preparing some powerful witnesses of hope, truth, and beauty to share at Destination Jesus XXVIII! Which topics interest you most? #destinationjesus2023 #destinationjesusunveiled #djxxviii
Praising God for a great lineup of speakers coming to Destination Jesus XXVIII! 2 days left to register and we want you to be there! linktr.ee/destinationjesus
Feeling lots of joy over here as we prepare for DJ XXVIII!! We hope you’ll join us! #destinationjesus #destinationjesus2023
We love a good snow day!! Hope you are able to enjoy it and take some time to register for DJ today! #destinationjesus2023 #unveiled
He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Remaining present in every tabernacle across the world so we can adore Him! Join us on Feb. 18 to celebrate Jesus in the Holy Eucharist and respond to His Love!! Register today! Link in bio