Serran - Nkechinyere ISIENYI

Members of Serra Club International gathered on Saturday, 13 December 2025, at the Pastoral Institute Chapel, Bodija for a spiritually enriching retreat centred on The Jubilee of Hope and the Spirituality of the Serra Club.

 

The retreat was facilitated by Fr. Emmanuel Eseola O., who guided participants through a day of prayer, reflection, and sacramental encounter. The programme featured Exposition and Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, opportunities for Sacramental Confession, retreat conferences, and the celebration of Holy Mass, creating a deeply contemplative atmosphere for the largely elderly participants.

 

In his keynote reflections, Fr. Eseola presented hope not as a passing emotion or seasonal celebration, but as a sacred journey rooted in God’s faithfulness. He explained that the Church’s Jubilee of Hope calls believers to a renewed trust in God’s ongoing action, even amidst personal limitations and advancing age. This understanding of hope, he noted, aligns naturally with the spirituality of the Serra Club, whose vocation mission is sustained by patience, prayer, and long-term fidelity rather than immediate results.

 

Addressing the theme of perseverance, the facilitator highlighted the quiet faithfulness of Serra members who have spent decades praying for vocations and supporting priests and seminarians. According to him, such lifelong commitment represents the heart of Jubilee spirituality—hope lived over time, matured through waiting, sacrifice, and unwavering trust in grace.

 

Fr. Eseola also drew inspiration from the life of Junípero Serra, presenting him as a pilgrim of hope whose missionary zeal endured hardship, illness, and opposition. He challenged Serra members to see themselves not as retired from mission, but as elder pilgrims, whose prayers, wisdom, and example continue to illuminate the path for younger generations discerning God’s call.

 

A significant emphasis of the retreat was the role of intergenerational hope within the Church. Participants were reminded that vocations flourish in communities where faith is visibly lived and lovingly transmitted. Serra Club members, particularly the elderly, were encouraged to embrace their unique vocation of presence, memory, and spiritual parenthood as a vital gift to the Church.

 

The retreat concluded with Holy Mass, sealing a day marked by reverence, renewal, and gratitude. Participants expressed appreciation for the reflective depth of the programme, describing it as a timely reminder that hope does not diminish with age but grows deeper, becoming a quiet yet powerful witness to God’s enduring faithfulness.