Young adults, primarily in their 20s and early 30s, took advantage of a new opportunity to get better acquainted and to enjoy each other’s company at the first Books & Beaches event on July 23. The sessions will continue on July 30, Aug. 6 and 13. All young adults are invited.
Father Patrick Anderson, who was ordained in 2010 and serves as director of human formation at Borromeo Seminary, is an organizer of the loosely structured venture.
“I was talking to a number of young adults and asked what type of things they’d like to do during the summer,” he said, adding that most weren’t interested in anything too structured. After some discussion, the idea of a summer book club/social group evolved. And that morphed into Books & Beaches, which had its first session this week.
The evening began with 5:10 p.m. Mass at the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist in downtown Cleveland for those who could attend. Bishop Nelson Perez celebrated the Mass with Father Anderson and Father Martin Dober, who was ordained in May and who serves as parochial vicar at St. John Vianney Parish in Mentor, as concelebrants.
“I was in my first year as a priest and this Gospel was read at Mass,” the bishop said. “I asked a group of third-graders at the Mass how you know God’s will.” Bishop Perez said he wasn’t sure what to expect from the children since that was a question that even he had difficulty answering.
“But one little girl said you sit, wait and listen. A small child knew the answer,” he said.
As a new priest, the bishop said he felt pulled in multiple directions – with parish work, diocesan work and as a chaplain at a psychiatric hospital. “God’s will evolves around us. We need to be patient, we need to wait and we have to listen. God may speak to us in some situations where we find ourselves – a situation that calls us to trust and follow him. We need to look at what’s happening around us and what these things might be saying to us about God’s will,” he added.
After Mass, the group headed to the nearby Masthead Brewing Co. where participants ordered beverages and dinner before settling in for about an hour of conversation. About 30 people from a variety of professions participated in the dinner portion of the evening. Conversation was casual and lively as the group got better acquainted. They posed for a few photos with the bishop before heading to Edgewater Park for the next portion of the evening, the book discussion.
Father Anderson said the group is reading “Heart of the World” by Hans Urs von Balthasar. They will read and discuss three chapters each week of the four-week gathering. The book, written by a Catholic theologian, looks at the heart of Christ and his love for the Church.
After sundown, anyone who wanted could trek to Mitchell’s Ice Cream in Ohio City for a frosty nightcap before heading home.
For more information on future Books & Beaches events, contact Father Anderson.
