Peace, resilience and desire at Dublin retreat centre

At St. John's Ballyfermot, the De La Salle Retreats Dublin team are receiving more and more new schools, and one of our greater challenges is the increased influx of students whose English is not their mother tongue. Indeed, with many only having just arrived in Ireland, some have no English at all.

However, it has been remarkable to witness how the retreat transcends spoken language and leans into the universal language of kindness, empathy, respect and care. It has been moving at times to see understanding and recognition shine through the young people despite the language barriers.

For us as facilitators it is a neon sign to how needed the retreat work and pastoral care is in a world where the spoken word can send out mixed messages and confusion. However in Ballyfermot, there is peace, resilience and a real desire to understand each other at work among the students we receive, and Thank God for that.