Another Successful Mini Emmaus!
- Fr Pawel Szymanowski, CR
The Mini Emmaus: A Day of Faith and Fun
The idea for Mini Emmaus began in 1994, thanks to Bishop Wiesław Śpiewak CR, who was, at that time, the vocation director of the Polish Province of the Congregation of the Resurrection. His plan was simple yet clear: bring together young people from different Resurrectionist parishes in Poland to build a community, pray, and have fun with sports and other fun competitions. Over the years, Mini Emmaus has grown into a major annual event organized by the Polish Province and held in various locations around Poland. This year marked the 29th Mini Emmaus! They even have their own website and Facebook page where people share their experiences and little things like photos of the mugs they’ve collected over the years.
Seeing how successful this event was in Poland, Fr. Raphael Ma CR, who was the Community vocation director at the time, and Fr. Chris Szkubera CR, pastor of Sacred Heart Parish, thought, “Why not try this in Canada?” Our Mini Emmaus had a slightly different twist. It was planned to be a one-day event, and we invited kids not only from our CR parishes but from the whole Waterloo Deanery. The first Mini Emmaus in Canada was held in 2023, and it was such a hit that we decided to do it again this year.
On June 1, we hosted the second edition of Mini Emmaus. Holy Family Parish kindly let us use their vast field for the event again (big shout out to Anica!). This year, we had 47 participants from various parishes, including St. John / Our Lady of Guadalupe, St. Francis, Our Lady of Lourdes, Sacred Heart, St. Mark’s, and several other communities. Besides the sports and competitions, we also had a formation session. Ania Krysciak read the story of the disciples going to Emmaus in such an engaging way, setting a wonderful tone for the day.
The sports’ competitions were the highlight. We assigned a mix kids from different parishes into six groups to ensure healthy interaction among the kids. Of all the games, the tug of war was the favorite, with everyone getting really into that. The weather was perfect, and the Kitchener Knights of Columbus, just like last year, generously provided lunch and delicious ice cream for everyone. A big thank you to Abby and Marysia, who led all the games and made sure everyone had a blast! We also want to express our gratitude to the various volunteers who helped with many tasks before and during the event. Particularly, the Jesus Youth who brought incredible energy with their engaging music and singing, thus creating a joyful atmosphere. Their lively music made the day even more special.
A word of thanks to Fr. Raphael Ma, who could not join us this year. He played a key role last year and immensely helped in preparing for this year’s event. While we were playing, he was engaged in a different and important project of planting the Tiny Home Takeout Garden with volunteers and students from St. Jerome’s Campus Ministry. Additionally, we thank Alice Langdon from the Resurrection Provincial Office, whose support and help were crucial in the seamless preparation of Mini Emmaus. Her efforts, both last year and this year, have been instrumental in making this event a success.
All in all, the second Mini Emmaus in Canada was a fantastic day of community, faith, and fun. We can’t wait to continue this awesome tradition for many years to come.
