Who could get a Catholic high school hall to erupt with hundreds of happy teenagers screaming Jesus loves me?
Steve Agrisano, that’s who.
The US singer-songwriter, along with chastity speaker Jason Evert wowed students from Sydney Catholic Schools (SCS) last month with a blend of song, games, and storytelling.
Mary MacKillop Catholic College, Wakeley, hosted a special day of evangelisation for its Year 9 and 10 students with the theme of Faith, Vocation, and Journeying Together.
The event, one of the Year of Youth initiatives, also included a performance by the Come Alive youth band and a panel discussion on vocation by the archdiocese’s vocations director, Fr Epeli Qimaqima, Sister of the Immaculata Sr John Mary, and SCS’s head of new evangelisation Robert Haddad.
“The students were bubbling,” said Mr Haddad.
“They were completely engaged and absorbing and listening.”
“Yes, they were entertained but there was also a lot of depth. Jason Evert spoke very powerfully about why it’s great to be a Catholic, and told them examples of young saints who have died for their faith.
“There was total silence. You could have heard a pin drop.”
Glen Thompson, SCS’s acting archdiocesan youth ministry coordinator, said that the two evangelists spoke powerfully and encouraged the students to keep seeking to grow in their faith and understanding of the Church.
“The students took the opportunity to ask Steve and Jason questions about the life of faith, vocations, and journeying as a young person today,” he said.
Year 10 student Narellie Tong said that hearing Jason Evert speak about modern day saints was an unexpected highlight.
“He really opened my eyes with his stories about some of the miracles and healings they did. He also talked about current issues like same sex marriage which was really interesting and very relevant, and Steve was very interactive, he got us to play games and things which was very fun.”