The path of the heart 

A spiritual retreat was conducted in a welcoming, joyous, and fraternal atmosphere at the Bon Air house in Quebec City on February 7, 8, and 9, 2025, for a group of nine young men from diverse backgrounds.

With the guidance of Lourdes Varguez, a nun from Jésus-Marie, Bernard Duquette, PMÉ, and Pedro Perna, the young people explored God's immense love for everyone. Drawing inspiration from St. Ignatius' Spiritual Exercises, the retreat alternated between readings, lectures, and silent periods that were followed by sharing. Geneviève's extraordinary culinary talent also contributed greatly to the success of the event!

« I didn't expect moments of silence to do me so much good. I find that it's essential and that there's a lack of time like that in everyday life. It helped me to see God's love from another perspective, to realize that he loves us as we are and that we don't have to be perfect for him to love us. Understanding and realizing that we're not alone, and that other young guys like me are yearning and looking for God in their lives, is good,” says Xavier Marceau (19).

In turn, Francis Marceau (20) shares about the meeting: “(I experienced) a privileged moment to strengthen my relationship with God through simple but revealing exercises. The experience offered clarity and meaning to the foundations of my faith and my vision of God.”

Christ-Marie Brou (24), another participant, said: ‘I felt closer to God’ and, more concretely, ‘I have a different relationship with my phone now.' For Maclairy Jean (31) ‘I have been blessed at every moment. I can take a positive view/ attitude toward strangers, and I hope to keep this more and more humanizing view of each person.'

All of the young people expressed an interest in following up on this process.