Catholic Central’s 42nd Kairos Retreat is in the books. The four-day spiritual retreat is held three times per year in October, January, and March, allowing an opportunity for students in various sports to attend, and is open to all juniors and seniors. 

Approximately 31 students attended the most recent retreat, which was held from Thursday, October 24 to Sunday, October 27, 2024, at the Colombiere Conference and Retreat Center located in Clarkston, Michigan. Over 70 students are already signed up for January’s retreat. 

What is Kairos?

Ask any Catholic Central student who has attended Kairos and they will tell you that it was one of the most memorable experiences of their lives. 

Students who attend the retreat as a junior may come back as a student leader during their senior year to give speeches and assist during prayer services. 

The purpose of the retreat is to allow students to learn more about themselves, each other, and God.

Although some aspects of Kairos are intentionally kept secret to encourage students to experience it firsthand, students have described the weekend as transformative and life-changing, feeling that they would have missed out on a significant part of their journey at Catholic Central if they hadn’t gone.

“My thought is if Jesus was so attractive and so believable to a generation that their encounter with Him would change their lives, it’s important that we provide experiences that allow our young men to hunger to know Him better,” stated Kevin Walters, Campus Minister.

“We try to have prayer services, sacramental celebrations, and talks that provoke students to look deeper and connect with somebody else who might share some of the struggles that they are encountering. Students learn how the Lord walks with us and journeys with us. We want students to know they’re not left alone. In this day and age where there is so much mental stress, we don’t want them to remain secret about the things that are weighing them down,” Walters continued. 

History of Kairos 

Kairos is the Greek word for “the Lord’s time.” The “Christian Awakening” program, launched in 1965, was developed over a year by a team of priests, brothers, and laypeople under the guidance of Douglas Brown from the Diocese of Brooklyn. Drawing partially on the Cursillo format, they adapted the retreat specifically for teenagers. By 1968, the Kairos Retreat was active in 12 states.

In the summer of 2009, Campus Minister Kevin Walters and six students from Catholic Central—Dylan Hagan, Matt Nicholas, KC Perlberg, Chris Schrimscher, Bret Shrader, and John Vinton—traveled to Oxley, Canada, to attend a Kairos Retreat with UofD Jesuit. Later that November, those students, along with adult leaders Kevin Walters, Tom Leonard, Bob Ryan, Tony Signorelli, and Fr. Jeff Thompson, CSB, organized and led Catholic Central’s first Kairos Retreat.

Student Testimonial 

Below, Kairos Retreat Student Leader Matthew Haarala ‘25 shares his thoughts about his experience. 

“Last year, I went on this retreat very skeptical as to what it was—similar to most students. I had been struggling in my faith life and wouldn't say I even had an authentic relationship with God. 

Over the four days and three nights of the retreat, a real relationship wasn't just found, but for the first time, I was able to recognize God's love for me. When I was asked in late Spring of last year to lead this fall's retreat, I was ecstatic.

After working on the retreat from speeches to basic organization, I realized how much work goes into planning things. I can't share too much about the retreat itself seeing as it's the cloud of mystery around Kairos that entices people to attend, but the retreat was again incredible. The perspective you gain from this retreat whether it be family to those around you is amazing. 

Going for year two was definitely something I needed to recenter myself, which is what many of the other leaders also said. The retreatants also had a great time and as one kid put it, ‘To fully experience CC, you have to go on Kairos.’”