Catholic youth rally attracts 3,000 in Houma
Lonnie Lapeyrouse, a member of the band More Than Sunday, signs Miranda Cherry's arm while Lauren Griffin (left) waits for an autograph Saturday at the Houma-Terrebonne Civic Center during Steubenville on the Bayou.
Buy Photo Abby Tabor/Staff
Buy Photo Abby Tabor/Staff
Published: Sunday, June 17, 2012
As about 3,000 young people gathered in the Houma-Terrebonne Civic Center singing solemn praises during Saturday's morning Mass, the lights suddenly died.
The auditorium filled with darkness, but as emergency generators began to illuminate the cadre of holy men on stage, no one panicked and the soft, slow singing carried on in the dark.
“It was so beautiful. It made me want to cry,” said Tenna Genzer of Ganado, Texas. “The kids just kept going. It didn't hamper the spirit at all.”
Moments like these are what children and parents say make Steubenville on the Bayou a special event for the local Catholic community.
The Catholic Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux is hosting the seventh-annual Steubenville on the Bayou Catholic Youth Conference this weekend.
“It's really geared toward high-school-age kids,” said Darryl Barrios, a spokesman for the conference. “It's basically a weekend to get closer to God and to be with young people who are also seeking a closer relationship with God.”
Houma's Catholic youth conference, which started Friday and ends today, is one of 18 across the U.S. cosponsored by Franciscan University in Steubenville, Ohio. Catholics from surrounding states and as far away as Canada attended.
Barrios said though the teachings of the conference are purely Catholic, the conference is also attended by members of other religions. The conference is comprised of a series of religious services, youth entertainment and seminars meant to reinforce the teachings of the church. For example, separate meetings for young men and women are held to discuss virtue and chastity.
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