EPJ building faith among young adults

Published: November 6, 2017

En Español

The Diocese of Little Rock Hispanic Ministry Office hosted the 26th women's weekend for Encuentros de Promoción Juvenil (EPJ) (Encounters of Youth Promotion) at the Vincentian Lay Mission Center in North Little Rock Nov. 2-5. Twenty women, ages 18-27, attended the four-day encounter, which was led by a team of peers that began planning the weekend in August.

"We call it an encounter because it is a lot more than just retreating oneself from our daily life, it allows us to find our self, find God and find our peers' needs," said Bárbara Barroso, EPJ weekend retreat coordinator. "We motivate them to become leaders in their communities, to find their vocation and they, once again, decide to accept their faith."

Modeled after Cursillo and presented in Spanish, this Catholic movement was developed to teach young adults to evangelize their peers to accept the Gospel, live their vocation and take on leadership roles in Christian groups in their communities. EPJ's educational approach emphasizes human and spiritual development, group work, community prayer, Mass attendance, reflection and the sharing of experiences.

EPJ was founded by Father José Maria Pujadas Ferrer in Medellín, Colombia in 1968. The Vatican's Pontifical Council for the Laity recognized EPJ as an international association of the faithful of Pontifical Right in 1996. Today, the program is operating in 14 countries including the United States. To learn more, visit the Vatican's website.

"I ask you to keep praying for all youth and all emproistas, a person who has lived EPJ, from all around the world. As Pope Francis says, 'Help one another. This is what Jesus teaches us. This is what I do. And I do it with my heart.' And that is exactly what we did during the Encuentro #26 de Mujeres," Barroso said.