By Kate Quiñones
Salt Lake City, Utah, Jan 4, 2025 / 20:35 pm
At the SEEK25 conference in Salt Lake City, thousands of young people gathered in a spacious convention center ballroom for eucharistic adoration. The atmosphere transformed into a solemn oasis of prayer amidst the buzzing multi-day event.
For many participants, this moment of prayer was a highlight of the conference. Sister Tonia of the Mercedarian Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament expressed her gratitude, saying, “Just to be able to pray and praise with so many other people and have all of our eyes fixed on the Lord — It’s like, ‘Lord, this is a little taste of heaven that we get to just enter into; thank you for that gift.'”
Simultaneously in Washington, D.C., another SEEK conference took place, with attendees engaging in a similar evening adoration session. Both locations were connected through keynote speakers: Monsignor James Shea in Salt Lake City and Sister Miriam James Heidland in Washington, D.C.
Sister Miriam prepared the audience for adoration by emphasizing the intimacy of the experience. “He’s going to walk among us,” she said. “What is he going to do? He’s going to speak to you in a gaze, an intense love.”
In his keynote address, Monsignor Shea reflected poetically on the Paschal mystery, highlighting God’s humble condescension that forever changed the destiny of humanity. “He would take upon himself the whole destiny of the human race by joining himself to them and then doing what they themselves were unable to do,” Shea shared.
Immerse yourself in the profound words, “He would take up human nature, corrupt and wounded, join it to himself and then offer it up in sacrifice.”
Step into the world of Fellowship of Catholic University Students (FOCUS) and witness the gathering of young Catholic individuals from all corners of North America at SEEK. With a record-breaking 17,274 participants in Salt Lake City and a sold-out second site in Washington, this year’s conference is making waves. Not to mention the smaller yet impactful gathering in Cologne, Germany, with 486 attendees. For those unable to attend, fear not, as the event is being livestreamed by EWTN and will conclude on Sunday.
Bishop James Conley of Lincoln, Nebraska, a seasoned attendee of the SEEK conference, regards the time of eucharistic adoration as “the high point of every SEEK conference.” In Salt Lake City, the adoration lasted until a little past 10 p.m., leaving a lasting impact on all who participated.
Not only are attendees connecting in person, but this year’s SEEK conference also features a video portal that allows participants to virtually interact with each other. Whether it’s a friendly wave or a game of rock, paper, scissors, the spirit of camaraderie is alive and well.
As Saturday morning dawns, the snowy sidewalks of Salt Lake City are filled with SEEK participants making their way to Mass and engaging in enlightening breakout sessions.
