Something extraordinary happened at my parish recently. Two hundred young adults gathered with our bishop and several priests to celebrate the tenth anniversary of our weekly “P3” apostolate. “P3” stands for “Prayer, Penance, and Pub”: Every Wednesday evening for the past decade we have offered young adults an hour and a half of eucharistic exposition, during which they can pray and go to confession. A priest or guest speaker then gives a thirty-minute meditation, followed by social time at our own parish “pub.” While we can’t offer metrics of grace, we can calculate that, over the past ten years, we have offered young adults: 750 hours of quiet prayer time in adoration of the Most Blessed Sacrament; 25,000 confessions; 500 meditations; and 1,000 hours of pub time fellowship, with a total attendance of 35,000.
Some attendees met their future spouses at P3, and some young men have gone on to study for the priesthood. For those who think Catholicism is not alive and well in our country, especially in parishes and among young adults, the experience at my parish shows that the right pastoral approach makes for a flourishing apostolate.
I do not use the words “extraordinary” and “flourishing” lightly. The young adults who flock to P3 find meaning, a reason to live, something their non-religious cohorts desire but haven’t found out in the world. Amidst alarming rates of loneliness, depression, and suicide among Millennials and Gen Zers—amidst all the bad news—there’s good news: Fostering intimacy with God and true friendship with others by embracing the four pillars of the Christian life gives young adults purpose and hope.
The first pillar of the Christian life is knowing and professing the truth of our faith—the truths about the human person, God, and his plan for us. These truths are taught at P3 during the meditation. Bishops, priests, deacons, seminarians, and lay speakers have provided formation in the faith through reflections on a variety of topics such as the saints, cinema, the virtues, and the meaning of true friendship.
The second pillar of the Christian life is celebrating the beauty of God’s grace in the sacred liturgy and in the sacraments. At P3, the celebration of the sacrament of confession offers penitents the grace of merciful forgiveness, while adoration of the Most Blessed Sacrament of the Eucharist and benediction blesses worshippers and reminds them of the grace they’ve received in Holy Communion.
The third pillar of the Christian life is living in fellowship with God and others through charity. This is realized during pub time, where conversations thrive following the experience of communal prayer and worship with people sharing the same values and priorities.
The fourth pillar of the Christian life is fostering intimacy with God through prayer, which happens during the silent adoration time. Silence fosters detachment from the world’s distractions and allows one to focus on the Lord.
At P3, young adults inspire and encourage one another, as they are all engaging in the same noble pursuits. Holiness—true peace and joy—is contagious.
The young adults who attend P3 know they are not perfect. They are, after all, also there to confess their sins. But they’ve discovered a fundamental truth: Suds, sex, stuff, streaming, and social media—the things of our world—do not satisfy the deepest desires of the human heart. As St. Thomas Aquinas said, “God alone satisfies,” and “Christ is our greatest and wisest friend.” That friendship is also mediated through friendships with faithful women and men created in God’s image and sharing his likeness. The young adults who attend P3 understand that virtual “reality” and relationships cannot offer profound peace and happiness. Only real, genuine relationships with our loving God and others who love him and love us can.
Single young adults especially long for companionship on a deeper level. While the simple pleasures of watching sports with roommates, going to happy hours with work colleagues, and going to concerts with friends may be fun and cool, they know that it’s not enough.
Indeed, deep down, young adults aren’t looking for “cool”: They’re looking for warm. And they’ll only find warm, authentic, profound relationships when they spend quality time with their Creator who made them for himself, and with their brothers and sisters who share the same understanding of the human experience.
Rev. Donald J. Planty Jr. is the pastor of St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Parish in Arlington, Virginia.
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