Oxford, MI – The “door of faith” is always open for us, ushering us into the life of communion with God and offering entry into his Church, wrote Pope Benedict XVI in his letter to initiate the Year of Faith; To enter through that door is to set out on a journey that lasts a lifetime.

Last weekend, 85 girls made a step on the journey of faith at the Aflame with Faith Ancora convention in Oxford.

 Ancora is a club sponsored by the Immaculate Conception Program; members of the club pray for and support the Holy Father and vocations. They have several conventions each year, which were previously hosted at Immaculate Conception Academy in Rhode Island. This was the first convention since the program moved to Michigan, and for many families, the more central location made travel easier, resulting in an even better turnout than expected!

The convention was divided into 3 groups – high school, middle school, and 5th-6th grade – with several teams in each group. They had conferences and activities to learn about their faith, as well as the chance to spread the faith through apostolic outreach.

The 5th and 6th graders visited the Dominican motherhouse in Oxford to sing for the nuns and have a question and answer session with them. The afternoon was a hit for the both the girls and the sisters! All of the girls had questions about the sisters’ religious life, and the sisters loved sharing their stories and experiences.

The older girls visited an abortion clinic to pray and join in the Archdiocese of Detroit’s 40 Days for Life campaign, which kicked off on Ash Wednesday. Afterwards, they did a ‘Mall Mission,’ asking people questions about the meaning of life and what makes them truly happy.

Many of the girls agreed that the highlight of the convention was the Eucharistic procession on Sunday. Each group built an altar at a different location in the retreat center, and each team wrote a short prayer to read at their altar. Fr. Christopher O’Connor LC led the procession, stopping for benediction at each altar and in the chapel, where they began all-night adoration.

“I loved seeing how much the girls enjoyed the Eucharistic procession,” said Bethany Martens, a freshman in the Immaculate Conception program. “Several girls told me that they’d like to do that again!”

All of the Immaculate Conception girls were thrilled with the positive response to their first convention in Michigan. 

 “I felt like I was really able to connect with the girls,” said sophomore Sara Rembold. “I built a relationship with them, and I was able to transmit Christ to them.”