Bishop Earl Boyea paid an unannounced but most welcome visit to the first evening of a retreat for Michigan State University students being held this weekend at the Saint Francis Retreat Center in DeWitt.
He spoke to the students and imparted his episcopal blessing upon them at the end of a traumatic week that witnessed three students killed, and five other seriously injured, by a gunman on campus on Monday. Requiescant in pace.
Director of Campus Ministry at Saint John Church & Student Center at Michigan State, Katie Diller Gleason, gives this account of Bishop Boyea's visit:
“Bishop Boyea encouraged students to ask God for the desire to make Jesus first in their life, that it was up to them to make their faith their own.”
"He told them he was so delighted that they chose to come on retreat even after the challenges of the week, and they being together here was where they belonged.”
"The spring retreat was scheduled months ago, and was in jeopardy of being canceled after this week’s events, until a majority of students who had signed up expressed interest in continuing with the retreat. 45 students were present!"