Introduction

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Symphony of Symmetry

Niclas Lundqvist & Raphah

This retreat has been created with the Eucharistic Youth Movement — the proposal for youth of the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network. However, we encourage anyone to pray this retreat as a special way to walk with God, experiencing the road to Emmaus in a deeper way.

Every great symphony begins with a simple motif — something small that, as it unfolds, holds everything together.

In this retreat, we invite you into a story that feels like that: the journey of the disciples of Emmaus.

Like a symphony, it weaves together many layers: the shock of Jesus’ death, the disappointment of those who hoped He was the Messiah, and the quiet fire that begins to grow when they encounter the Risen One.

But what is the motif that holds it all?

Pope Benedict XVI once said: “Being a Christian is not the result of an ethical choice or a lofty idea, but the encounter with an event, a person…”

That’s the heart of it. Jesus wants to meet you — as you are.

And as Pope Leo XIV reminds us, He draws us with the love that comes from His heart.

In that encounter, something shifts. A new horizon opens. And the joy of the Resurrection begins to take root — a joy for everyone. Everyone, everyone, everyone.

As we go through this retreat, you might like to have a pen and journal with you at the beginning of each prayer. As you listen, write down anything that touches you — a word from the Gospel, a thought, an image… something you don’t want to forget.

In this retreat, we have four short prayer sessions. Each one is a step along the road to Emmaus. Each one a way of noticing how Jesus comes close.

What will you find here?

Maybe just this: you are already on a journey. And Christ is already walking with you.

Where is this road leading? And what might you discover along the way?

That remains to be seen…