FORGE Retreat helps strengthen brotherhood for Seton boys

Participants at the FORGE Retreat give a thumbs up before going into a small-group session Jan. 19. (Gabe Acosta/The Sentinel)

FORGE Retreat director Mr. David Rees smiles in the cafeteria at the beginning of the retreat Jan. 19. (Gabe Acosta/The Sentinel)

By Matthieu Pangan ’25
Jan. 24, 2024

The Seton boys’ community came together to learn more about their faith through a group retreat called FORGE Jan. 19.

Established several years ago under former Seton teacher Mr. Stephen Ryan, its purpose is to reinvigorate the relationships and camaraderie among the Seton male students. Additionally, the retreat is student-led. This year, it focused on the charism of courage.

The meaning of FORGE is to be “Forged in Fire” inspired by Proverbs 27:17: “As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens one another.” This emphasizes the importance of strengthening one’s community with one another, said retreat director Mr. David Rees. The purpose of this retreat is to grow in relationships with God and among the Seton under- and upperclassmen.

The retreat studied courage by focusing on Matthew’s Gospel account of Peter walking on water towards Jesus. Teens can apply the virtue of courage by trying new hobbies, speaking up for the unheard, taking an initiative to improve oneself emotionally, physically and spiritually, etc.

“It was a rare opportunity to interact with the younger and older students at Seton,” said FORGE student leader, Junior Lukas Long Garcia. “Getting to know more about them was what stood out most to me.”

Many students found the retreat engaging because of the number of group activities and learning more about the different people at their school community.

“FORGE taught me that retreats can actually be fun,” said Lukas. “Interacting with the younger kids was cool and exciting.”

FORGE offered upperclassmen a rare opportunity to fully interact with their younger peers. While retreats like Kairos are limited to upperclassmen, FORGE helps especially freshmen, integrating them into the Seton brotherhood.

“FORGE introduced me to new people that I usually don’t see here at Seton,” said Freshman Ryan Manolo Cepeda.

FORGE offers students at Seton a very special and unique opportunity to learn more about their faith.

“There can never be too many spiritual opportunities,” said Mr. Rees.