What is the Kingdom?
For the past year, discovering the Kingdom has been a mission like no other at Mater Ecclesiae College. What is it? What does it mean? How can we extend it?
This October, the quest took on a creative twist: the Kingdom became reality.
During fall break – what we fondly call our ‘weekend of rest’ – we decided to help each other experience the Kingdom.
The weekend opened with an experience of the Kingdom as communion.
After classes on Friday morning, we gathered in the student lounge for lunch. Pulling the couches and tables into a large circle, we created the favorite set up for the rest of the weekend. Throughout the meals, we shared experiences from recent trips, graces we had received from God, looked at pictures, and told funny stories. The moments deepened our friendships and brought us closer together.
What is a Kingdom without battles? There is always an enemy and the Kingdom must be protected.
On Friday afternoon, we had a great experience of defending the Kingdom: Capture the flag with paint-filled water balloons!
Divided into two teams and decked out in team colors, neon yellow and royal blue, we went to the field in our backyard. Forts, obstacles, and all the paint balloons we had spent hours filling waited for us. We had to protect the flags that hid in our forts at all costs. And so the games began! Both sides fought valiantly on the battle field and each team came out with a victory.
“The game reminded me of spiritual warfare,” said my classmate Amelia Hoover.
The Gospel says that the Kingdom is a treasure that must be found (Mt.13:44).
After a restful morning spent making crafts and baking, we spent Saturday afternoon searching for the Kingdom.
After splitting into three teams, we hopped into minivans and drove to the nearby shopping center. With only an hour and a half time limit, we rushed to complete a scavenger hunt filled with challenges that had us take pictures in the gazebo, choose accessories that display our personalities, and find food that matches the color of our eyes. The scavenger hunt helped me see that we are not alone in our search for the Kingdom, but no one can find it for us; it is a very personal treasure.
If the Kingdom is the treasure hidden in the field, then it must be worth fighting for.
While we already had the chance to defend the Kingdom, we trained to fight for the Kingdom on Sunday. Inspired by American Ninja Warrior, my classmate Isabel Jamicky set up a timed obstacle course. We called it Warrior Princess – I couldn’t help feeling like the Disney princess Mulan.
The obstacle course had each contestant jump over hurdles, push tires, army-crawl, and run across narrow beams. While some weaved through the obstacles with their personal ‘princess’ style, others took on the challenge as warriors.
The activity reminded us that while we may be Princesses of the King, we also have a mission to extend His Kingdom.
We finished our weekend with a dinner by candlelight, a reminder of a banquet hall. Many of us shared our reflections and experiences of the Kingdom.
Victoria O’Donnell, a junior at MEC, told me that she had fun making the concept of Kingdom an experience that we shared to together after talking about it so often.
“Over all, the weekend helped us bond in ways that we had never bonded before,” Victoria said. “We got to play in the Kingdom and help bring about the Kingdom, because God’s Kingdom is joy and communion, it is something you work for and reap the rewards of.”
