By Jessica Easthope

CORONA — St. Leo’s Viva Cristo Rey (VCR) youth group meets every week for one day in Corona — not to sit in a circle and talk about their faith, but to get to work, putting it into action.

Cleaning out the parish garage isn’t your typical youth group activity, but for Kevin Jara, it’s the kind of job that makes him feel like he’s making a difference.

“After Confirmation, I became somewhat distant. But then, when VCR came, I was interested, and we were learning about God in fun ways and activities,” Jara said. “I think it brought me closer to God and helped me connect with the community.”

The VCR group is made up of young people ages 13 to 20 years old. Before joining, Jara didn’t talk much to anyone.

“I was nervous because I didn’t talk to anyone,” he said. “But over time, I felt a true connection. Like, ‘These are my people.’ ”

Since Father Ernesto Alonso, St. Leo’s parochial vicar, brought the group together last November, every week is something different, whether it’s sitting in silent adoration or visiting the elderly at a nursing home. He said it’s building character and faith.

“We have to encourage them to find different ways to belong to the community, to have this identity and this sense of belonging to Saint Leo’s Church,” Father Alonso said.

As a college sophomore, Lizbhet Grande, a lifelong parishioner of St. Leo’s, is close to aging out of VCR but plans to stay on to help organize and pitch in wherever she can because she feels called to.

“It really makes a big difference when you put yourself to actively helping the community you’ve grown up in,” Grande said. “The youth know there’s a place for them, right? That God is waiting for them.”

Working in a garage isn’t the ideal way for many teens to spend their last days of summer vacation, but Isaias Castillo, 16, said, why not?

“We have a bunch of free time now, so why not just use it all up and have a fun experience?” Castillo said.

They get to build their own future while building up their church and see how Christ can open the door to new experiences.

“I’ve just fallen in love with being able to serve and saying, ‘Hey, God, use me,’” Castillo said. “I think, especially for my age, a bunch of people are just closed off and don’t feel like they have some kind of support. But you have to find Christ to have that kind of support. So it’s been a blessing.”

By Paula Katinas, The Tablet

WILLIAMSBURG — Gerard Connolly’s lifelong dreams are all about to come true in just one night.

The singer-composer, whose work is steeped in his Catholic faith, will get the chance of a lifetime when he presents the world premiere of “Revelation,” a concert featuring songs and poems he wrote based on Scripture passages, at the Opera House at the Emmaus Center in Williamsburg on Friday, Aug. 16 at 7 p.m.

Connolly, 66, a hospital administrator, is a parishioner of Our Lady of Grace Church in Howard Beach and has been writing and performing religious-themed songs for decades.

He performed at World Youth Day in Paris in 1997, and one of his songs, “The Unveiling,” was featured in the televised coverage of Pope Saint John Paul II’s funeral Mass in 2005.

But “Revelation” will mark a turning point for him.

“I feel like all of my life’s work has come together in this piece,” he explained. “It’s all there, everything I believe and everything that’s central to my life.”

“Revelation” is filled with songs depicting passages from the Bible. In a twist, Connolly presents the songs from the perspective of the subjects of Biblical passages so that they are seen as fully human.

Connolly said he put a great deal of thought into each section. The overture, for example, contains seven motifs “because God created the world in six days and on the seventh day, He rested.”

“Revelation” is a family affair for the Connollys. Gerard’s three daughters — Joanna Connolly Pepe and Shannon and Rachael Connolly — will perform in the show, along with other musicians.

At a rehearsal before the show, Pepe described it as a dream come true for the entire family.

“This show is really a lot of prayers answered because my whole family has desired for him and his music to be on a stage and performed,” said Pepe, who is the music director at Our Lady of Victory Church in Floral Park in the Diocese of Rockville Centre. “So this is really the culmination of everything that we have dreamed for my father for so long,”

Pepe said it’s fitting her father’s music is so centered around church teachings.

“What’s so beautiful about the Church is that it’s the original patron of the arts. It’s that first place that artists were allowed to seek fulfillment and a career and the ability to sustain themselves while producing their art,” she added.

Connolly, who grew up in Howard Beach, said he always attended Mass, but it wasn’t until he met his wife Joanne at a charismatic prayer meeting when he was 20 that he became more devoted to his Catholic faith.

“That’s when everything came together for me,” he recalled.

Steve Retas, who is producing “Revelation” and is related to Connolly through marriage, said he came aboard after hearing about Connolly’s ambitious plans for a show and immediately thought of the Emmaus Center. His company, Technical Arts Group, has produced concerts there before.

“It’s overwhelming to do something like this for someone who probably would have never gotten the opportunity to mount a show like this,” Retas said.

Connolly is hoping “Revelation” wasn’t just a one-night event. “I would really want to see it performed in churches and in schools,” he said.

Retas sees “Revelation” as an evangelization tool that can be used to bring people closer to the faith.

“With the world being kind of upside down,” he explained. “I think this would be a great thing for the community to try to evangelize a little bit and see if we can motivate people.”

Whether he’s mounting a big show like “Revelation” or performing in a church, Connolly has a specific goal regarding his music: “I want to convey the gospel through the arts. I want to convey it to people in a fresh way.”

For tickets to “Revelation,” visit: https://www.3leafproductions.com/revelation

By Katie Vasquez

Across the country, more and more people are picking up their paddles and playing pickleball.

More than 13.6 million people played pickleball across the U.S. in 2023, according to the Sports and Fitness Industry Association, a 65% increase from the previous year, which saw 8.9 million players.

The rise in this sport is hitting the courts of Breezy Point, where a resident and parishioner of Blessed Trinity said her Queens community has really picked up on the game.

“There are a few different rules and very weird scoring and very hard scoring to learn, but tennis definitely helps you with the game,” Nies said. “It’s a hand-eye coordination thing. So if you are good at racket sports, you’ll be good at pickleball.”

Throughout the week, 75 people from nearby churches like Blessed Trinity gather together for a few friendly games.

“If somebody says, ‘That’s it, my back,’ then we’re like, ‘Okay, that’s it,'” said Anne Beehler. “The game’s over. And we don’t have a problem with walking away like that, right? We’re not going to the Olympics, let’s put it that way.”

It’s a chance to socialize outside of church.

“It’s a great social sport because you do get to talk,” said Kerrie Florio, a parishioner at Blessed Trinity. “Whereas in Mass, you get to see everybody, but it’s hi and then they leave.”

Though parishioners like Theresa Sullivan say there’s still a bit of faith infused into the game.

“I do try to, like, pray a little bit before I get here, you know, keep me safe,” said Theresa Sullivan. “I have a lot of back issues and am getting old. So I always ask God to bless me with some safety and not to get hurt.”

So far, God has blessed their paddles, allowing them to keep playing the game they love and connect to their church community.

“It’s just a great way to be living. So we feel very blessed.”

They say anyone who wishes to join is more than welcome.