LIFELINE: A Night of Mass, Community and Adoration at Cal State San Bernardino
By Joe Bedard
A lifeline on a Saturday night
SAN BERNARDINO — On the evening of October 17, college students and young adults from across the region filled the Bishop Barnes Newman Center at Cal State San Bernardino for LIFELINE.
The night was hosted by NET Ministries, in collaboration with SBYoungCatholics and SBVOC, the Diocese of San Bernardino's Office of Vocations. It moved in four parts: Mass, time together as a community, a talk, and an hour before the Lord in adoration and worship.
“Lifeline is an encounter with Jesus Christ and an experience of true community within the Church,” said Michael Donaldson, western director for NET Ministries. “Each evening includes Mass, a speaker, praise and worship, and Adoration.”
The name fit. For young adults balancing classes, jobs and the questions that come with this season of life, a night like this is not an extra. It is something to hold onto.
It began at the altar
The night opened where every Catholic gathering should: with the Eucharist. Father Arinze celebrated Mass for the young adults gathered at the Newman Center.
Starting with Mass set the order of everything that followed. Before anyone spoke, before anyone sang, the community gathered around the altar and received the Lord. The rest of the night flowed from there.
Faith shared at the table
After Mass came community time. College students and young adults who arrived as strangers had the chance to meet, talk and share where they are in their faith.
It is easy to underestimate this part of the night. But for many young adults, faith can feel like something practiced alone. Community time is a reminder that it was never meant to be. The Church is a family, and families need time at the table together.
A word for this season of life
Francis Cabildo then gave the night's talk, speaking directly to the college students and young adults in the room.
Francis spoke about forgiveness and where it begins: with ourselves. In times of doubt and fear, he said, it is easy to fall into darkness. He reminded the room that healing starts with forgiving yourself first.
A talk like this does its best work after the night ends: in the car ride home, in a dorm room, in the next decision about how to spend a Sunday morning.
Before the Lord
The night ended the way it began, with Christ at the center. The Blessed Sacrament was exposed for adoration, and Seen and Heard led the room in worship.
After Mass, conversation and a talk, this was the quiet heart of the night. Young adults knelt, sang, prayed and simply sat in the presence of the Lord. No one had to say anything. They only had to show up and let him look at them.
For some, it may have been their first time in adoration. For others, it was a return to a habit they had let slip. Either way, it was the same invitation: come and stay awhile.
The room filled with voices as everyone sang along with Seen and Heard. It was a moment of pure self-giving, all for the glory and worship of our King.
For Donaldson, that was the most striking part of the evening.
“One thing that deeply impressed me was how the Eucharist brought together young adults of every age and background,” he said. “Rooted in Christ's presence, they were united by the same mission: to know Jesus and love Jesus.”
He described watching the room as “pure joy and awe.”
“Witnessing young adults spending a Saturday evening with friends and Jesus is such a powerful testimony that our Lord is transforming lives,” he said. “I loved seeing the Holy Spirit moving through young adults.”
Why nights like this matter
College and the years right after it are when many young Catholics decide whether their faith will be their own. Nights like LIFELINE give them a place to make that decision surrounded by others asking the same questions.
Donaldson sees the biggest obstacle clearly. “One of the greatest challenges college students face in following Christ and living out the Gospel today is finding balance amid the demands of daily life,” he said.
Many young adults, he explained, feel stretched thin keeping up with family, academics, friendships, work and extracurricular commitments. “It can be difficult to intentionally create space for the Lord and recognize His presence in each area of life,” he said. “As a result, faith can easily become one more item on an already overwhelming schedule rather than the foundation that gives meaning and direction to it.”
LIFELINE is an answer to that problem: one evening set aside, not as another obligation, but as the foundation everything else rests on.
Nights like this are also where vocations take root. Every priest, religious sister and faithful married couple was once a young adult trying to figure out what God was asking. Many first heard that question in a chapel, at a Newman Center, on a night like this one.
Donaldson also thanked Archie LaSalle and Molina Erb of the Diocese of San Bernardino's Vocations and Young Catholics offices for their partnership in making the event happen. Thanks as well to Father Arinze, Francis Cabildo and Seen and Heard for leading the night, and to the Bishop Barnes Newman Center for opening its doors.
To stay connected and hear about the next gathering, follow SBYoungCatholics and SBVOC. Bring a friend. There is room for both of you.