“Petra was a great time! It was a very intimate and comfortable setting. There were great speakers who helped a lot, and I especially got a lot out of the relationship talk. Highlight for me: a group of cowboys walking through our meeting room saying nothing but one word: 'howdy.' You had to be there!”
—K., Petra Retreat participant
Petra (πετρα) is a Greek word meaning “rock.” 1 Peter 2:4-5 declares, “As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” Peter here describes the community of believers as a spiritual house built upon the cornerstone Jesus Christ. Our Lord himself uses the same imagery to describe those who follow his word (Matthew 7:24). This is the vision of the Petra ministry: a community of young adults standing on the rock of Jesus.
Petra is a diocesan ministry founded and led by young adults to serve young adults. Built to meet the need for an organized ministry to connect adults approximately 18-25 years old—college/graduate students, young workers, and others who are may even be still finding their way. Its centerpiece is an annual summer retreat incorporating Biblical teaching and corporate recreation. The themes and topics vary from year to year, but the purpose stays teh same: the building up of young adults from across our diocese as the living stones of a spiritual house, built upon the cornerstone of Jesus Christ.
You can read a recap of the 2022 retreat here.
Our next retreat will run from Thursday, May 18 through Sunday, May 21, 2023, at Camp Lake Swan, and costs $100.