Photo provided by the Holy Cross Mission Center.
Each year, more than 100 people from the U.S. visit an international Holy Cross ministry site as part of an immersion experience. Most of these travelers are students from Holy Cross schools, colleges, and universities; others are adult parishioners or educators. Some immersions can be as short as a week, offering quick flashes of Holy Cross’s ministries as they exist in other cultural and linguistic contexts. Others can last for the entire summer, involving internship responsibilities and a wholesale integration into the rhythms of life in that village or city.
Regardless of their length, many immersion participants frequently ask, “How can I make sure that my time here ‘lives on’ after I return home? What can I do then?” Here are some steps we encourage all travelers to take when they return home.
- Reflect. Dwell on the experiences that you had at Holy Cross missions, paying special attention to moments of encounter with another human being.
- Pray. Share those reflections with the God who is Truth and Love, asking Him to show you how to live in communion with Him and His people that you encountered at a Holy Cross ministry site abroad.
- Share. Share your inspiring stories and memorable moments with family members, friends, and colleagues. This may be for their sake, if they’re interested in learning, but it is equally if not more so for your sake, for your own continued reflection on the way the experience has stayed with you and continues to impact you.
- Live the Mission. This will look different for each of us, but we can say for certain that any encounter with Christ made present in His people is an invitation to be transformed, to live differently, and to love unconditionally in the model of Jesus Christ.
For those looking for more concrete suggestions, or for faculty and staff looking to engage your immersion group through the HCMC’s programmatic offerings, here are some ways to reflect, pray, share your stories, and live the Mission:
- If you are a student, you are invited to participate in the annual Holy Cross Missions Student Essay Contest. Learn more at studentessaycontest.holycrossmissions.org.
- Share your story with your community: Host a panel discussion/presentation about your Holy Cross immersion experiences open to your community members. Such opportunities for sharing may be most appropriate during World Mission Month (October) or Holy Cross Heritage Month (January).
- Establish or join a formalized Twinning Partnership between your community and the Holy Cross ministry you visited. Discover more at twinning.holycrossmissions.org.
- Contact the HCMC to share your story on our digital media platforms or at an HCMC-sponsored event. Email us at hcmc@holycrossmissions.org to explore the possibilities.
Provided by the Holy Cross Mission Center, October 2026
