A thanksgiving Eucharist was celebrated on September 20, 2025, marking the centenary of the inauguration of the San Alfonso Retreat House in Long Branch, NJ 07740, United States of America. The celebration was presided over by His Eminence Cardinal Joseph W. Tobin, C.Ss.R., Archbishop of Newark.
In his homily, Cardinal Tobin reflected on the meaning of a spiritual retreat, how it helps one grow in faith, and how the Redemptorists, since the Congregation’s founding, have been able to help the faithful better experience their spiritual retreat.
The Redemptorist Cardinal asked those present to remember the life of Jesus, and then said: “I did not live in the time of Jesus, and therefore it is difficult to understand how faith could have grown in that time. In fact, today we live in another world, surrounded by many things that affect our minds and our way of life; but our Congregation, the Cardinal said, offers only four words to guide this way of living the faith: Copiosa Apud eum Redemptio, in him we have abundant redemption. This way of understanding redemption comes to us from St. Alphonsus and we can find it in our spiritual and pastoral tradition. For this reason, we need to listen to the voice of God in the darkness of this world. Only in this way can we understand that our soul seeks the Lord. He alone is our hope. To be able to listen to the Lord, we need help, and our everyday surroundings are not always the right ones. There are many people who live in the city and have never seen the sun rise from the sea, like it can be done in this Sant’Alfonso Retreat House. That’s why here you can discover the experience of God, of God’s love.
Everyone has a very special experience of God.
The cardinal, then, to conclude his homily, recalled that when the bishops of the United States had to face a very serious problem together, they asked Pope Francis for advice, and the Holy Father said: go on a spiritual retreat!
Some important data from these 100 years:
The retreat house was opened in 1922, when the Redemptorists purchased a Victorian house as a summer residence for the Redemptorist community.
From the very beginning, retreat guests were always welcome. The first official retreat was held here in September 1925. The following year, 240 retreatants came to the retreat house.
The Redemptorists have played a significant role in preaching retreats in this part of the United States. By 1927, there were already 398. Today, over 12,000 retreatants come to the San Alfonso Retreat House each year.
The celebration was broadcast on YouTube from St. Michael’s Church, as you can see at this link.
It was a wonderful day to honor the rich history of San Alfonso throughout these years. We ask for your prayers that the retreat ministry will continue to be blessed in the years to come!
https://www.sanalfonsoretreats.org/
