Abbey Youth Fest

AYF is back for its April 10, 2027 re-boot at St. Joseph Abbey and Seminary College under the theme Made New: of Water and Spirit. Join us!
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Abbey Youth Fest is a Catholic youth ministry event on the grounds of St. Joseph's Abbey and Seminary College which is designed to deepen a teenager's' relationship with God. The day consists of great speakers, entertaining music, and much more. The schedule reaches its climax with the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass and a candlelight adoration after the sun goes down. There are confessions available a

ll day, vendors selling merchandise, numerous vocational groups present, and much more. Visit our website at: abbeyyouthfest.com

This year's theme: Made New - Of Water and Spirit
This year's date: Saturday, April 10, 2027

08/04/2026

Meet our Homilist for the AYF 2027 Vigil Mass, Fr. Andrew Gutierrez!

Abbey Youth Fest has been woven through Fr. Andrew Gutierrez's priestly formation. As a seminarian at Saint Joseph Seminary College, he served on the AYF seminarian steering committee in 2014 and as AYF seminarian chairman in 2015. In 2019, the year of his ordination, he returned as MC. Now, at AYF 2027, he returns home as the homilist for the vigil mass in the afternoon.

A native of Metairie, Fr. Andrew studied psychology at LSU before entering seminary, and was ordained a priest of the Archdiocese of New Orleans in 2019. After four years at St. Catherine of Siena Parish, he joined the formation faculty at Notre Dame Seminary, where he helps shape the next generation of priests while serving as chaplain of Archbishop Rummel High School, his alma mater. The festival that helped form him now welcomes him back to preach.

He can be found here:

Website: https://nds.edu/team-member/reverend-andrew-o-gutierrez-s-t-l/

07/27/2026

The Happiest Nun You'll Ever Meet!

Sister Elfie Del Rosario, FMA, affectionately known as “The Happy Nun,” is a Daughter of Mary Help of Christians (Salesian Sisters of St. John Bosco). Born in Nigeria and raised in the Philippines, she later moved to New Jersey, using her psychology degree to teach children with special needs. Sr. Elfie joined the Salesian Sisters in 2009 and now serves as the vocations director for the eastern U.S. province. Passionate about engaging with youth, she shares encouragement and brings them closer to Jesus and Mary—often with the help of her bubble machine, filled with her signature-scented solution. Learn more at www.happynun.com

07/23/2026

Stirring up trouble on the AYF field along side Fr. Chris Boutin, we have Father-Stephen Gadberry as another one of our MC's for AYF 2027!

Raised on his family's rice and soybean farm in Wynne, Arkansas, Fr. Gadberry enlisted in the U.S. Air Force after high school, serving in Texas, Germany, and Iraq. It was there, far from home, that his childhood faith became something personal, and a quiet, persistent invitation from Christ became impossible to ignore. That invitation led him to Saint Joseph Seminary College, where he studied philosophy, and then to Rome, where he completed his theology studies at the Pontifical Gregorian University.

He was ordained a priest of the Diocese of Little Rock on May 28, 2016. Since then, Fr. Gadberry's ministry has taken him well beyond the parish, onto the obstacle courses of NBC's American Ninja Warrior (yes, in his collar), into the Word on Fire Institute as a fellow of Bishop Robert Barron, and into the gym, where he coaches Cross-Fit and preaches that discipline of body and soul go hand in hand. He's also a hunter, archer, musician. At AYF 2027, Fr. Gadberry returns to the Abbey where his own formation began, proof that God's call can reach a farm boy, an airman, and a Ninja Warrior all in the same man.

You can find him here:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/stephen.gadberry.5
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fatherstephenjgadberry

07/20/2026

We are resurrection people, alleluia is our song, and John Finch will lead us in that song throughout the day at Abbey Youth Fest 2027!

Not only will he lead us in song throughout the day, but John has been instrumental (pun certainly intended ; ) in working with the Abbey Fest Team in planning and shaping this year's comeback event! We want to thank you for everything you have done!

John Finch is a Catholic worship leader and songwriter whose desire is to write and share music that leads people to encounter Jesus. A native of Mandeville, Louisiana, John has spent more than a decade serving the Church by leading worship throughout the Archdiocese of New Orleans, across the United States, and around the world.

As a teenager, John was blessed to experience Abbey Youth Fest, and he is grateful to now return as a musician and serve as part of the festival’s team in 2027. Alongside his travels, he continues to serve faithfully as a worship leader in his local parish and community.

You can find him here:

Website: https://www.johnfinchmusic.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/johnfinchmusic/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/johnfinchmusic/

07/18/2026

Super excited to welcome Dr. Sarah Denny Lorio to the AYF lineup as a keynote speaker (we needed some femininity here)!

Dr. Sarah Denny Lorio, a bioethicist focusing in women’s health and integrated s*x education, holds a PhD in Bioethics from the Pontifical Athenaeum Regina Apostolorum in Rome, Italy. An avid speaker, Dr. Lorio runs a business and hosts a podcast called What Women Are where she integrates philosophy, biology, and theology to answer some of the most pressing questions posed by women and men of the Church today.

Throughout the last 15 years, Dr. Lorio has worked as an ethicist with the National Catholic Bioethics Center, taught at both the university and high school levels, and served as a campus minister at Louisiana State University. Her passion is to empower women through knowledge about the great gift and beauty of their bodies.

Dr. Lorio currently lives in New Orleans, LA with her husband, Alex.

Check her out here: https://www.whatwomenare.com

07/16/2026

Yesterday morning we had the absolute pleasure to join the folks on Catholic Community Media's morning show to talk about Abbey Fest. Figured no better place than while in the Diocese of Baton Rouge, to announce our evening keynote speaker and the man that will lead us in adoration and benediction at the end of the day! Listen to the show here to hear more: https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1BT9v4U7Ce/

07/15/2026

We've got another speaker announcement coming at you live tomorrow morning on Catholic Community Media's Wake UP! Morning Show! Tune in at 7:00 and find out who it is!

https://catholiccommunityradio.org/

07/11/2026

Yesterday, when Fr. Chris Boutin proclaimed in his EMCEE announcement that, “We are a people of the resurrection and alleluia is our song!”, we had to do some research.

Abbey Youth Fest 2027 will be the FIRST to fall outside of the Lenten season—during Eastertide in fact! So in short:

ALLELUIA WILL INDEED BE OUR SONG!

Address

75376 River Road
Saint Benedict, LA
70435

Telephone

+19858672279

Website

http://www.abbeyyouthfest.com/

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