Anyone who took the time at Mass and/or at home to read and reflect on the passages from the Acts of the Apostles that are provided by the Church throughout the Easter Season could easily conclude that the mission of the early Church was to EVANGELIZE with the Good News of Jesus Christ, crucified and risen. Once they had "made" new Christians through the waters of Baptism and the gift of the Holy Spirit, they had to set up the structure that would enable personal growth and community growth for the future. We see some of that happening as we read the letters of St. Paul to the Christian communities he founded and visted.
One of the challenges of the Church has always been to reach out to those who, for various reasons, have waned in the practice of the faith. One of the tools to do this has been parish missions like the one we are going to have coming up on May 9-12 led by Fr. Ken Geraci with the order of the Father's of Mercy. The theme of this mission which will take place in the evening at 6:30 p.m. will be "Why Be Catholic," which hopefully will appeal to practicing Catholics, "fallen away" Catholics, and people who currently do not practice their faith in any church community. I urge you to come for all the nights of the mission (which will conclude on Wednesday, May 12 with Mass and a reception) or whichever nights you can come AND try to get a friend or neighbor to come with you or just come on their own. You know, as well as I do, that we have many Catholics who have left the practice of the Catholic Faith for various reasons. Let's make a real effort to get them to come to the mission to hear Fr. Geraci, be with our community, and hopefully through the power of the Holy Spirit to be led back to the many graces that the Church offers for our journey with and to the Lord. Special blessings await all those who attend the mission! Please come!
One of the challenges of the Church has always been to reach out to those who, for various reasons, have waned in the practice of the faith. One of the tools to do this has been parish missions like the one we are going to have coming up on May 9-12 led by Fr. Ken Geraci with the order of the Father's of Mercy. The theme of this mission which will take place in the evening at 6:30 p.m. will be "Why Be Catholic," which hopefully will appeal to practicing Catholics, "fallen away" Catholics, and people who currently do not practice their faith in any church community. I urge you to come for all the nights of the mission (which will conclude on Wednesday, May 12 with Mass and a reception) or whichever nights you can come AND try to get a friend or neighbor to come with you or just come on their own. You know, as well as I do, that we have many Catholics who have left the practice of the Catholic Faith for various reasons. Let's make a real effort to get them to come to the mission to hear Fr. Geraci, be with our community, and hopefully through the power of the Holy Spirit to be led back to the many graces that the Church offers for our journey with and to the Lord. Special blessings await all those who attend the mission! Please come!