|
Office of Parish Life: 'Come and See' Newsletter
Vol V, Issue 1, Spring 2005
Faith Sharing Conference Fosters Communal Spirituality
Rev. Ronald Rolheiser, OMI, national speaker and international author, will be the keynoter for the 2005 Annual Conference of the National Alliance of Parishes Restructuring into Communities (NAPRC) at St. Charles Borromeo in Cinnaminson held from Thursday, July 28 to Saturday, July 30. Father Rolheiser’s two keynote presentations on Saturday will develop the conference theme of Cultivating a Communal Spirituality for Parish: Planting the Seeds, Tending the Soil.
Eleven workshops examine the process and necessary nutrients for growing a bountiful communal spirituality. Faith sharing experiences then connect process and nutrients with everyday life for outreach and evangelization.
The full conference registration fee is $230 before April 1, $245 after April 1, $235 for groups of 3 or more. The Saturday only registration includes the two presentations of Father Rolheiser, a choice of one of five designated workshops and Mass. The Saturday registration is $100 with lunch or $120 with lunch and the closing banquet.
The NAPRC Website: www.naprc.faithweb.com provides the conference program, workshop speakers and schedule and has the necessary details for completing and mailing your registration. A confirmation letter will be sent upon receipt of your registration. The registration deadline is July 1, 2005. If you have no access to Internet, call Sr. Jean Belli, SSJ at 856-829-3322 x 112 for a conference brochure.
Eucharist: Source and Summit...Stimulates New Hungers in Willingboro
Jim and Ann Connolly, parishioners at Corpus Christi Church in Willingboro, invited four couples who like themselves are extraordinary ministers of the Eucharist to a new six week Lenten faith sharing resource, Eucharist: Source and Summit of Life and Mission of the Church. By the third week, they were excited about faith sharing and had already gained a deepened love of the Eucharistic celebration. Several members’ shared their experience: “It is helping me to participate more fully in each phase of the Mass, especially the Liturgy of the Word and the Liturgy of the Eucharist.” “I am now reading the Sunday Scriptures before going to Mass so I can listen better with open ears and open heart.” “Sharing our faith with one another weekly is helping me grow spiritually as we learn from one another.” “I am realizing that the Mass is indeed the source where my hunger and thirst for Jesus is satisfied.”
Art Younglove, also from Corpus Christi, facilitates ten parishioners who have met since l998. The group laid aside their regular use of Quest and turned to Eucharist: Source and Summit. The fervor of faith sharing soared and energized the entire group after only two meetings. They meet twice a month and plan to complete the Source and Summit in May.
Nanci Bachman and Nancy Ridell from Church of St. David the King, West Windsor moved into a parish based presentation of the Eucharist: Source and Summit. They included the Choir, a teaching and a faith sharing time. The Holy Spirit surprised them when over one hundred people showed up and continue to participate in the one hour format.
Several lessons emerge from these three communities and their involvement with Eucharist: Source and Summit. The Eucharist draws out the depth of our faith easily as it is so central to our beliefs. New and older faith sharing groups quickly move into the spirit of faith sharing and find new delights in doing so. Parishioners are rediscovering family and commitment in keeping with the vision that the Holy Father has for the year of the Eucharist. The new publication is a gift for the Year of the Eucharist.
The Eucharist: Source and Summit is suitable for any liturgical season. Consider introducing it before October 2005, the end of the Year of the Eucharist. For further information, go to the website at www.yearofeucharist.com or call Michel Bawiec at Liturgical Publications, Inc., 800-950-9952- x2458 or email her at mbawiec@4lpl.com.
Still Need More Resources?
Resources for Faith Sharing Communities, Fall 2005 is now available through the mail and on the Diocesan website below. Numerous faith sharing and scriptural resources are listed along with website links and reference books. New to the manual is a bibliography on evangelization.
Don't have Acrobat Reader? Click the image below to download the program.
Spring Workshops for Facilitators and Bible Beginners
Two workshops offered at the Pastoral Center will enhance facilitator skills and assist any experienced faith sharing member to assume facilitator responsibilities.
Want to Sharpen Your Facilitating Skills for Faith Sharing? offers both stand alone workshops or a comprehensive series to enrich and move a group into deeper faith sharing with seven meetings between April and December.
Need a Boost to your Faith Sharing Skills? requires three Saturday sessions from 9:30 to 2:00pm on May 21, June 4 and 18 and offers in-depth presentation of group dynamics, the preparation for meetings and the use of facilitating skills to experience the richness of faith sharing. Details were sent to your parish coordinator, but are also available on www.dioceseoftrenton.org/spiritual/ILEM.asp or contact our office as directed at the end of the newsletter.
Ready to Dust Off your Bible?
Ready to Dust Off Your Bible? is a basic orientation to the Bible, not a study. The presenter, Bob Bursley, Coordinator, Office of Parish Life, Small Christian Community Ministry will provide an introduction to the scriptures for prayer and living the Word of God. Other topics include: what the bible says about itself, a look at the books of the bible, available translations of the bible and a method of praying with the scriptures.
This workshop is scheduled at Sacred Heart Church in Mount Holly on Monday, April 18 from 7:00pm to 9:30pm. The workshop will also be presented a second time at Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Maple Shade on Thursday April 21 in the Church after morning Mass from 9:30am to 11:00am and again in the evening in the Pope John Room from 7:00pm – 9:00pm . Please call in your registration as directed at the bottom of the Newsletter.
Creating Community
St Anthony of Padua in Red Bank will host a facilitator training workshop Creating Community on Thursday, April 28 from 7:00pm to 9:00pm. Sr. Rita Woehlcke, SSJ will be the trainer and will provide a refresher on facilitator skills, a process for adapting new resource materials for faith sharing and innovations in faith sharing. Please call in your registration to Juliet Cozzi at 732-741-6842 or JoAnn D’Apolito at 732-842-8332 or as indicated at the bottom of the Newsletter.
Contact Us:
To arrange a parish visit or for more information about Small Christian Communities in the Diocese of Trenton contact-
Office of Parish Life
Small Christian Community Ministry
Coordinator: Bob Bursley
Phone: 609-406-7400 ext. 5623
Fax: 609-406-7415
E-mail: rbursl@dioceseoftrenton.org
|
