This week:
"A parish in the Diocese of Lansing offers easy and accessible entry points for unbelievers to encounter Jesus Christ."
Realign Resources for Mission Principle 4.5
From Deb Amato,
Chief of Staff, Diocese of Lansing
July 1, 2021
Feast of Saint Junipero Serra OFM
Dear Friend,
Happy Feast of Saint Junipero Serra! The 18th century Franciscan missionary is an inspiring saintly example of the fourth pillar of the Realign Resources for Mission vision: “A parish in the Diocese of Lansing seeks the lost and serves the poor”.
Saint Junipero was one among hundreds of Franciscans who were exemplary in serving the poor and giving the downtrodden their rightful dignity as children of God. Motivated by the love of Jesus Christ, he made heroic sacrifices to protect the indigenous people of California from their Spanish conquerors including walking all the way to Mexico City and back to petition the Spanish Viceroy for their legal safety. It is no wonder that Pope Francis chose to canonize him in 2015 upon his Papal Visit to the United States.
It is this apostolic fire that our Realign Resources for Mission process hopes to help to enkindle across the Diocese of Lansing. So, what’s the latest from Realign Resources for Mission:
- Yesterday was the deadline for our priests to give their responses to the draft models for each area of the diocese presented to them at their gathering in Brighton last month with Bishop Boyea. This month we’ll host a meeting with the deacons of the diocese too.
- Last week our Director of the Office of New Evangelization, Craig Pohl, hosted a feedback session via Zoom with lay parish staff in order to get further feedback from them following their gathering in Brighton last month. These Zoom meetings will continue bi-weekly for the foreseeable future.
- Meanwhile, the Realign Resources for Mission committee next meets on the evening of Monday, July 19. It’s at that meeting we’ll review the feedback from clergy and lay staff. We’ll then work on redrafting our proposals based upon that feedback. We’ll then bring those proposals back to you in a series of regional meetings in the coming months. We’ll also attempt to get dates in the calendar for those gatherings at that July 19 meeting.
In the meantime, I hope you enjoy this week’s Realign Resources for Mission update. Read, watch and, most importantly, pray. Saint Junipero Serra, pray for us!
Yours in Christ,
Deb Amato,
Chief of Staff,
Diocese of Lansing
By
Sandy Shaker,
Director of the Right of Christian Initiation of Adults,
Saint John the Evangelist, Fenton
"A parish in the Diocese of Lansing offers easy and accessible entry points for unbelievers to encounter Jesus Christ."
Realign Resources for Mission Principle 4.5
Dear Friend,
"I baptize you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.”
We all recognize these spoken words the priest or deacon prays as holy water is poured over heads and original sin is washed away and we are marked for Christ and anointed for a mission on earth.
Our mission is to be faithful to the Spirit. To live our lives with the purpose that God gave each of us when He made us in His image and likeness and that is to proclaim Christ and carry the Church forward.
Yes, I agree, this is a mightily profound assignment but, I must confess, I absolutely love sharing the Gospel.
Photo: Sandy Shaker, Director of the Right of Christian Initiation of Adults, Saint John the Evangelist, Fenton
Many years ago, my husband and I, along with our friends, were sitting in a stadium waiting for a concert to start. I remember scanning the mass of people in their seats waiting for the performer to step out on the runway and I will never forget what I was thinking: “I wish I could step out on the runway and tell this crowd about Jesus!”
God has blessed my life and, as the Director of the RCIA Program at Saint John the Evangelist in Fenton, my runway is the classroom and my heart spills over as I have the privilege of teaching and learning with my students.
As we go out on our mission of carrying the Gospel we must remember to pray first. We must lift our hearts to the Lord and receive the Holy Eucharist so we are equipped for our task at hand. Lay your prayers right on the altar at the Offertory of the Mass. God does wonders with these offerings. I am here to testify to that!
Mary prayed the Magnificat, “My soul magnifies the greatness of the Lord.” Mary’s soul perfectly received God and echoes to the world what she hears. Remember her emptiness? It makes for a perfect echo. Our souls were made to magnify God and echo His glory for the world to hear. Theotokos. Bearer of God.
That means we need to empty things from our life and receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation often so our souls can echo as Mary’s soul did.
We are our neighbors (co-workers, friends, and relatives) Bible which they are constantly reading in us. Do they witness our joy, self-control, patience and love? Joy is like a magnet. It will draw people to the Christ in you.
As lay people, the world is our arena. We do not wear the collar that identifies us as belonging to Christ. This can give us an advantage in the world. We look like everyone else and that might make us more approachable.
The prophet Ezekiel’s mission was to be a “watchman” over the people. He was to rouse the people to turn from evil and stay good for the course. What lesson can we learn from this? “To call others to holiness is to call ourselves to holiness as well,” as Mary Katharine Deeley says in her book Mothers, Lovers, Priests, Prophets, and Kings.
All the laity as a community, and each one according to his ability, must nourish the world with spiritual fruits. In a sentence, “Christians must be to the world what the soul is to the body.” (Lumen Gentium 38)
Image: Jesus heals the Paralytic, Illustration by Harold Copping (1863-1932),
So, what are ways to implement our seardch for the lost and to hear and serve the cry of the poor? Here’s five suggestions:
1. Call your parishioners: Yes, it is a huge task, but they are so grateful for your call and your nudge to come back home. Our Pastor, Father Robert Copeland, had a sanctuary built in our parking lot. It is equipped with a large screen where Mass is live-streamed for our parishioners who are not ready, due to health concerns, to join us at the altar in the church. Our Eucharistic Ministers have worked through snow, sleet, rain and sunshine bringing Jesus in the Holy Eucharist to them in their cars. Many receive Jesus with tears in their eye. It has been a total blessing for those receiving and for those serving.
2. Weddings: Look for windows of opportunities whenever you attend a wedding. When I run our wedding rehearsals, I have found this to be an area where non-Catholics have questions about our faith. Why do you bow at the altar? Why do you light candles? Can we receive Holy Communion? We all attend weddings. God places opportunities in our paths every day. Take courage, and be an Ezekiel for those in your path. Share with others how God is working in your lives. Do you have a friend or relative marrying a non-Catholic? Share with them your faith story. Maybe they would be interested to take a look at your RCIA Program to learn about the Catholic faith. RCIA is my passion and where I feel the breath of God!
3. Confirmation: Are there adults in your parish who have not received the Sacrament of Confirmation? Seek them out and help them by becoming their sponsor.
4. Convalidating Marriages: Write articles in your bulletin explaining what steps are needed for a marriage to be convalidated. Always reach out, people are just waiting for your hands to grab them and say, “together we can do this.”
5. Funerals: You often hear at funerals, “I have not been in Church for years.”
These words are a cry from the lost and poor, no matter how well they are dressed. The problem is, we often miss this as a golden opportunity to serve Our Lord, because we feel we do not know what to say. Remember Moses telling God, “Lord I have never been eloquent, I am slow of speech and tongue.” God’s answer to Moses was, “It is I who will assist you in speaking and will teach you what you are to say.” Trust God and let God use you to reach out to others. Every time we do this we are receiving God’s grace and sharing our Charism with others. “For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save what was lost,” (Luke 19:10)
Lord, Our Heavenly Father, we give you thanks and praise. We give lift up our hearts and minds to you and ask that you fill us to the brim with your Holy Spirit as we search and seek those who are lost, those who are poor and suffering. We are your servants Lord, we want to be Light for others and bring them to your Son, Jesus Christ. Amen.
Yours in Christ,
Sandy Shaker,
Director of RCIA,
Saint John the Evangelist, Fenton
Watch: Watch this week's video update as Deb Amato, Chief of Staff for the Diocese of Lansing, gives a brief reflection upon this week's Realign Resources for Mission principle: "A parish in the Diocese of Lansing offers easy and accessible entry points for unbelievers to encounter Jesus Christ."
Deb also explains some of the work of the Realign Resources for Mission committee and looks ahead to some key meetings that will take place in the weeks and months to come.
This Week's Friday Prayer Intention:
Please pray that Mary, Mother of God and our mother too, casts her protective veil around Saint Vincent Catholic Charities of Lansing in their work with vulnerable young people through adoption, foster care, and children's home. Amen.
Guidelines for Friday Prayer:
Prayer: At three o’clock each Friday afternoon pray the Sorrowful Mysteries of the Holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary. To help with prayer, Eucharistic Adoration from Saint Mary Cathedral in Lansing will be live-streamed on YouTube and Facebook. If you can’t manage to pray at 3pm? Just say the Holy Rosary whenever you can.
Fasting: The present norms for fasting suggest that we eat no more than one full meal, as well as two smaller meals that together are not equal to a full meal. It is also permissible to attempt a strict fast. A penitent’s age and health should always be taken into consideration before fasting.
Almsgiving: Giving alms is a “work of justice pleasing to God” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, no. 2462). Hence, each Friday we should donate money or goods to the poor or perform another act of charity. Let’s not reach sundown on a Friday without having poured out some of the content of our heart or our wallet or both during the day.