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Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
This weekend, we will be hearing the announcements from
both Men’s and Women’s Christ Renews His Parish Teams #12. They
will speak at all our Masses and will invite those who have not
already made a Christ Renews His Parish weekend to do so this
fall. The men’s weekend is coming up on Sept. 30th
and Oct. 1st.
And the women’s weekend will follow two weeks later on Oct. 14th
and 15th.
It is my sincere hope that if you have not already made a Christ
Renews His Parish Weekend, that you would consider doing so this
fall. The reality is that we have become a “Christ Renews His
Parish” Parish. Nothing has affected this Parish as much as
Christ Renews His Parish. Eventually, we need every adult
member of St. Maria Goretti Parish to make this weekend. Could
this fall possibly be your time? I need each of you to think
and pray about this. If you’ve already made a Christ Renews His
Parish weekend, you know how important this is, and I ask you to
join me in praying for our brothers and sisters who haven’t made
the weekend yet. Christ Renews His Parish changes lives. I am
both proud and honored to say that it has changed my own life.
I first became familiar with Christ Renews His Parish when
I was assigned to Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Parish in the summer of
1992. I was so amazed by the level of commitment and activity
that I saw at that Parish. Some attributed it to their school,
some attributed it to their money and not having to worry about
finances, and some said it was all because of the parish’s
leadership at that time. But it did not take long for me to
recognize that the real power that made Our Lady of Mt. Carmel
such a dynamic parish in the early nineties, was Christ Renews
His Parish. My involvement in Christ Renews His Parish at that
time was minimal. While assigned to Our Lady of Mt. Carmel as
associate pastor, my primary responsibilities as delegated to me
by the pastor, was to work with youth, the youth groups, and the
youth ministers. Pretty much, my only involvement with Christ
Renews His Parish was to help hear Confessions at the Penance
Service on Saturday night. I really didn’t know or understand
the process, how it worked, and the great affect that it was
having on that Parish. When we became an independent Parish,
six years ago last week, and I was named Pastor of our Parish
family, I was somewhat hesitant to begin Christ Renews His
Parish right away. My thinking was, shouldn’t we build a Parish
community first, before we “renew” it? How wrong I was!
Through some great convincing by Gus and Beth Hartauer, we began
Christ Renews His Parish in the fall of 2000 with Men’s and
Women’s Teams #1. I was honored and humbled to be part of Men’s
Team #1. Christ Renews His Parish was the perfect way to build
a new Parish from the very beginning. It brought people
together and helped us to see beyond the surface. Christ Renews
His Parish was much more than a retreat. I had been on hundreds
of retreats all over the world, with some pretty impressive
folks. I know how to like and appreciate a good retreat. But
again, this was something more. This was true Faith-sharing.
This was getting to know God and getting to know others in a way
that I had never experienced before. Christ Renews His Parish
was all about truly building the Kingdom of God one person at a
time. It was an awesome experience! (I’m borrowing a phrase
here from my friend, Chip McLean.) Six years ago I became a
“Christ Renews His Parish” priest. I am proud to say that St.
Maria Goretti is a “Christ Renews His Parish” Parish family. If
YOU haven’t done this amazing weekend yet, WHAT ARE YOU WAITING
FOR? Sign up today. Stop by after Mass this weekend and talk
to the guys and gals from Teams 12. Ask anybody who’s made the
weekend before. You are going to want to do this at some
point. Why not do it now?
The weekends are limited in number. There are other
weekends coming up in the spring. One of the most common things
that I hear people say after they’ve done a Christ Renews His
Parish weekend, is “Why didn’t I do it sooner?” We are all on
God’s time. God will get us there if we cooperate. Of course,
if you are reading this, chances are that you have already done
Christ Renews His Parish. Folks who have done Christ Renews His
Parish are something like ten times more likely to read the
bulletin. Then hand this letter this week to someone who
doesn’t read the bulletin. They could be waiting for the
invitation.
Hey, our prayers and love go with our college students
who taking off this weekend and this next week for colleges and
universities around the country. Don’t forget where home is!
In Christ,
Fr. Kevin
“Love of Heaven is the only way to Heaven.
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