My great hope

When I first heard that Jorge Bergoglio had been declared Pope, I immediately looked him up on my Conclave Android app and my eyes were quickly drawn to the sentence which said that in Argentina he had been the Ordinary for Eastern-rite Catholics without an Ordinary of their own rite.

I was hopeful that, given this background, his pontificate would be particularly sensitive to the the Christian East. I have not been disappointed.

FrancisBartholomew

Even in these first few months that he has been Pope, both East and West have made gestures of friendship, building on the great work of their predecessors. Inspired by this, I started to consider what I could do.

As I was thinking about this, I remembered an article I had read over at Ramblings of a Byzantine Catholic where it said that the East and West remain divided “because our love has grown cold”. So, if that’s the case, what could I do to nurture and express love for our Orthodox brethren?

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Catholics Come Home: Part 5

Today I continue the “Catholics Come Home” series which began a few days ago. Today the evangelization suggestions focus around parish life…

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10. Your parish
It’s important to support and build up your parish home. It is to your parish that you will be inviting people. Just as you would prepare your home if you had people coming over to visit, you should help make your parish a vibrant and welcoming place.

“As I have loved you, so you also should love one another. This is how all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another – John 13:34-35

Serve your parish in whatever way you think appropriate. I’d invite you to get creative! Think about what you love and then consider how this could this be used for the glory of God and for drawing people to Jesus and His Church. For example, do you love board games? Organize a board game night!

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Catholics Come Home: Part 4

Yesterday I began giving my suggestions as to what can be done to encourage those who have left the Catholic Church to return home. Today I would like to pick this back up again…

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5. Don’t be a Ninja Catholic
The ninjas of Japan were known for their stealth, their ability to go unnoticed. In fact, there were many legends circulated that they could even make themselves invisible. Don’t imitate ninjas in this regard!

What do I mean by this? Don’t be ashamed to be identified as Catholic. It may be as simple as praying before meals, wearing a cross or talking with your friends about parish life.

“Let your light so shine before men…” – Matthew 5:16

 How will someone ask you about your faith if they don’t even know you’re a Christian?!

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Catholics Come Home: Part 3

Over the last two days I have briefly shared a portion of my faith journey. During this retelling I have particularly focussed upon my ecclesiastical wanderings, mentioning some of the things which pushed me away from some congregations and drew me towards others.

As I mentioned in the initial post, this blog series was originally a talk I gave at my parish called “Catholics Come Home”. As part of my preparation I spent quite some time on the Internet reading the stories of those who had left the Catholic Church. It was a heartbreaking experience. A large number of the stories I read echoed my own. Many of the sentiments expressed were also very similar. It became clear that, more often than not, the reason someone leaves the Catholic Church is because of lack of pastoral care, rather than doctrine.

In the accounts I read, there were many complaints about the welcome experienced when attending a Catholic parish (or rather, the distinct absence thereof). Many stories were told of abysmal music and of incoherent, boring preaching. There were laments concerning the lack of community and the lack of ongoing Christian formation. There were also unfortunately quite a few incidents described where people felt poorly treated by priests, catechists and other parish staff. Careless words can cut extremely deep and have serious consequences..

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Free San Diego Music Event!

Live in San Diego? Like Music? Love free stuff? Well, do I have the perfect things for you as the the Love Good Music Tour is coming to Pacific Beach…

Music Tour

The line-up based out of Nashville, TN, the capital of music (not just country) is one group of talented artists NO one will want to miss!  Doors open at 7pm and the concert starts at 7:30pm. You’ll even be able to meet the artists after the show. Everyone is welcome, please bring your family and friends 🙂

Friday, July 19th, 2013x
St. Brigid Parish Hall, 4375 Cass Street, San Diego, CA 92109

For more information, please see Mysterium Records or contact John at lovegoodmusicsandiego@gmail.com.

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