In Phase II of Go Make Disciples, our priest, Fr. Savio Yerasani invited his parishes, St. John the Baptist in Montello and Good Shepherd in Westfield, to consider “The Mission Cross”.
The project consists of a large wooden cross with 72 smaller (palm-sized) wooden crosses hung throughout the front of the large cross.
You may recall the Gospel of Luke 10: 1-2: After this the Lord appointed seventy[-two] others whom he sent ahead of him in pairs to every town and place he intended to visit. He said to them, “The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few; so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest.”
Praying for those who have strayed
While the number 72 is symbolic, the mission was for each of us to consider those in our faith lives who have strayed from the flock, and for whatever reason, no longer actively practice their faith.
We began by praying that the Lord would give us the desire to take up this mission.
As the large wooden crosses stood in our sanctuaries, we were touched by the number of missing crosses each week; they now stand empty.
We are interceding in prayer for spouses, parents, adult children, grandchildren, students in faith formation, past active parishioners, co-workers, and neighbors.
There is a wonderful article in the commentary from the National Catholic Register from November of 2019.
It is about praying someone’s way back to the faith by Fr. Roger J Landry.
He cited the New Testament with reminders of how Jesus himself healed on behalf of another’s petition and that we should always pray with confidence.
“First, so that our prayer doesn’t get reduced simply to prayer of petition, which can narrow our relationship with God, we should exercise all five different forms of prayer. We should praise and bless God for how lovable and merciful he is. We should thank him for his saving will, patience, fatherly solicitude, and for sending his Son and the Holy Spirit to make conversion possible. We should ask his forgiveness for all those sins — ours and others’ — that have led those we care about to turn away from the faith. We should make petition for ourselves, to grow in patience and hope as we pray perseveringly and seek to become an instrument of the Holy Spirit. Finally, we should make intercession for our lost sheep, that God will have mercy on them and perhaps send someone who can reach them at the depth God wants to and bring them home. Our intercession should be simple and straightforward: ‘Lord, the one that you love needs your help.’”
Amen.
Mission events
Throughout the coming months, we have begun to plan for “Mission Cross” events.
They include evenings of invitation to gather in order to build relationships, to hear testimonies, and to share how their mission cross has touched someone in their life.
Our beautiful world is suffering. There are wars around the world. Our children aren’t safe in schools or even walking down the street. Mental illness in our world is being ignored. Respect for our fellow man has become meaningless. The obligation to attend Mass has become unimportant. The list goes on.
God acts in our lives, we have only to pray, to receive the Eucharist, to accept the healing graces given in Reconciliation, and to surrender and listen for the voice of our Savior.