In the privileged work of being a Vocations Director, I have the privilege to see and work with a lot of young people who are getting more involved in the Church thus opening their lives to the truth of the Gospel.
Tag: faith
Focusing on forgiveness this Lent
“Say ‘I’m sorry,’” I remember telling my children when they were toddlers squabbling over toys.
“I’m sorry,” parroted the perpetrator, who sometimes had to repeat it a few times before exhibiting the requisite tone of remorse.
“Now say ‘I forgive you,’” I would tell the victim, who also parroted the phrase without completely understanding its meaning.
For years we have done this in our household, trying to explain to the children the importance of forgiveness. And yet, I myself was an adult before I understood its full meaning.
News in Brief in the Diocese of Madison
Lenten Mission
MADISON — Bishop Donald J. Hying will lead a Lenten Mission at St. Dennis Parish, 505 Dempsey Rd., on Sunday and Monday, March 1 and 2, from 6 to 7:30 p.m. The mission will include prayer, reflection, music, and fellowship. Childcare will be provided for children over age two.
Parish Mission
MADISON — A Parish Mission will be held at St. Peter Parish, 5001 N. Sherman Ave., on “The Importance of the Liturgical Reforms of the Second Vatican Council” with Abbot Marcel Rooney, OSB. An introduction to the mission and a Mass will be held on Sunday, March 1, at 10 a.m. The mission will continue Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, March 4, 5, and 6, from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m.
Trusting Our Father to give us what we need, not what we want
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Often what we want is different from what we need — or what is good for us.
Consider this recent exchange in my household, where we’ve been striving to be more health conscious.
“What would you like me to get at the grocery store?” I asked my husband, my pencil hovering over the grocery list.
New year, new me: the right way
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| Journey with Faith Deacon Lawrence Oparaji |
In November, I visited my uncle in Dallas, Texas, and while I was there, we went to a barbershop to get a haircut.
While waiting for my turn, I overheard a man say to the barber that he was moving to Las Vegas. The barber asked further why he was doing that, and the man simply said, “I want to start the new year and new decade in a new city. You know what I mean — a fresh start?”
Take concrete steps to change
On hearing this, I thought to myself, “sounds great, but it’s not sufficient.” It is a new year and new decade quite right, but what concrete steps are we taking to make whatever change we desire, other than just moving to a new city, like Las Vegas?
Our Faith Stories
STOUGHTON — Our […]
Brighten your own island by the virtue of kindness
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During my childhood, my family spent many summer days on a mile-long island on a lake in southeastern Wisconsin.
Boating, sailing, canoeing, fishing, waterskiing, tubing, and swimming were part of everyday life there. Knot tying, outdoor cooking, handling boats, hauling gear, reading the weather — all of these were a part of learning the value of hard work and gaining a deep appreciation of nature.
Memories
Among my many memories of the island there was someone who loved everyone on it.
Working in an imperfect world
No one disputes that the world is an imperfect place. Don’t get me wrong: there are so many good and beautiful things in this world. And those good and beautiful things far outweigh anything that’s bad or ugly.
‘Our Faith Stories ‘
STOUGHTON — Two […]
Go forth and make disciples!
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When I became a bishop back in 2011, I attended a nine-day conference in Rome for new bishops from all over the world, put on by the Vatican.
The best part of the experience was meeting the other participants, 16 other Americans, 25 from Brazil, and one bishop from Iraq whose predecessor had been murdered by terrorists. The informal conversations were often more interesting than the scheduled talks.
Dealing with declining Church
At lunch on the third day, I sat with a newly appointed bishop from a diocese in the southern Netherlands. He told me that Mass attendance there hovered at about two percent, mostly elderly people; he had no seminarians, so there was no future for the priesthood. It wasn’t so much that the Church had collapsed as that it had evaporated!
I asked him where he was going to start in such a daunting situation. How do you begin when everything seems so hopeless? What he said did not surprise me, but it has stuck with me.