Tag: mission

On
Chris Lee

Parish mission on forgiveness, mercy

PORTAGE — For the first time in a decade, the parishes of St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception in Portage and St. Mary Help of Christians in Briggsville will be hosting a parish mission the evenings of March 5 to 8 in Portage.

Presented by native son, Fr. John Meoska, OSB, the theme for the mission is “Mercy and Faithfulness Have Met” based on Psalm 85:10. Father Meoska’s presentations will focus on the mercy and faithfulness which God shows His people and our call to answer Him in the same way.

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On
Kevin Wondrash

Blessed Sacrament Parish hosts mission featuring relic of St. Jude

MADISON — Blessed Sacrament Parish will host a three-day mission featuring veneration of the arm relic of St. Jude, believed to be the largest relic of an Apostle outside of Rome, Italy.

Fr. Michail Ford, OP, director of the Dominican Shrine of St. Jude Thaddeus in Chicago, will lead the St. Jude Mission of Mercy and Hope from Monday to Wednesday, July 25, 26, and 27, at Blessed Sacrament Church, 2116 Hollister Ave.

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Bishop Robert Barron

Mercy lessons from the woman at the well

I had the enormous privilege recently of addressing English-speaking priests from around the world who had gathered in Rome for a special Jubilee celebration of the Year of Mercy. I met Fathers from the States, Canada, Australia, Latvia, Ghana, Cameroon, Ireland, Nigeria, and many other countries.

During the Communion at the Mass which followed my talk, I saw hundreds of priests in their albs coming to the altar to receive the Lord, and I thought of the passage from the Book of Revelation concerning the white-robed army gathered around the throne of the Lamb.

As a basis for my presentation, I used the wonderful story from the fourth chapter of John’s Gospel concerning Jesus’ conversation with the woman at the well. From this encounter, I derived four principles regarding the divine mercy.

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Kevin Wondrash, Catholic Herald Staff

Love Begins Here’s ‘biggest summer yet’

love begins here
Love Begins Here missionaries help to sort items at the St. Vincent de Paul thrift store in Monroe during a week spent in the area in a previous year (Catholic Herald photo/Kevin Wondrash)

MADISON — It’s almost time for another summer of hundreds of teens doing small things with great love.

This summer marks the eighth of its kind for Love Begins Here (LBH) — an apostolate of the Diocese of Madison Office of Evangelization and Catechesis.

It provides youth with an opportunity to encounter Jesus Christ in a life-changing way through weeklong, local mission trips where they live in community and continue God’s work on earth.

This year at LBH

On June 12, the first group of a total of 600 LBH teens over the course of the summer will make their way to parish number one – Our Lady of the Assumption Parish in Beloit.

It could be a milestone week for LBH, as the program is nearing its 50,000 hours of service to the communities in the diocese.

Leading the teens will be a Core Team of 12, the largest ever for the program — some of whom were LBH teen missionaries themselves in years past.

LBH Mission Director Lindsay Becher calls it “a delight to see that number grow and to watch what they can give back to the missionaries.”

Becher added there is “something nostalgic about having them with us . . . It’s fun to hear the stories that they remember from the earlier days” when the program was smaller and just beginning.

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On
Bishop Robert Barron

Daniel Berrigan and nonviolence

Fr. Daniel Berrigan, SJ, passed away April 30 at the age of 94. Though many younger Catholics might not remember him, Father Berrigan was one of the most provocative and controversial religious figures of his time.

Standing in the tradition of principled non-violence proposed by Mahatma Gandhi, Thomas Merton, Dorothy Day, and others, Berrigan led the charge against America’s involvement in the Vietnam conflict and its on-going participation in the Cold War and the nuclear arms race.

He was most famous, of course, for his leadership of the “Catonsville Nine,” a group of protestors who, in the spring of 1968, broke into a building and burned draft records with homemade napalm. To say that he was, during that tumultuous time in American history, a polarizing figure would be an understatement.

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Cathy Lins, Catholic Herald Correspondent

‘Healing of the Heart’ retreat coming to Durward’s Glen

BARABOO — Fr. Christopher Crotty will lead two “Healing of the Heart: Mission of Christ in the Modern World” retreats at Durward’s Glen Retreat and Educational Center.

According to Father Crotty, “We are healed and set free in Christ Jesus to proclaim His Wonders!” He will focus on Christ’s healing during this retreat.

The first retreat will be held May 20 to 22, starting Friday night at 6 p.m. and ending on Sunday at 12 noon. The second retreat will be held June 3 to 5, starting Friday night at 6 p.m. and ending Sunday at 12 noon.

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