Time flies and so do saints.

Hard to believe that it is finals week already. Time really does fly. We are all occupied with examination period that we don't have time to think about anything else. Yet as we devise our plans of action for studying for our exams and finishing our projects, let us remember it is okay to speak to God about your frustrations and worry about exams, understands. Yet, God is also with us to keep us calm and focused. Allow Him to speak to your hearts and minds that you may demonstrate your understanding effectively. 


When I was a freshmen in high school taking my French final, my Ministry & Service leader Lisa was our proctor for the exam. Before handing it out she led us in a prayer to St. Joseph of Cupertino. St. Joseph was an Italian Franciscan friar, honored as both a mystic and a saint. He was prone to miraculous levitations and intense ecstatic visions. He is recognized as the patron saint of students taking examinations, as well as air travelers, aviators and astronauts. He was canonized in 1767 by Pope Clement XIII). So ever since freshmen year of high school I offer a prayer to St. Joseph of Cupertino come final examination time. 

O St. Joseph of Cupertino who by your prayer obtained from God 

to be asked at your examination, the only preposition you knew. 

Grant that I may like you succeed in the _________ examination. 

In return I promise to make you known and cause you to be invoked.

O St. Joseph of Cupertino, pray for me

O Holy Ghost, enlighten me

Our Lady of Good Studies, pray for me

Sacred Head of Jesus, Seat of divine wisdom, enlighten me.

Amen. 

Don't hit the rocks

Experiencing some anxiety over various things, my dad offered me some good advice. As always, it was in the form of an analogy. #classic

He referenced life [the situations] as riding a bicycle and riding along a course that is rocky. You will always go where your eyes are focused, even if it's not where you want to be. If you look at the rocks, you'll hit the rocks. If you don't want to hit the rocks on the trail, look ahead on the trail for the path, not at the rocks. Look up and outside yourself. Only here can you flourish and find the right path.


Thinking about it throughout the day, I expanded on the analogy myself. (I am my father's daughter). Sometimes you need to shift the gears of your bike. This could be interpreted in a multitude of ways. Right now, with my case, I looked at it as shifting my attitude. Shifting my attitude from one of anxiousness, worry and negativity to one of strength, courage and positivity. Focus on finding the smooth path through for myself. Change my attitude but remain natural. 

O God of truth, grant me the happiness of heaven 

so that my joy may be full in accord with your promise. 

In the meantime let my mind dwell on that happiness, 

my tongue speak of it, my heart pine for it, 

my mouth pronounce it, my soul hunger for it, 

my flesh thirst for it, and my entire being desire it 

until I enter through death in the joy of my Lord forever. 

Amen.

Saint Augustine of Hippo

Great is God's Faithfulness

Eternal Father, it is your will that all should be saved.

Great is your mercy. Your Son, Jesus Christ died for all.

Teach all people to recognize you and love you.

With deep faith in Christ's death and resurrection we pray:

Send Forth, O Lord, laborers into your vineyard and spare your people.

Eternal Word, Redeemer of all creation, convert all souls to you.

You have been obedient for all, even to death on the cross.

Look upon the merits of your Mother and of all the angels and saints who intercede for us.

Send forth, O Lord, laborers into your vineyard and spare you people.

O Holy Spirit, through the infinite merits of our Lord, Jesus Christ,

enkindle in all hearts your ardent love that can do all things,

that all may be one fold and one shepherd, and that all may arrive in heaven to sing your divine mercy.

Queen of Apostles and all the angels and saints, pray to the Lord of the harvest:

Send forth, O Lord, laborers into your vineyard and spare your people,

that united with you, and the Father and the Holy Spirit,

we may all rejoice forever.

Amen.

Blessed are those who trust in the Lord

God of all blessings,

source of all life,

giver of all grace:

We thank you for the gift of life:

for the breath

that sustains life,

for the food of this earth

that nurtures life,

for the love of family and friends

without which there would be no life.

We thank you for the mystery of creation:

for the beauty

that the eye can see,

for the joy

that the ear may hear,

for the unknown

that we cannot behold filling the universe with wonder,

for the expanse of space

that draws us beyond the definitions of ourselves.

We thank you for setting us in communities:

for families 

who nurture our becoming,

for friends

who love us by choice,

for companions at work

who share our burdens and daily tasks,

for strangers

who welcome us into their midst,

for people from other lands

who call us to grow in understanding,

for children

who lighten our moments with delight.

We thank you for this day:

for life

and one more day to love,

for opportunity

and one more day to work for justice and peace,

for neighbors

and one more person to love

and by whom be loved,

for your grace

and one more experience of your presence,

for your promise:

to be with us,

to be our God,

and to give salvation.

For these, and all blessings,

we give you thanks, eternal, loving God,

through Jesus Christ we pray. 

Amen. 

Lives of witness

The call of Christ to his people is to “go and make disciples of all nations.” This command, a divine one, from Christ has been re-emphasized in the Catholic Church since the Vatican II Councils. The Blessed Pope John Paul II constantly called all Catholics to join in what he called a “new evangelization.” It is a call that “no believer or institution of the Church is exempt from, to proclaim Christ to all people.” The New Evangelization is a movement of grace in the Church, which is changing it to being a Church of “mission to the nations” than simple a Church merely concerned with its maintenance. 

John Paul II endeavored to assist the whole Church to recognize the need for a New Evangelization, expressing it as “new in ardour, methods and expression.” It looks for new, pioneering ways of proclaiming and witnessing to the Gospel. He considered the older methods of evangelization as not supportive enough because too many people in the world are so affected by the kind of culture in which they live that they cannot hear the proclaimed Gospel. For John Paul II the task is not simply one of “re-evangelization but new evangelization” because faith and culture have come apart and the Church must discern new ways of spreading the Gospel into today’s culture. He spoke of this task as one of the whole Church. He states, “God is opening before the Church the horizons of humanity more fully prepared for the sowing of the Gospel. I sense that the moment has come to commit all of the Church’s energies to a new evangelization and to the mission ad gentes. 

John Paul II calls the Holy Spirit the principal agent of the new evangelization. This indicates that God himself, through the presence of the Holy Spirit, is the principal source of this new movement within the Church. The movement is one that touches upon the very identity of the Church for the reason that the Church is both communion and mission. At its start, John Paul II expressed the philosophy of the New Evangelization. He invited all Christians to fall in love with Christ again. Furthermore, “to put out into the deep” and courageously take the Gospel into the heart of contemporary culture. 

This past week, representatives of the U.S. bishops released a new document, “Disciples Called to Witness: The New Evangelization”, in response to John Paul II’s call for new evangelization that focused largely on the Church’s need to build a “culture of witness.” The committee, led by Bishop David L. Ricken of Green Bay, Wisconsin, released the online resource to assist dioceses and parishes in reaching out to engage the faithful and support them in witnessing their faith through their lives. The document states that it is “primarily by her conduct and by her life that the Church will evangelize the world.”

The document explains that an only an estimated 23 percent of Catholics in the United States attend mass each week. Therefore the bishops placed a special emphasis on New Evangelization’s duty to “[welcome] back to the Lord’s Table all those who are absent, because they are greatly missed and needed to build up the Body of Christ.” They too noted that while evangelization has always been at the very core of the Church’s mission, we must remember what Blessed John Paul II called a New Evangelization. One that is “new in its ardor, methods and expression.” 

The bishops highlighted the New Evangelization’s call to re-purpose the unchanging content of the Church’s message in a new way, engaging the modern culture and keeping in mind the contemporary realities of secularism, globalization and the economy, as well as the pressure of science, technology and politics. With the bishop’s synod approaching, Pope Benedict XVI has suggested that New Evangelization be the central theme. Within the Vatican, he has worked to continue the work of his predecessor in creating a Pontifical Council for the Promotion of the New Evangelization. 

Active participation in the New Evangelization, gives members of the Church the encouragement to reach out to those who have drifted away from their faith. This action allows them to carry out the Church’s work as “an agent of healing and reconciliation,” and present hope via this “personal encounter with the person of Jesus.” The bishops explained that when Catholics live out their faith they open up the hearts and minds of those surrounding them, providing for a turn towards Christ. This can open to door to the “gradual and lifelong process of conversion” to which all Catholics are called.  

Ask yourself these questions:

• How can we, believers, give and receive support to one another when learning to listen to the Spirit of God in fellowship for discipleship?
• Do you understand the purpose of gathering with other believers in an atmosphere of discipleship that centers on learning from the Triune God?
• Are you acting as just a student of Christ or a disciple of Christ?
• What must a believer, in a fellowship for discipleship, do in order to be able to improve his or her own ability to interact well with the Holy Spirit within?

Father, by the power of the Spirit, 

strengthen the Church’s commitment to the new evangelization 

and guide our steps along the pathways of the world, 

to proclaim Christ by our lives, 

and to direct our earthly pilgrimage 

towards the City of heavenly light.

May Christ’s followers show forth their love 

for the poor and the oppressed; 

may they be one with those in need 

and abound in works of mercy; 

may they be compassionate towards all, 

that they themselves may obtain indulgence and forgiveness from you.

Praise and glory to You, Most holy Trinity, 

You alone are God most high!

My Project HOPE

Hold Onto Prayer Everyday.

Can prayer change your life? No question. You can foster a relationship with God and live a better, more determined life through prayer. In prayer there is the chance to find fulfillment and peace, away from the many distractions bombarding our days.

Think of all the promises that the material world guarantees us. They say we’ll find happiness and harmony if we buy this or that. Yet in the end, our souls end up feeling just as empty as our wallets. Cultivating a good prayer life can really change you for the better. It can turn into the most satisfying routine of your day in many ways. Of course, it might not be the easiest habit to start at first. But it is without a doubt one that your will not end up breaking once you start it. Daily prayers give you a sense of purpose. Determination and dedication is key.

Prayer is the foundation of all work aimed at guiding souls and alleviating suffering in a spirit of unity with Christ. It has often been called “the raising up of mind and heart of God.” In prayer we literally engage in divine conversation with God. There lies the wonderful opportunity to strengthen and deepen your relationship with Him. There is also the opportunity to connect with those around you by praying for their needs as well as your own.

God wants us to keep Him and to let me made our requests known to Him. Read to passage below:

Have no anxiety about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, will keep your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. 

(Philippians 4:6-7)

In his letter, St. Paul is telling us that God wants us to share our lives with Him. From the little things to the big things, our joys to our sorrows, our successes to our disappointments, we are to talk to the Lord in both prayers for direction and prayers of thanksgiving. There is a greater reason to our prayer, beyond the particulars that we are praying for. Read it again: “will keep your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” When you read this with openness to the truth, you will understand that the only source of true peace and completion is in God. We need to receive His peace so that we may keep our hearts and minds focused on Christ and His mission for us. Through prayer, God gives us strength to better reflect his character of love and charity.

There is a multitude of ways that one can revitalize their prayer life. Here I will offer you my number one tip of the moment that has improved my conversations with God. And that is, keep a prayer journal. If you have never tried a prayer journal approach, I encourage you to take a shot at it. Here are reasons why to keep a prayer journal...

• When I write in my prayer journal I am more focused and thus able to connect with God in a more focused manner. It helps me block out the distractions and busyness.
• As I mentioned before, our prayers are certainly not just for ourselves, but also for others. A journal helps me remember those that I wish to keep in special prayer over a certain span of time.
• I can look back and see how God has answered my prayers in times of struggle. I can see how he brought things together when there seemed to be so much confusion and chaos.
• Also in having a record of His faithfulness in answering my prayers, I am able to properly offer Him thanksgiving. I can really see Him working in my life when I flip back through the pages of my journal.
•  Personally, I love to write. So writing (and no, not typing on a keyboard) is almost therapeutic for me. Being able to bring God into something I find pleasure in has a healing element to it. I know that God is there listening and guiding me. 

Communication is an important part of any relationship. Our relationship with God is no exception. God does not deeply desire our prayer for His benefit but for our own. Prayer allows us to gain a better understanding of God and in doing so, we have a better understanding ourselves, as those made in the image and likeness of God.

“For me, prayer is a surge of the heart; 

it is a simple look turned toward heaven, 

it is a cry of recognition and of love, 

embracing both trial and joy.” 

- St. Therese of Lisieux

Believe so that I may understand

Lord Jesus Christ, 

Let me seek you by desiring you, and let me desire you by seeking you; 

let me find you by loving you, and love you in finding you. 

I confess, Lord, with thanksgiving that you have made me in your image, 

so that I can remember you, think of you, and love you. 

But that image is so worn and blotted out by faults, 

and darkened by the smoke of sin, 

that I cannot do that for which it was made unless you renew and refashion it. 

Lord, I am not trying to make my way to your height,

 for my understanding is in no way equal to that, 

but I do desire to understand a little of your truth which my heart already believes and loves. 

I do not seek to understand so that I can believe, but I believe so that I may understand; 

and what is more, I believe that unless I do believe, I shall not understand.

- St. Anselm, 2000 Years of Prayer

Coming soon: a new "Project HOPE"

Alpha and Omega

For some years now, my family and I have attended the Easter Vigil. I thought that I would offer some history and remarks about this service. The Easter Vigil is the high point of the Easter Triduum: the first official celebration of the passion and resurrection of Jesus. The Church, in worship, expresses her faith in the mystery that brought her into being through a rich display of symbols, rites and readings.

The Easter Vigil opens with a Service of Light. Like the Jewish Passover, our Catholic Easter celebration coincides with the beginning of spring, when the sun offers new warmth and the earth is set to flourish again. Our words “Lent” and “Easter” point to the long tradition of seeing the holy mystery through the signs of the natural world. Lent from the Middle-English word for spring, “lengthening days” and Easter from the Anglo-Saxon signifying “the east"/"the rising sun." The lighting of the fire and the Easter candle go back to rites that long preceded Christianity. The candle, carried with loving reverence and lyrically praised in word and song, is a sign of Christ, “the light of the world” and celebrates the victory of light over darkness that humanity has ever longed for.

During the Easter Vigil, there are nine readings: seven from the Old and two from the New Testament. (Note: Not all the readings are required due to time constraints. My parish has adopted a smaller number in the past couple of years. I will say it now that yes I do like this new adoption!) The series of readings recall God’s great involvement in history, from the beginning with creation to the redemption of Israel from Egypt. The last reading is the story of Jesus’ resurrection. The great “Alleluia!” proclaims with a gentle joy the triumph of Christ, the Son of God.

Another beautiful part of the Easter Vigil is that it is during this service that adult catechumens who have been preparing for the sacraments of initiation are received into full communion with the Church by baptism and/or confirmation. As a parishioner, is a truly a pleasure to witness their joy and share in their joy at this time. After the celebration of these sacraments of initiation for the catechumens, the congregation renews their baptismal vows and receives a sprinkling of baptismal water. At Easter we have the option to renew our identity as Catholics by renewing our baptismal promises to reject evil an all that is not life giving. We adhere to Christ and all that builds life. The discipleship that is made in Baptism is our communion with the triune God and our communion with the Church, the body of Christ. (Our vertical and horizontal communion.) Easter is about Christ rising from the bonds of death to life. Renewing our baptismal vows is most appropriate at this time because we too are called to die to ourselves and embrace Christ, who was sent by God to raise us from the bonds of sin and death.

This night says, “REJOICE!” as it brings us before the deepest symbols of our hope. The light has conquered the darkness, a sign of evil and death. The candle has lit the fire that is burning in our hearts. A nourishing water flows through our lives; baptism wipe out what is unclean and bring us to life again. The night says, “REJOICE!” to all of creation. Christ, as a new Adam, freshly proclaims the promise of life from God. All of creation celebrates God’s love.

Almighty ever-living God,

who are wonderful in the ordering of all your works,

may those you have redeemed understand

that there exists nothing more marvelous

than the world’s creation in the beginning

except that, at the end of the ages,

Christ our Passover has been sacrificed.

Who lives and reigns forever and ever.

Amen.

The greatest sacrifice

I adore You, O Precious Blood of Jesus, flower of creation, fruit of virginity, ineffable instrument of the Holy Spirit, and I rejoice at the thought that You came from the drop of virginal blood on which eternal Love impressed its movement; You were assumed by the Word and deified in His person. 

I am overcome with emotion when I think of Your passing from the Blessed Virgin's heart into the heart of the Word, and, being vivified by the breath of the Divinity, becoming adorable 

because You became the Blood of God.

I adore You enclosed in the veins of Jesus, preserved in His humanity like the manna in the golden urn, the memorial of the eternal Redemption which He accomplished during the days of His earthly life. 

I adore You, Blood of the new, eternal Testament, flowing from the veins of Jesus in Gethsemane, 

from the flesh torn by scourges in the Praetorium, from His pierced hands and feet 

and from His opened side on Golgotha. 

I adore You in the Sacraments, in the Eucharist, 

where I know You are substantially present. . .

I place my trust in You, O adorable Blood, 

our Redemption, our regeneration. 

Fall, drop by drop, into the hearts that have wandered from You 

and soften their hardness.

- St. Albert the Great

Love with humility & remember his sacrifice

Tonight I had the opportunity to partake in Holy Thursday's Washing of the Feet at my home parish. The mandatum rite is meant to be much more than re-enacting what Jesus did. It is even more than fulfilling his words to "do what I have done to you." The ritual washing of feet firmly proclaims Holy Thursday night: first moment of the church's Triduum where such signs of compassionate care & service say what we have received from our Lord. Jesus' washing of the feet of his disciples is a sign of His humility by performing this act. It is symbol of His message of service (caritas) that he conveys to the Apostles by acting as a personal attendant for the needs of the Apostles. 

Another element of Holy Thursday, which my pastor highlighted in his homily, is the origin of the priesthood. Holy Thursday (while it is debated by some) is the anniversary of the ministerial priesthood. While each priest is ordained at different times, in different places, all share in the one eternal priesthood of Christ, who "ordained" as it were, the Twelve as the first priests of the New Covenant as He simultaneously established the Eucharist. The two sacraments, the Holy Eucharist and Holy Orders, are fused together in the mind of the Savior. The two are the cardinal instruments in the plan of salvation Christ has set out before us. 

Today's world is the same world Christ still loves. This world is being recreated anew as Christ continues His mission through the Church, His Body, of which we are all members. We are all part of the Mystical Body of Christ; the Communion of Love called the Church. This Church still brings heaven to earth and earth to heaven. In coming to grasp this mystery-rather than being grasped by it-we come to understand Christ's love. 

O God, who have called us to participate

in this most sacred Supper,

in which your Only Begotten Son,

when about to hand himself over to death,

entrusted to the Church a sacrifice new for all eternity,

the banquet of his love,

grant, we pray,

that we may draw from so great a mystery,

the fullness of charity and of life.

Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,

who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,

one God, for ever and ever.

Preparing for the holiest week of the year

Pope Benedict XVI presided at Palm Sunday mass in St. Peter's Square. Thousands of pilgrims joined him in celebrating the start of Holy Week. 

His holiness told the congregation that the next seven days should call forth two sentiments: praise and thanksgiving. For the reason that during this Holy Week "the Lord Jesus will renew the greatest gift we could possibly imagine: he will give us his life, his body, his blood, and his love." It is in this light of Christ that humanity sees itself deeply united and bounded within the "cloak of divine blessing." Pope Benedict says this is a blessing that permeates, sustains, redeems and sanctifies all things.

At the end of the homily, His Holiness concluded, "This Holy Week, may we be moved again by Christ’s passion and death, put our sins behind us and, with God’s grace, choose a life of love and service to our brethren.”

Apostolate: Be a light that transforms

The Decree on the Apostolate of the Laity, Apostolicam Actusitatem, promulgated by Pope Paul VI at the Second Vatican Council, defined the mission of the lay Christian faithful. The laity’s role in the mission of the Church, their “apostolic activity” as the “people of God” derives from their Christian vocation, which the Church can never be without. Such activity, its spontaneity and fruitfulness, was at the very beginning of the Church.

Nevertheless, the apostolate is a great challenge to us. This is precisely because it is a constant battle: both within ourselves and between ourselves and the world to be won. We cannot expect to escape any of the vast complexity of combat that is interweaved into the Christian life: the struggle between the spirit and the flesh, the kingdom of God and the temptation of Satan, the Church and the world. As the decree notes, today “new problems are arising and very serious errors are circulating which tend to undermine the foundations of religion, the moral order and human society itself.” It is for these reasons that there is an incredible need of preparation for this abiding challenge. Thus here are some fundamental reflections on the nature of the apostolate: its theoretical basis, a spiritual preparation for it and perseverance in the mission.

The apostolate is an extension of the Christian life as a whole, deriving its character in some integral fashion from the very posture of a member of the faithful toward the world. Apostolicam Actusitatem expresses, “The Christian vocation is, of its nature a vocation to the apostolate as well.” Certainly the Council wishes for the laity to understand that they are “assigned to the apostolate by the Lord Himself." Taken as a whole, the Council Fathers identified three concrete objectives of the apostolate. First, the evangelization and sanctification of men: “in this way their temporal activity openly bears witness to Christ.” Second, renewal of the temporal order: “the mission of the Church is not only to bring the message and grace of Christ to men but also to penetrate and perfect the temporal order with the spirit of the Gospel.” And third, charitable works and social aid: these enterprises must reach out to all persons and all needs and it is an obligation imposed upon every prosperous nation and person. All together, the Council seriously exhorts the laity to take a more active part in the explanation and defense of Christian principles.

The apostolate is a serious calling rooted in the effort to respond wholeheartedly to the will of God. Yet, I don’t think anyone would presume such a response to be automatic or even easy. Therefore, one can say apostolate comes with a willingness to grow and enter into one's own unique mission of sanctifying the world to Christ. When I was considering the "spiritual preparation" of apostolate, my mind led me to the thought of St. Dominic, founder of the Dominican order. St. Dominic had a tremendous passion for the salvation of souls. This passion came from his intense love for Christ and the Church. He sought to form himself in Christ's trust as to become a more effective witness of the Truth. His apostolic life, and those of Dominicans, is where the call to preach is set in motion, and the benefits of one's prayer, study, and community are infused into their work. 

As mentioned earlier, every lay apostle will experience a certain level of isolation and ridicule in one way or another because of the strong defense he/she sets out of their Catholic values. Minor and major versions of these sufferings arise from the various realities of man. The point is that these difficulties are common to the apostolate if only because the work to be accomplished is always vast, while the resources with which to accomplish it can appear almost vanishingly small. Circumstances may frustrate us, and indeed, we may sometimes be under fierce attack in a whole variety of trivial ways. In these times trust in God alone can see us through, for perseverance is not a matter of circumstances, which are most usually difficult, but of grace, which is always good.

Despite challenges, we must continue to proclaim what we are. The lay apostolate is an apostolate of sanctity. Goodness flows from it almost without speaking and holiness is comes forth from our charity. Any member of the laity is worthy of such a call to engage in the apostolate using their own gifts and talents. It is these individuals whose presence in the world is the leaven that Christ wants to use to bring millions of souls into his divine heart and to his eternal kingdom.  

Whose plan is it anyway?

Emerging Models of Lay Ministry

The Second Vatican Council yielded great changes in the roles of laypeople with the Catholic Church. In the 40 years since Vatican II, the role of Catholic laity within the Church community has transformed dramatically. Lay people, who previously viewed themselves as less than the clergy or religious, today respond to their baptismal call to holiness and sharing their faith in both word and action. More and more individuals claim their genuine roles as God’s children, Church members and especially as apostles to the secular world. All the baptized are given this active vocation of being stewards of the Church’s mission.

Today, parishes of all types and sizes, have large numbers of lay Catholics serving as lay ministers. These roles include leaders of Bible study groups, catechists, and planning committees. Lay members make up pastoral councils and parish finance committees. Other roles include ushers and greeters at Sunday masses, sponsors of other adults going preparing for the rites of Christian initiation, choir members, cantors, readers and Extraordinary Ministers of Communion. Today, lay members are also in leading roles at Catholic institutions outside the parish too – in dioceses and hospitals as well universities, colleges and schools. Amid all of this, most uphold critical responsibilities at home, at work and in their civic lives. As members of the body of Christ, lay members are actively attempting to integrate their faith into all facets of their life.

For myself all of this hardly sounds surprising. Mostly for the reason that I was not around to witness the Church before Vatican II. However, the reality is all of this represents a tremendous turnabout in Catholics’ awareness of their individual roles. None of these activities were open to lay women and men, or didn’t exist at all, a mere fifty years ago.

As hinted before, in addition to lay ministers, today there are those who are called to lay ecclesial ministry. “Lay ecclesial ministry” addresses the ministry of lay people in the church that has resulted from appropriate discernment of God’s call, been shaped by strong human skills formation and theological education and confirmed through authorization by recognized church leaders. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops recognizes it as “the working of the Holy Spirit” in the Catholic community (Co-Workers in the Vineyard of the Lord). So who are lay ecclesial ministers? Well, one example, who follows Christ’s example, is dedicated to healing, saving and transforming the world through their mission in the Church, is my mother.

My mother is Parish Services Director at my home parish in Pennsylvania. She supports and assists the pastor in the pastoral care of the faith, aids him in the planning and implementation of parish programs and all related activities. She works together with other staff members, volunteers, and organizations within the parish. She attends all Parish Pastoral Council and Finance Council meetings as an advisor to the pastor. Her responsibilities include developing and implementing various adult catechetical and evangelization programs for the parish, being a member of the RCIA team, instructing the parish’s Adult Faith Formation, leading the parish Lenten scripture study series, conducting small group retreats and faith sharing groups and aiding in the formation liturgies for various parish services.

As Co-Workers in the Vineyard of the Lord suggests, lay members of the Catholic Church have been undertaking a wide variety of roles in Church ministry. Many of these roles presume a significant amount of preparation, formation and professional experience. The document is a confirmation of those who serve in this way. My mother undoubtedly is a supreme example of the opportunities available to lay members. She is truly a remarkable woman and a model in her ministry to the Church.

Go out and discover the opportunities embraced by Catholics who educate, evangelize, and minister as they accept a call to holiness.