June 21, 2009
One Thousand Conversations
Our prayers are being answered. Throughout Lent 2009, we prayed a mission prayer where we gave God thanks and praise because God had gathered in a single church people of many nations, cultures and languages. We said,“Our diversity is our strength, and our unity is a gift of your Holy Spirit.
We, though many, are one Body in Christ.” We prayed that this unity would grow, and we saw throughout the days of Holy Week how hundreds and hundreds of people gathered to celebrate the mystery of Christ’s death and resurrection. We were many, but we were also one.
As we gathered with the Montfort Fathers this past weekend to celebrate the Feast of Corpus Christi, I announced at Monday night’s gathering a new initiative for our parish -- one that will help us to grow in unity.
This fall, we will gather 1000 parishioners in small groups for conversations about who we are and who we are becoming – united as one in Christ Jesus. These conversations will take place throughout the parish in peoples homes. Each small group will meet three times, once a week, so that people will have a good opportunity to get to know others, to voice their hopes for our future together, and to choose actions to take us into that future.
We will be inviting people to offer their homes;
we will need people to lead the conversations;
we’ll invite you to reach out to others to invite them to be part of this important moment in the life of the parish.
We’ll continue to let people know of our preparations for the thousand conversations in the weeks and months ahead.
A thousand voices will speak. A thousand hearts will listen.
Together we will come to experience a unity in faith,
a unity in hope, a unity of love. Yes, a thousand voices will speak. I hope that your’s will be among them.
