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Blogs

Moving In Spirit Serving Others Needs (MISSON)

13 February 2012 Karen Heaphy

Attending a mission inspires and causes one to think. The first part of the mission with John Angotti has done just that. John has asked us to step back and look at ourselves and the world we live in. To explore how we serve others. Do we serve others as Jesus served others? Do we reach out to the homeless, sick and outcasts or do we stay in our comfort zone. Have we listened to the response God has for us after we pray the Lord's prayer or are we so busy praying we don't hear what the Lord has to say to us. Last night at the concert, John had us singing and praising God. It was a joyful experience and there was such a sense of community. Looking around, you could see the smilling faces filled with spirit as young and old together sang out the praises to our Lord. Watching Father Joseph and the Youth, swing back and forth, praising God filled me with lightness. As we locked arms together and prayed the Lord's Prayer my heart and spirit soared. We can be joyful and share our faith. But what does that mean exactly?

This morning we started to dig deeper into what it means to live our faith. John has asked us some tough questions such as " if we pray what we believe, do we live what we believe"? Where have you seen God today? How have we touched someone as Jesus touched the leper in this week's Gospel? (Mk.1:40-45). How do we take that light and spirit we experienced in the mission out the door and share it with others. Each one of us has been given different gifts, and different ways to share our light. We each need to reflect on these questions, to take them in prayer and share them as Jesus has shared with us.

What are some of your thoughts on the mission? Why not share them with us in the message boards?

If you haven't had a chance to come to the mission yet, there is a session Monday evening at 7PM and a morning Tuesday session at 9:30 AM and Tuesday evening session at 7PM. Come join us, it is not only about questions, but about sharing our joy and praise that we believe and have faith.

Ministry Musings Christmas

28 December 2011 Sr. Paula Lacy

Do you ever feel spiritually saddened...feel that your witness to Christ is futile in our contemporary world? For some reason I have felt that way more than usual this Advent/Christmas season 2011. I think it all started with Black Friday and the blind greed that drove people to violent behavior over "hot items" they wanted for Christmas. Driven by everything but love, the human heart can lose all sense of dignity and meaning. And then of course, we have wars, poverty, disease, despair, homelessness, (and the list goes on of events and conditions in this world) that tempt us to lose hope. We forget that Jesus was born into a world as inhuman and violent as our own...into a culture that did everything it could to destroy him, silence his message of God's love, hope, mercy and peace. His Spirit, his message, however, have prevailed for over 2,000 years! Even a brutal death could not eliminate him. Jesus lives!!... how visibly depends on you and me.

Merry Christmas! Until next time, blessings and peace,

Sr. Paula

Small Groups

23 September 2011 Karen Heaphy

Deep friendships and support from a small group community can be God's way of carrying you through tough times and magnifying your joys!

We were created for relationship and community! One of the best ways we can grow and bring together faith and our daily lives is through being part of a small group made up of others from the same worshiping community.

Small groups can gather around:

Gender,
Age,
State of Life,
or other themes.

Typically there are 8-12 members in a group who meet anywhere between once a week to once a month.

Groups meet on the church campus or in a host home. During their time together, members engage in hospitality, dive into scripture, pray, and share their ow smallgroups n faith journeys.

Matthew 18:20 says: "For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them." Through community we can encounter Christ. By encountering Him in this way, we can recharge with one another during the week to continue living the Gospel.

Check out the message boards to see what other groups are up to. The RCIA Message Board is posting weekly Scripture Reflection questions.

Interested in joining a group? Click below to learn more about each group and let us know how we can help you get connected.

Already a member of a small faith sharing group? Please let us know so we can support you and post your information on the website.

Contact: Email Kaitlin Berger or Karen Heaphy or call Karen at the Parish Office 727.726.8477, x310.

Are You A Seeker?

16 September 2011 Karen Heaphy

Are you a seeker? Looking for something, but don't quite know what, yet you keep reaching out. Why not stop by the John Bosco Center on Monday nights and meet other seekers. It is said that God has formed us with a yearning for Him that is represented in many different ways as we look in all the wrong places. We look to success or money to fill that longing in our hearts, but it just doesn't click for us. What finally clicks is developing a relationship with God. But we ask, how do we do that? I invite you to come and see, and experience it for yourself. You are not alone, there are other seekers traveling the same road. If you have any questions please call Karen Heaphy at the Church office 727.726.8477, x310 or Tom Heironomous, x325. We meet at 7:00 pm in Room 1, John Bosco Center. Come a little early for some coffee, we will be waiting.

Ministry Musings November 3, 2011

03 November 2011 Sr. Paula Lacy

I know I haven’t written for awhile, not for lack of material…rather too much, but there is something that I feel compelled to share with you today.

Last night our community gathered in the Main Church just a little before sunset to remember our friends and relatives who have gone home to God since November 2010. Their passing is still fresh in our hearts…we remember them…the love, their laughter…their unique personalities…their eyes and smile…their voice…their presence…their manner…all that they were to us and we miss them.

If one can speak of a “favorite Mass”, this one is mine. The rituals, prayers and music are so filled with hope and promise, comfort and peace; the assurance of our faith in Jesus Christ. And though none of that can wash away the grief that remains within, we hear over and over again that life is “changed, not ended” for them and for us. They are with God and we are not alone. In the Gathering Procession, each mourner bears a vigil light, alive with dancing flame to remind us all of the new life each soul now has in God…the incense rises, bells are tolled as names are read of those called home, the altar steps shimmer with over 100 vigils, their living flames lighting up the darkness; vibrant and alive as are our loved ones now with God…and we remember them…together we remember them…together, we grieve and at the same time we believe…we know beyond the shadow of a doubt that they are with God and still with us too…the prayers, the scriptures, the songs… so full of hope…the words seem to seep into our hearts and we carry them with us.

The Sending Song at the end of the Mass was strong and free…voices and words resounding into the rafters: “We will run and not grow weary, for our God will be our strength, and we will fly like the eagle…we will rise again!!” We were all there in support of one another and that’s exactly what happened…love, care, support …another grace-filled experience of our dynamic community of faith! Thank you and God bless us all!

Until next time, Prayers always,

and Peace…Sr. Paula

Ministries of Mercy Retreat Day

26 September 2011 Karen

Espiritu Santo Parish Center

October 22, 2011

"At Home with Jesus"

10:00 am – 2:30 pm

Registration begins at 9:30 am

Presenter: Jackie Mallory

Jackie is a Lay Pastoral Ministry Institute instructor and former Director of Parish Faith Formation, specializing in family-centered religious education. She is a Master Catechist for the Diocese and teacher in the Catechist Certification Program.

A fee of $10.00 will be charged for this retreat. No one will be turned away for inability to pay. Lunch is included

Ministries of Mercy Retreat For those working in Life, Justice and Outreach Ministries. Visitation to the Sick and Homebound, Jail Ministry, FAST, Parish Nurses, St. Vincent de Paul, Pinellas Hope, and Respect Life.

Anyely Garcia, Diocese of St Petersburg-Ministries of Mercy

727.344.1611 x471

Living Word

25 September 2011 Karen Heaphy

My aunt loved to read to me. As a small child I would be fascinated with words and would repeat them, and at every opportunity she would read me a story. Even today in our electronic age when you can pop in a DVD or play a game, children still love to be read to. There is a wonderful connection between the listener and the storyteller, and since early times storytelling was a way to convey messages of how to live and how to love. It is not a surprise that I was attracted to the ministry of proclaiming the Word.

It was pretty scary the first time I had to stand up at Mass and proclaim, but I do it because I love the Word.

As I prepare to read I think of the many others who have heard the Word before me. I imagine the Israelites around their fires. It is the end of the day, they are tired from the day of work and travel, and someone is asked to tell the story of how they became travelers, wandering from place to place seeking the kingdom of God. The people hear the story of how God created the world and how He loved His people. They hear of the prophets who warn them that they are getting detoured off the path and they need to change their ways. They hear of kings who lose sight of the sovereignty of God and how the psalmist after losing his way seeks God as his comfort and the source of life.

The people heard and knew God in these stories. But sometimes they just didn't get it and they needed more. And the Word was made flesh John 1:14. And Jesus learned about God the Father in the same way, at His mother's knee listening to the stories around the table or around the fire. We hear how Jesus prayed using the psalms, just as we pray today using the psalms. He reminds us of the Beatitudes that have been spread throughout the Bible stories. His disciples continued to spread the Word in the same way that the Israelites did throughout time. This continued throughout the middle ages when the Monks who lovingly copied the Sacred Writings were replaced by the printing press. Today we have Bibles on ebooks and audio books but as you listen the message is the same, God so loved the world that He gave His only Son and we are called to live the Good News of the Son. John 3:16

If you would like to reflect on the Sunday readings, you can go to the RCIA Message Boards. For information about the Catholic Faith and RCIA please contact Karen Heaphy at 727.726.8477 x310 or Tom Heironimus at 727.726.8477 x325.

Come Away and Rest

17 September 2011 Karen Heaphy

Ministry is about serving others while living out our Baptismal call. Our model for ministry is Christ and He reminds us that we need time to come away and rest. Time to refresh and re-energize. A friend of mine declared: Karen, if you don't go to the well and refresh yourself you will have nothing to give anyone else. Any time I ignore this advice and run on empty so to speak, I find myself stressed. Jesus said, "Come away to a lonely place and rest a while" Mark 6:31 Jesus had much to accomplish, but recognized the importance of being refreshed with prayer and quiet time. Between cell phones and email that follow you everywhere it is a challenge to find any quiet time. But if we follow the ministry model of Our Lord we will make time, even if it means getting up earlier to do so. Everything we do is derived out of our relationship with God, we need to slow down and take the time to rest and refresh if we are to carry out our mission. Thank you for your ministry, please take care of yourself so that you can continue to witness to others that we are the Body of Christ reaching out to each other. If you have any questions about Pastoral Care, please contact Karen Heaphy at 727.726.8477, x310 or karen@espiritusanto.cc