In the
Gospel today, we hear the story of Jesus' transfiguration as he appears in his
heavenly glory before Peter, James, and John.
As they see Jesus transfigured with Moses and Elijah, they can have no
doubt that Jesus is truly God. Still, they
were afraid and didn't know what to say.
This was a one-of-a-kind event, transforming their lives.
And yet, when Jesus was led to the cross, Peter and James were nowhere
to be found and Peter even denied him three times. How could they so quickly abandon Jesus in
his time of need?
Probably,
many of us have had experiences in our lives when we have felt the presence of
Jesus. It may have been a time of trial
when we felt uplifted. Or, maybe we
heard a reading or a homily at Mass which touched us. Maybe we were praying and heard an answer to
a difficult problem.
These are
spiritual highs when Jesus seems to be close to us. But, often, as we deal with the day to day
issues of life, we can forget about these close moments and even wonder where
Jesus is. We might think: "Has he
abandoned me?" In fact, some of us
may be wondering right now where Jesus is in our life. We may be experiencing a desert time in our spiritual
journey. We may feel that he has turned
away from us. Or we might even have
turned away from him as Peter and James did during Jesus' passion and death.
Eighteen
years ago, our pastor, Father Lou, Deacon Hershel, and several men and women from
the parish were led by the Holy Spirit to bring Christ Renews His Parish or
CRHP here. They hoped to renew the faith
of the parishioners through a weekend retreat during which men or women
witnessed to their faith. Over the past
eighteen years, over 600 have attended these weekends including many who are
here today. Many lives have been changed
as a result of these weekends. Many
non-Catholics have joined the Catholic church after attending a weekend. Many Catholics have gone to confession for
the first time in years during a weekend.
One person
whose life was changed by attending CRHP
I'll call Joe. Joe's wife and children are Catholic but Joe wasn't
and he never felt a real need for God in his life. So, when they went off to Sunday mass, he
found other things to do around the house.
Six years' ago, someone from the parish invited him to attend a CRHP
weekend. Joe agreed to attend because he
wasn't happy. He thought there should be
more to life than the stress from his work.
He was also lonely, because outside of his relationship with his family
and some people at work, he had few friends.
He hoped the weekend would give him some downtime to think about what he
could do to improve his life. During the weekend, for the first time in his
life, Joe felt the presence of God, especially in the love of Christ through
the men on the weekend. By the end of
the weekend, Joe had decided to become
Catholic. At the Easter vigil the next
year, Joe was baptized and came into the church. His life had changed because he found what
had been missing - Jesus. He now had
purpose. And he found friends he never
knew he could have. He was more joyful,
even at work, and began to attend daily mass and bible studies. Today, Joe continues to grow in his faith
journey and help others in theirs. His
relationship with Jesus improves through daily mass, an adoration hour, and meditation. And it all began when he attended a CRHP
weekend. Are you being called to a
closer relationship with Jesus?
I have been
the lead spiritual director for CRHP for almost eight years. I have witnessed participants whose lives
have changed, who have experienced the joy of renewal and transformation, and who are closer to Christ. Many have established a bond with others on
the weekend who are now their lifetime friends.
As I attend these weekends, I am continually blown away by the work of
the Holy Spirit in the lives of those on the weekend. For many of them, it is as if they are
witnessing the transfiguration of Jesus, just as Peter, James, and John did. For some, their lives will never be the
same.
Also, these
CRHP weekends have had a ripple effect.
Many ministries in our parish have blossomed as a result of those who
have attended these weekends. In
addition, teams from our parish have helped two other parishes start their CRHP
programs: St Patrick's in Morristown,
Tennessee and St Henry in Miamisburg.
Truly, CRHP
has been a blessing for the past eighteen years. But, like any long term program, after a
time, it needs to be recharged, renewed, and reinvigorated. About a year ago, Mathew Kelly's Dynamic
Catholic organization assumed responsibility for CRHP. They have changed the name of CRHP to Welcome
in an attempt to change the focus from the parish to the individual. In addition, they have created new manuals
for the program which are especially helpful during the formation process as
the team prepares for the next weekend.
Our first
Welcome weekends are approaching. The
men's weekend is just two weeks' away - March 10/11 and the women's weekend is
April 14/15. There are sign up tables in
the foyer with men and women from the teams for the upcoming weekends ready to
answer your questions. Please stop by
and check it out. It can change your
life. After the 11 o'clock mass, there will be an hour of
adoration to pray for the success of Welcome in our parish. Please come and pray with us.
If you
attended CRHP a number of years ago or in another parish, feel free to attend again. Over the years' CRHP has changed and now
Welcome has also changed it some. Also,
you have changed and you may be ready for a new encounter with Christ.
On this
second Sunday of Lent, as we prepare for Jesus death and resurrection, please
take this opportunity to grow in your faith, to experience the great love of
Jesus, and to see the Holy Spirit working in your life.
God bless
