AMDG
DIOCESAN MEN'S DAY OF
RENEWAL SATURDAY MARCH 16
If the Men of the diocese are in
good spiritual shape, the family is renewed.
If the family is renewed, the parish is renewed and so is the
diocese. The men must be spiritual leaders
in their families. The men must step up
and be the pillars of the parish.......not only the women. The men must put Christ into the marketplace
and in their jobs. Set the
men on fire and we renew the parish, the diocese and ultimately the Country,
thus transforming Society. That's what the Diocese is trying
to accomplish with the Men's Day of Renewal.
The Catholic Diocese of
Steubenville is sponsoring this Men’s Conference on Saturday March 16 from 9 am
to 3 pm at St. Stephen’s Church in Caldwell (off of I-77 Exit 25). The theme is: “Embrace the Faith” with St. Joseph as the patron. The distance may be great, but Lent involves
sacrifice and the quest for holiness.
That gives a pilgrimage flavor especially if we car pool. During the middle ages, pilgrims would travel
for days by foot or horseback.
Our men will leave in the parish van at 6:30 am and have great fellowship on the
way. In the past the men have returned spiritually
refreshed, reinvigorated, and enthusiastic.
Expect the same this year. See
how the participants are moved by the beauty and power of
the faith. Non-Catholics are also welcome. This year the Conference is open to teens so this can also
be a father &son event. There will be opportunities for Eucharistic
Adoration & a Lenten Confession.
It is essential that the
men take the spiritual lead in the family and in the parish.
Too often the women are the pillars of the parish. According to our speaker, Fr. Larry Richards,
the probability that the children will remain faithful to the Church in later
life is about 40% if the mother takes the spiritual lead. However, if the father does his job as
spiritual leader, that probability of later faithfulness doubles to about 80%!!!! According to Danny Abramowicz, last year’s
speaker, the children love Mom, but tend to follow Dad.
The main speaker, Fr. Larry Richards is the author of the best seller,
“Be a Man!
Becoming the Man God
Created You to Be” which challenges men to be true men as God intended with
manly virtues such as love, wisdom, courage, integrity, and compassion to
pursue holiness, to make a difference in the world, and to live as a beloved
son of God, revealing the meaning of a man’s life. Fr. Larry inspires men to become the true
heroes they long to be. He recounts his
struggles to learn true manhood, as well as the inspiring stories of others he
has served. He tells men how to focus on the right goals, to live according to
the Holy Spirit, to be a man of true love and of wisdom, to appreciate properly
the differences between men and women, to pursue holiness, and to make a
difference in the world. Not preachy but direct, Father Larry challenges men to
be strong, without putting on a mask of false strength or machismo
(www.youtube.com).
He
often appears on EWTN, hosts his own national radio show, “Changed Forever” on
Relevant Radio at www.relevantradio.com and other stations on Saturday 8 pm
& Sunday 11 am. Fr. Larry Richards
is the founder and president of the Reason for Hope Foundation dedicated to
spreading the good news of the Gospel (see www.TheReasonForOurHope.org) by
educating others about Jesus Christ and giving insights on true manhood.
Fr.
Richards, born in Pittsburgh, earned a degree in Mental Health at the College
Seminary at Gannon University. He
completed his priestly training and studies in Theology at St. Vincent
Seminary; received a Master of Divinity degree; and was ordained in 1989. He is the pastor of St. Joseph Church and the
Bread of Life Community in Erie, Pennsylvania.
Fr. Larry is also the Spiritual Director of the TEC (To Encounter
Christ) Retreat Program for the Diocese of Erie. At the same time he is close to completing
the requirements for a MA degree in Liturgy at the University of Notre Dame.
There’s
more information on the diocesan website, diosteub.org and the Conference Blog,
“Becoming a True Man
of God” at http://diosteubmen.blogspot.com which will be devoted to articles to keep
men in spiritual shape after the Conference.
For a greater variety, go to “A Little Bit for God and His People” by at http://paulrsebastianphd.blogspot.com
It should be a great day of enjoyable
fellowship and spiritual invigoration. But most of all, through grace we'll have a few more good spiritually
strong men for the kingdom of God in the battle against secularism and other
evils and problems that our troubled society must confront.......men --not
spiritual weaklings and wimps-- who will put Christ into their
professions. Finally, the men will
become more knowledgeable, firmer in their faith, and better prepared for a
more joyful Easter, not to mention a greater closeness to God and eternity
which life on earth is all about.
Although
one may register at the door, please register with your parish representative (phone), as soon as possible or sign
up. That would make planning (food,
transportation, etc.) easier and minimize waiting at the door.
SUMMARY OF WHAT THE MEN'S CONFERENCE CAN DO FOR
YOU.....BENEFITS
· Get into good spiritual shape and
avoid being a spiritual weakling, i.e., a spiritual wimp.
· Have a great day of enjoyable fellowship
and spiritual invigoration in the parish van and at the conference,
resulting in deeper friendships and parish cohesion.
· Develop ourselves as men of
character and spiritual strength as we obtain the graces to conquer
ourselves and cope with the problems that our troubled society and economy
brings to us.
· Be a more effective spiritual leader of
your family as a better husband and father.
· Prepare our hearts for the great feast of
Easter and for eternity as we become closer to God.
· Become knowledgeable about the faith
and grow in Christian maturity. We know
so little about Church teaching.
· Become a more effective soldier of Christ
as you do your part in establishing the kingdom, winning the spiritual-culture
war against secularism, and put Christ into your profession.
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St. Joseph, model of a true man of God, pray for us and for
the success of the Men's Conference.
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SUGGESTION: Use the space below for pages 2 & 4 of the trifold brochure.
i.e., the pages with the speaker photos & descriptions
and the registration form.
CHANGE THE UNDERLINED 2ND
& LAST PARAGRAPHS ABOVE ACCORDING TO YOUR PARISH OR KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS COUNCIL
SITUATION.
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