AMDG
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| Mark Nehrbas, the main speaker. |
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. A successful and well
attended Diocesan Men's Day of Renewal on Saturday March 23 at St. Stephen’s Church,
1036 Belford St., Caldwell off of Exit 25 on I-77 (9:00
am to 4 pm) would be a big step in that direction. An excellent program is in place.
Even though
this year’s Conference is in the geographic center of the diocese, the Steering
Committee appreciates the fact that the men will be sacrificing most of a
valuable Saturday, but that’s what Lent is all about….penance,
self-examination, personal renewal, spiritual growth, etc. The men on the geographic extremes will have
to leave their homes at an early hour and travel up to three hours, but that
gives the Conference a pilgrimage flavor, more so if there's prayer and
discussion of the day's events. Traveling
together in a van would make for great fellowship and would solidify the parish
especially if the pastor accompanies them as the men get to know each other
better. There was once a time when
pilgrims would travel for days to a shrine on foot or horseback.
The morning talk, “Victory of the Cross in My Battle With Cancer” will be his personal
testimony of what he went through since 2012, a six year journey…….the anxiety,
the fear, the pain, and the frustration over two separate bouts of an
aggressive form of stomach cancer……two major surgeries, countless days with
painful chemo, repeated doses of radiation. Through all this, his prayer life
became more intense; his faith and trust in God deepened. Mark Nehrbas tried every path except
one. He went to Lourdes, the great
Marian shrine in France. Miraculously, he was healed.
In the
afternoon talk, “Victory
Over Suffering: Lessons Learned From the Cross”. Mark Nehrbas will explore the mystery of
suffering, why God permits it, how he confronted it, how he grew from it, the
lessons he learned, how it can be very productive, and how it can make you a
saint. The most important of all is that
sooner or later every one of us will have to suffer. We can choose to be miserable or we can
choose to unite our suffering with the cross and offer it all up as a dynamic
prayer for the conversion of sinners as Mary requested at Fatima, for our
Church in deep crisis, for the souls in Purgatory, for the world, and for our
loved ones. Such Redemptive Suffering by
many people can ultimately save the world.
Marketing at the parish level is
crucial to the success of this Conference.
The Steering Committee for the Diocesan Men's Day of Renewal has sent
posters, brochures, and registration forms to every parish in the diocese and
is asking each one to promote the Diocesan Men's Day of Renewal.......announcements
in the bulletin and from the pulpit, a bulletin insert, etc. Parish organizations such as the Knights of
Columbus can also be a big help. But the
most important of all is a leader and a couple of good men in each parish to
assure that the overall promotion is adequate and to mobilize the other men of
the parish to attend.......one on one selling of the Conference and to organize
the men to go as a group in the parish van, a van pool, or hiring a bus.
Pastors,
already overworked, can't do it all, especially the grunt work of
promotion. They urgently need the help
of the laity. Even the women could
encourage their men to attend. Promotional resources and detailed information
may be obtained from paulrsebastian@yahoo.com
or from the Conference Blog at diosteubmen.blogspot.com, which also has articles on
men’s spiritually. The brochure
and additional information can be found on the diocesan website at diosteub.org. Click on About, Men’s Ministries, and Men’s
Day of Renewal for the brochure and additional information.
All men,
including teens, are invited. Thus this Conference
can also be a great father and son shared experience. In order to not exclude anyone, we will find a
way for those who cannot afford the $25 fee to cover expenses. If that is a serious impediment, contact your
pastor or parish representative or simply show up.
The men are challenged through the power of
prayer, as true men of God and dynamic Catholic leaders, to change the world in
little or big ways by prayer, example, word, and deed, beginning with their
families, their parishes, their communities, and the marketplace through their
jobs.
Seeing so many men enthusiastically
participating and moved by the beauty and power of the faith are all
uplifting. Most return spiritually
refreshed, reinvigorated, and enthusiastic. The parish representative may collect
the registration forms and send them to Roger Huck; Men’s Day of Renewal; P.O.
Box 54; Beverly, OH 45715. This may also be done individually. Make the
$25 check payable to the Diocese of Steubenville and write “Men's Day of
Renewal” on the memo line. One may
register at the door, but advance registration makes planning much easier.
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