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3rd Annual Gathering of Catechism Study Groups
St Patrick's College, Maynooth, 6th July 2015
The Bishop of Fréjus-Toulon, Dominique Rey addressed the gathering on the topic The Role of the Priest in Evangelisation. Archbishop Eamon Martin, the Primate of All Ireland responded to him. Media reports of the Annual Gathering are presented below.
New social context poses challenges for priests
By Susan Gately - 10 July, 2015
Gospel must be offered to the world in a "radically new way" Bishop Dominique Rey of Fréjus in France tells Maynooth conference.
The new context the Church is living in today calls for different roles for priests in evangelisation according to the Bishop of Fréjus, Toulon in France.
Addressing a conference earlier this week on the topic The Role of the Priest in Evangelisation, Bishop Dominique Rey said the Church is not a reality at one with the society around it even in countries that were evangelised centuries ago.
Traditional ‘markers’ of human life based around Gospel values are now gone.
“The Gospel must be offered to a radically new world,” he said.
This is a world characterised by a huge drop in the number of priests, secularism, the rise of Islam and a weakened family. The challenge is for everyone and every [parish] church to become an agent of evangelisation.
The most important instrument for mission is prayer, he told participants at the Third Annual Gathering of Catechism Studies in St Patrick’s College Maynooth.
“The Holy Spirit is the first player in the mission of the Church. He precedes and prepares our work.” Those evangelising had to give a witness to holiness. “Saints are the greatest evangelisers,” said Bishop Rey.
The bishop felt his call to priesthood through the Emmanuel Community, a non-residential community made up of people of all vocations and walks of life who live a radical fraternity based on Eucharistic adoration, compassion and evangelisation.
Emphasising the need to “allow ourselves to be evangelised by the poor” who “through their suffering announce the suffering Christ” he said the Church had to place itself on the ‘peripheries’ as advised by Pope Francis.
“Don’t be afraid to go and bring Christ into every area of life, to the fringes of society,” he said.
In his diocese for example they bought what had been a gay bar and turned it into a cafe of welcome near the port in Toulon.
One priest who is part of a religious community spends his nights in night clubs. “He doesn’t dance or drink but his presence affects the people.”
Seminarians have formed a rugby team to give a visible witness to the Church.
“It is necessary to think of the presence of the Church outside the sacristy and church building and ways to join people where they are, using their language and understanding their issues.”
Participants at the Third Annual Gathering of Catechism Studies
The Church had to welcome new charisms and achieve what Cardinal Ratzinger described as a “symphony of faith”.
Evangelisation is not single event, said Bishop Rey, but a journey.
Every person’s journey has stages from entering into contact with a group or parish, becoming faithful (to the sacraments for example) and a real part of the community to in turn becoming a person sent out to evangelise.
The life of priests with its call to become holy, live celibate lives in fidelity and simplicity as well as leading and serving communities was counter cultural, he said.
There were many challenges to it, first of all secularism which tempted priests to run from faith demands by “becoming a kind of customer service” seeking to “please everybody, conforming to the lifestyle of our contemporaries.”
Clericalism was a challenge, which saw priesthood “as power over community and pastoral life”.
“The good shepherd doesn’t put himself above people but under their feet, sometimes he even carries them,” commented Bishop Rey.
Priesthood could become a mere role or job. This ‘functionalism’ lead to “bureaucracy” leaving “no room for the surprising intrusion of the Holy Spirit who disrupts our habits and ways of living”.
Activism lead priests to act “as if salvation depends on us”. It is important to develop ‘antidotes’ to this, said Bishop Rey “Be a man of prayer, emphasise hospitality and listening.”
In France the scarcity of clergy often lead to isolation and the temptation to “go it alone” (individualism).
In the new context of evangelisation, Bishop Rey said that priests had to work with others “discerning together a path of growth for the diocese and parish communities”. Team work and delegation are essential, he said.
“He [the priest] is called to start afresh from Christ, to embark on the path of evangelical radicalism, to root himself in prayer. In this way he will find around him signs of renewal.”
Report taken from catholicireland.net website
See
http://www.catholicireland.net/social-context-poses-challenges-priests/
A Changed Church needs a Changed Approach
More than 250 members of catechism study groups from all across the country gathered in Maynooth this week to face the challenge of the new evangelisaiton in a radically changing culture.
The Church is living in a new context, Bishop Dominique Rey of Fréjus-Toulon, France, told the gathering. Christians, he said, are a minority in a secular society. Pastoral strategies of the past were based on doing things in Catholic societies, “this is no longer the case”, he warned.
The Church must find ways to join people where they are, using the language they use and hearing their issues, Dr Rey said.
He told of how in his own diocese in the south of France, he bought what had been a gay bar and turned it into a cafe of welcome near the port in Toulon. One priest who is part of a religious community spends his evenings in nightclubs.
“He doesn’t dance or drink but his presence affects the people,” Bishop Rey said. Seminarians have formed a rugby team as a way of reaching younger people. “Young people are attracted by sport and music. Visibility is important – to be there.”
Before he was bishop, Dr Rey was parish priest in the red light district of Pigal in Paris. “I had a café beside a sex shop where we welcomed the people who passed by and told them we were Christians.”
The bishop, who was part of the Emmanuel Community, sees every encounter which brings a person into contact with the Church as a wonderful opportunity. For example, in France 99% of couples live together before being married, but some come forward for church weddings. This, he said, is an “opportunity to evangelise them so they can be Christian spouses and parents”.
Addressing the main topic of his talk, the role of the priest in the new evangelisation, Bishop Rey said prayer and holiness were the first fundamentals of mission. “The Holy Spirit is the first player in the mission of the Church. He precedes and prepares our efforts.”
Forgetful
He said that in an often hedonistic society, forgetful of God, priests faced numerous challenges like secularism, clericalism, activism and scepticism. A priest seeking to become holy, live celibacy and in simplicity of life, was, he said, counter-cultural.
He warned that the temptation is to “run from the demands of this challenging position by becoming a kind of customer service officer seeking to please everybody, conforming to the lifestyle of our contemporaries”.
He also warned of the dangers of clericalism describing it as a vision of priesthood “as power over community and pastoral life”.
“The Good Shepherd doesn’t put himself above people but under their feet, sometimes he even carries them,” he said.
Activism, he said, leads priests to act “as if salvation depends on us”. It is important to develop antidotes to this, Bishop Rey said. “Be a man of prayer, emphasise hospitality and listening.
“Priests can’t be everywhere. Distinguish the urgent from the important,” he advised.
In his native France, Bishop Rey said, the scarcity of clergy often leads to isolation and the temptation to “go it alone”. In addition, many priests are tired or overburdened.
Faced with a new generation who don’t understand the message for which they gave their life, the temptation is to succumb to scepticism which Dr Rey described as a sickness that destroys hope.
“But the priest is the minster of hope.
“He celebrates at each Mass, proclaims the resurrection of Christ. He is called to start afresh from Christ, to embark on the path of evangelical radicalism, to root himself in prayer. In this way he will find around him signs of renewal.”
The new context for evangelisation, Bishop Rey believes, also demands a new pastoral governance based on priest and laypeople “discerning together a path of growth for the diocese and parish communities”.
He described team work and delegation as essential. However, he also warned: “pay attention to the conduct of pastoral change. Vision is exciting, but how we live a pastoral programme is as important as the programme itself.”
Responding to Bishop Rey’s address, Primate of All-Ireland Archbishop Eamon Martin said Ireland is blessed with “really good priests”.
“I think we need to let go of some of the ways we always used to do things and be more open to these [new] ideas,” Dr Martin said.
The Primate said the Holy Spirit was enriching the Church in Ireland with charisms which were given to many people.
“We have to be able to recognise them, identify and nourish them and give them space,” the archbishop said.
Report taken from Irish Catholic Website. See
http://www.irishcatholic.ie/article/changed-ireland-needs-changed-approach-church
Church leaders pay tribute to catechism groups
We have to be careful not to have a privatised idea of ‘our Christ’ – a Christ who speaks to us in a complete personal way but not a Christ who goes beyond our own perception, the papal nuncio to Ireland, Archbishop Charles Brown has said.
This is why the study of the Catechism is so important, because it helps us to see the Lord in all his transfigured beauty, he told over 250 members of catechism study groups at the Third Annual Gathering of Catechism Studies in St Patrick’s College Maynooth earlier this week.
“By studying the catechism as you are doing in groups all over Ireland, we come in contact with the person of Jesus Christ. There’s no contradiction at all between studying the truths of our faith in the Catechism of the Catholic Church and knowing Jesus – it is the same thing,” the Nuncio said.
Archbishop Eamon Martin paid tribute to the people all over Ireland who are “committed to the study of the catechism” and in particular to Máirín Ní Shúilleabháin and the steering committee of the ‘Adult Studies of the Catechism of the Catholic Church’.
“The valuable work you are doing is truly a blessing on the life of the Church in this country. It is a blessing that is felt in our parishes, communities, homes and your local groups.”
Effective evangelisation involved being “wholly faithful to the deposit of faith”, he said.
“Never lose sight of the pearl of great price in the one holy Catholic Church. Your study of the catechism is a very effective way of helping all of us remain faithful to and nourish our apostolic mission.”
The Primate of All Ireland said the Holy Spirit was enriching the Church with charisms given to many people.
“We have to be able to recognise them, indentify and nourish them and give them space.” The initiative of studying the catechism in groups was a great example of this.
He recommended identifying “good people in the parish or diocese” and allowing them to “do the Spirit’s work”.
Among those present at the one day gathering in Maynooth was Gillian Doherty a young mother from Cork who shared what the effect of studying the catechism has been for her and her group.
“The Holy Spirit is guiding us, helping us discern what is asked of us,” she said.
Some had been drawn to work with young people, others in the world of business, others in pastoral councils, “drawing people not just to activities but to prayer”.
Gillian joined a group to “find solidarity with other young families” after her 3-year-old son complained about going to mass as his friends weren’t there.”
“They began to take children to Adoration on Saturdays. There were ten to start, now we have 30. It has helped my children in forming faith friendships.”
Report taken from Diocese of Cork and Ross Website.
See http://www.corkandross.org/cinews.jsp?ID=84791
St Patrick's College, Maynooth, 6th July 2015
The Bishop of Fréjus-Toulon, Dominique Rey addressed the gathering on the topic The Role of the Priest in Evangelisation. Archbishop Eamon Martin, the Primate of All Ireland responded to him. Media reports of the Annual Gathering are presented below.
New social context poses challenges for priests
By Susan Gately - 10 July, 2015
Gospel must be offered to the world in a "radically new way" Bishop Dominique Rey of Fréjus in France tells Maynooth conference.
The new context the Church is living in today calls for different roles for priests in evangelisation according to the Bishop of Fréjus, Toulon in France.
Addressing a conference earlier this week on the topic The Role of the Priest in Evangelisation, Bishop Dominique Rey said the Church is not a reality at one with the society around it even in countries that were evangelised centuries ago.
Traditional ‘markers’ of human life based around Gospel values are now gone.
“The Gospel must be offered to a radically new world,” he said.
This is a world characterised by a huge drop in the number of priests, secularism, the rise of Islam and a weakened family. The challenge is for everyone and every [parish] church to become an agent of evangelisation.
The most important instrument for mission is prayer, he told participants at the Third Annual Gathering of Catechism Studies in St Patrick’s College Maynooth.
“The Holy Spirit is the first player in the mission of the Church. He precedes and prepares our work.” Those evangelising had to give a witness to holiness. “Saints are the greatest evangelisers,” said Bishop Rey.
The bishop felt his call to priesthood through the Emmanuel Community, a non-residential community made up of people of all vocations and walks of life who live a radical fraternity based on Eucharistic adoration, compassion and evangelisation.
Emphasising the need to “allow ourselves to be evangelised by the poor” who “through their suffering announce the suffering Christ” he said the Church had to place itself on the ‘peripheries’ as advised by Pope Francis.
“Don’t be afraid to go and bring Christ into every area of life, to the fringes of society,” he said.
In his diocese for example they bought what had been a gay bar and turned it into a cafe of welcome near the port in Toulon.
One priest who is part of a religious community spends his nights in night clubs. “He doesn’t dance or drink but his presence affects the people.”
Seminarians have formed a rugby team to give a visible witness to the Church.
“It is necessary to think of the presence of the Church outside the sacristy and church building and ways to join people where they are, using their language and understanding their issues.”
Participants at the Third Annual Gathering of Catechism Studies
The Church had to welcome new charisms and achieve what Cardinal Ratzinger described as a “symphony of faith”.
Evangelisation is not single event, said Bishop Rey, but a journey.
Every person’s journey has stages from entering into contact with a group or parish, becoming faithful (to the sacraments for example) and a real part of the community to in turn becoming a person sent out to evangelise.
The life of priests with its call to become holy, live celibate lives in fidelity and simplicity as well as leading and serving communities was counter cultural, he said.
There were many challenges to it, first of all secularism which tempted priests to run from faith demands by “becoming a kind of customer service” seeking to “please everybody, conforming to the lifestyle of our contemporaries.”
Clericalism was a challenge, which saw priesthood “as power over community and pastoral life”.
“The good shepherd doesn’t put himself above people but under their feet, sometimes he even carries them,” commented Bishop Rey.
Priesthood could become a mere role or job. This ‘functionalism’ lead to “bureaucracy” leaving “no room for the surprising intrusion of the Holy Spirit who disrupts our habits and ways of living”.
Activism lead priests to act “as if salvation depends on us”. It is important to develop ‘antidotes’ to this, said Bishop Rey “Be a man of prayer, emphasise hospitality and listening.”
In France the scarcity of clergy often lead to isolation and the temptation to “go it alone” (individualism).
In the new context of evangelisation, Bishop Rey said that priests had to work with others “discerning together a path of growth for the diocese and parish communities”. Team work and delegation are essential, he said.
“He [the priest] is called to start afresh from Christ, to embark on the path of evangelical radicalism, to root himself in prayer. In this way he will find around him signs of renewal.”
Report taken from catholicireland.net website
See
http://www.catholicireland.net/social-context-poses-challenges-priests/
A Changed Church needs a Changed Approach
More than 250 members of catechism study groups from all across the country gathered in Maynooth this week to face the challenge of the new evangelisaiton in a radically changing culture.
The Church is living in a new context, Bishop Dominique Rey of Fréjus-Toulon, France, told the gathering. Christians, he said, are a minority in a secular society. Pastoral strategies of the past were based on doing things in Catholic societies, “this is no longer the case”, he warned.
The Church must find ways to join people where they are, using the language they use and hearing their issues, Dr Rey said.
He told of how in his own diocese in the south of France, he bought what had been a gay bar and turned it into a cafe of welcome near the port in Toulon. One priest who is part of a religious community spends his evenings in nightclubs.
“He doesn’t dance or drink but his presence affects the people,” Bishop Rey said. Seminarians have formed a rugby team as a way of reaching younger people. “Young people are attracted by sport and music. Visibility is important – to be there.”
Before he was bishop, Dr Rey was parish priest in the red light district of Pigal in Paris. “I had a café beside a sex shop where we welcomed the people who passed by and told them we were Christians.”
The bishop, who was part of the Emmanuel Community, sees every encounter which brings a person into contact with the Church as a wonderful opportunity. For example, in France 99% of couples live together before being married, but some come forward for church weddings. This, he said, is an “opportunity to evangelise them so they can be Christian spouses and parents”.
Addressing the main topic of his talk, the role of the priest in the new evangelisation, Bishop Rey said prayer and holiness were the first fundamentals of mission. “The Holy Spirit is the first player in the mission of the Church. He precedes and prepares our efforts.”
Forgetful
He said that in an often hedonistic society, forgetful of God, priests faced numerous challenges like secularism, clericalism, activism and scepticism. A priest seeking to become holy, live celibacy and in simplicity of life, was, he said, counter-cultural.
He warned that the temptation is to “run from the demands of this challenging position by becoming a kind of customer service officer seeking to please everybody, conforming to the lifestyle of our contemporaries”.
He also warned of the dangers of clericalism describing it as a vision of priesthood “as power over community and pastoral life”.
“The Good Shepherd doesn’t put himself above people but under their feet, sometimes he even carries them,” he said.
Activism, he said, leads priests to act “as if salvation depends on us”. It is important to develop antidotes to this, Bishop Rey said. “Be a man of prayer, emphasise hospitality and listening.
“Priests can’t be everywhere. Distinguish the urgent from the important,” he advised.
In his native France, Bishop Rey said, the scarcity of clergy often leads to isolation and the temptation to “go it alone”. In addition, many priests are tired or overburdened.
Faced with a new generation who don’t understand the message for which they gave their life, the temptation is to succumb to scepticism which Dr Rey described as a sickness that destroys hope.
“But the priest is the minster of hope.
“He celebrates at each Mass, proclaims the resurrection of Christ. He is called to start afresh from Christ, to embark on the path of evangelical radicalism, to root himself in prayer. In this way he will find around him signs of renewal.”
The new context for evangelisation, Bishop Rey believes, also demands a new pastoral governance based on priest and laypeople “discerning together a path of growth for the diocese and parish communities”.
He described team work and delegation as essential. However, he also warned: “pay attention to the conduct of pastoral change. Vision is exciting, but how we live a pastoral programme is as important as the programme itself.”
Responding to Bishop Rey’s address, Primate of All-Ireland Archbishop Eamon Martin said Ireland is blessed with “really good priests”.
“I think we need to let go of some of the ways we always used to do things and be more open to these [new] ideas,” Dr Martin said.
The Primate said the Holy Spirit was enriching the Church in Ireland with charisms which were given to many people.
“We have to be able to recognise them, identify and nourish them and give them space,” the archbishop said.
Report taken from Irish Catholic Website. See
http://www.irishcatholic.ie/article/changed-ireland-needs-changed-approach-church
Church leaders pay tribute to catechism groups
We have to be careful not to have a privatised idea of ‘our Christ’ – a Christ who speaks to us in a complete personal way but not a Christ who goes beyond our own perception, the papal nuncio to Ireland, Archbishop Charles Brown has said.
This is why the study of the Catechism is so important, because it helps us to see the Lord in all his transfigured beauty, he told over 250 members of catechism study groups at the Third Annual Gathering of Catechism Studies in St Patrick’s College Maynooth earlier this week.
“By studying the catechism as you are doing in groups all over Ireland, we come in contact with the person of Jesus Christ. There’s no contradiction at all between studying the truths of our faith in the Catechism of the Catholic Church and knowing Jesus – it is the same thing,” the Nuncio said.
Archbishop Eamon Martin paid tribute to the people all over Ireland who are “committed to the study of the catechism” and in particular to Máirín Ní Shúilleabháin and the steering committee of the ‘Adult Studies of the Catechism of the Catholic Church’.
“The valuable work you are doing is truly a blessing on the life of the Church in this country. It is a blessing that is felt in our parishes, communities, homes and your local groups.”
Effective evangelisation involved being “wholly faithful to the deposit of faith”, he said.
“Never lose sight of the pearl of great price in the one holy Catholic Church. Your study of the catechism is a very effective way of helping all of us remain faithful to and nourish our apostolic mission.”
The Primate of All Ireland said the Holy Spirit was enriching the Church with charisms given to many people.
“We have to be able to recognise them, indentify and nourish them and give them space.” The initiative of studying the catechism in groups was a great example of this.
He recommended identifying “good people in the parish or diocese” and allowing them to “do the Spirit’s work”.
Among those present at the one day gathering in Maynooth was Gillian Doherty a young mother from Cork who shared what the effect of studying the catechism has been for her and her group.
“The Holy Spirit is guiding us, helping us discern what is asked of us,” she said.
Some had been drawn to work with young people, others in the world of business, others in pastoral councils, “drawing people not just to activities but to prayer”.
Gillian joined a group to “find solidarity with other young families” after her 3-year-old son complained about going to mass as his friends weren’t there.”
“They began to take children to Adoration on Saturdays. There were ten to start, now we have 30. It has helped my children in forming faith friendships.”
Report taken from Diocese of Cork and Ross Website.
See http://www.corkandross.org/cinews.jsp?ID=84791
From Diocese of Cork and Ross:
September- December 2014
St. Francis Church, Liberty St., Cork.
Beginning Tuesday 2nd Sept. 2014: 7.30pm to 9.30pm
Rev. Gerard Garrett, Spiritual Director.
Facilitator: Mairin Ni Shuilleabhain, B. Div.
And also at
Myross Wood Retreat Centre, Leap, Co. Cork.
Beginning Monday 1st Sept. 2014: 7.30pm to 9.30pm
Rev. Michael Curran, Spiritual Director.
Facilitator: Frances McMahon, B.Div.
These studies are open to all adults who wish to have a deeper understanding of the Catholic Faith
All Welcome
'What is the Catechism, if not the memory of God, the memory of His works in history and His drawing near to us in Christ present in His word, in the sacraments, in His Church, in His love?' Pope Francis' homily to Catechists 29th September 2013.
For further details, Contact:
Mairin Ni Shuilleabhain, B. Div., Co-ordinator, Tel: 087-7950325. or [email protected]
September- December 2014
St. Francis Church, Liberty St., Cork.
Beginning Tuesday 2nd Sept. 2014: 7.30pm to 9.30pm
Rev. Gerard Garrett, Spiritual Director.
Facilitator: Mairin Ni Shuilleabhain, B. Div.
And also at
Myross Wood Retreat Centre, Leap, Co. Cork.
Beginning Monday 1st Sept. 2014: 7.30pm to 9.30pm
Rev. Michael Curran, Spiritual Director.
Facilitator: Frances McMahon, B.Div.
These studies are open to all adults who wish to have a deeper understanding of the Catholic Faith
All Welcome
'What is the Catechism, if not the memory of God, the memory of His works in history and His drawing near to us in Christ present in His word, in the sacraments, in His Church, in His love?' Pope Francis' homily to Catechists 29th September 2013.
For further details, Contact:
Mairin Ni Shuilleabhain, B. Div., Co-ordinator, Tel: 087-7950325. or [email protected]
From Diocese of Cloyne:
In our diocese, there has been an ever increasing desire for more substantial catechetical formation. This is in line with what is happening all over Ireland and is very much consistent with the impassioned prayer which is taking place for the renewal of the Church in Ireland. As one young dad said recently, “I know I believe, but I am not always sure why I believe.” In line with study groups already formed in Macroom and Blarney, two new groups are commencing in September 2014. In light of this, if you feel something of this nature would be of benefit, you are warmly invited to an information meeting on
· Monday September 1st from 7:30pm-9:15pm at the Nano Nagle Centre in Ballygriffin, Killavullen
· Wednesday September 3rd from 7:30pm-9:15pm at the Midleton Park Hotel in Midleton
An adult studies program in the Catechism of the Catholic Church will commence shortly thereafter in Ballygriffin and in East Cork. For more information, please contact Fr Sean Corkery at [email protected]
In our diocese, there has been an ever increasing desire for more substantial catechetical formation. This is in line with what is happening all over Ireland and is very much consistent with the impassioned prayer which is taking place for the renewal of the Church in Ireland. As one young dad said recently, “I know I believe, but I am not always sure why I believe.” In line with study groups already formed in Macroom and Blarney, two new groups are commencing in September 2014. In light of this, if you feel something of this nature would be of benefit, you are warmly invited to an information meeting on
· Monday September 1st from 7:30pm-9:15pm at the Nano Nagle Centre in Ballygriffin, Killavullen
· Wednesday September 3rd from 7:30pm-9:15pm at the Midleton Park Hotel in Midleton
An adult studies program in the Catechism of the Catholic Church will commence shortly thereafter in Ballygriffin and in East Cork. For more information, please contact Fr Sean Corkery at [email protected]
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