33rd Sunday of the Year
14 November 2004
Praised be Jesus Christ! Now and forever!
Dear Friends in Christ,
I cordially invite you to two special events, one in three weeks and the other in Lent:
- The man who introduced me to the Catholic Church nearly 25 years ago and who served as my sponsor in Confirmation is Dr. Robert Royal, one of the most urbane and civilized Christian gentlemen I have ever met. Bob is a scholar of deep learning and genuine wisdom and a keen observer of the human condition, and he will be with us on Saturday 4 December to lecture on "The Coming End of Secularism". Please see the insert in this bulletin for detailed information on the lecture. You will notice in the lengthy subtitle something of the irony and wit for which Bob is famous as a lecturer, and I hope that you can join us on 4 December at 1:00 pm in Gallivan Hall for a splendid reflection on all things Catholic by a master teacher and compelling witness to Christ.
- Dwight Longenecker is no stranger to St. Mary’s, having lectured here before. Dwight is an alumnus of Bob Jones University who became a minister in the Church of England before entering the Catholic Church; he is also a brilliant writer and a gifted teacher. Dwight will be with us in the Third Week of Lent to lead a Parish Retreat based on the spiritualities of St. Benedict and St. Therese of Lisieux, and we want to involve as many people as possible. Please reserve the evenings of 27 and 28 February and 1 and 2 March on your calendars now, and watch for more information as Lent approaches. We will begin each evening with the choral celebration of Vespers and then explore together the limitless depths of God’s love for us.
The sixth principle of Evangelical Catholicism holds that "Being a follower of Christ requires moving from being a Church member by convention to a Christian disciple by conviction, and this transformation demands that we consciously accept the Gospel as a measure of our entire lives, rather than attempting to measure the Gospel by our experience." Both of the events described above are offered in the service of this growth into mature discipleship, and I encourage you to attend and bring a friend with you.
Father Newman