Signing up for Arise

Here is the text of the reflection I shared with one of the communities entrusted to my pastoral care this weekend.  This particular parish has been preparing for the pastoral program known as Arise together in Christ.  Today, parishioners are invited to sign up for a small faith sharing group.  The scripture passages for this Sunday's celebration help me to focus the invitation for all our people to see this as an opportunity to deepen their commitment to be fervent disciples in today's world.

In small communities

For three evenings this past week, people from various places within this region gathered here in this church in order to experience a Mission entitled The Door of Faith.  Since we are in the final months of the Year of Faith, this was an opportunity for those who participated to reflect on the importance of faith in our lives.

Through music, story-telling and the odd joke, of which he was reminded from time to time, Father Alex encouraged us to remember always that our faith is based on a personal encounter between us and God.  Our first such encounter occurs at the baptismal font, and throughout our lives, God invites us to partake in many more such meetings.  Across the generations, the truths about people's personal encounters with God have been told and retold.  These testimonies of faith help us to come to believe that we too are part of the history of faith that is unfolding.  God has been inviting his people to discover and celebrate this faith ever since the time of Abraham, Moses and Noah.

When Jesus walked this earth, he taught his disciples about truth, the truth that comes from knowing Jesus through a personal encounter, and he encouraged them to be courageous in telling others about their faith too.  In order that they would be strengthened in their resolve to do this, he told them to draw strength from one another, from their gatherings, from their sharing in the Eucharistic meal, and from their telling and re-telling of their experiences.

Even today, we continue the practice of gathering around the Eucharistic table to celebrate our faith, to share the sacred meal, to listen to the sacred story, and to learn from Jesus about how we should live our lives.  The parable that is recounted in today’s gospel for instance is a lesson for all of us about honesty.  When we have experienced a personal encounter with Jesus, we quickly come to know that his love is genuine.  Because he is always truthful and honest with us in such encounters, even to the point of making himself vulnerable in our presence, we too should strive always to be truthful and honest in our dealings with God and with others. If others in turn experience these traits in us, they will come to trust us, just as we experience the sincerity of God’s promises made to us, and come to love him more and more each day.

Over the past few months, you have heard me mention from time to time a new parish program called Arise together in Christ!  This new program gives each and every one of us the opportunity to participate in a small faith sharing group, a chance to listen to the sacred story and then to reflect on its relevance for us in today’s world, a chance to share our own story if we wish with a small group of friends, a chance to grow in our understanding of the importance of faith in our lives.

This morning, Chris Jacobs is here to tell us exactly how we can go about signing up for one of the small faith sharing groups.  I’d like to invite him to come to the podium now.