March 3, 2010 // Local

Many parishes offering Missions and Retreats

Todays Catholic

St. Paul of the Cross hosts parish mission
COLUMBIA CITY — St. Paul of the Cross will host its parish mission titled “Meeting Christ Through the Sacraments” from March 6-11 at 7 p.m. each evening. The mission will feature Passionist Father Arthur Carillo as speaker. There will be children’s activities and childcare will be available. St. Paul Parish is located at 315 S. Line St. in Columbia City.

Sacred Heart to host parish mission
WARSAW — Msgr. James Wolf and the parishioners of Sacred Heart Parish will host a Lenten parish mission entitled “The Doors to Christ are Wide Open,” March 14-18. Each session will include prayer and renewal to prepare for Easter.
All evening sessions will begin at 7 p.m. in the church and will include the following themes and speakers:
• Sunday, March 14 — “The Doors to Christ are Open to All,” presented by Meg Hanlon, theology department head at Bishop Luers High School.
• Monday, March 15 — “Loving God with our Whole Minds,” presented by Msgr. Bill Schooler, pastor of St. Pius X Parish in Granger.
• Tuesday, March 16 — “Loving God with our Whole Souls,” presented by Father Bob Lengerich, associate pastor of St. Pius X Parish in Granger.
• Wednesday, March 17 — “Loving God with our Whole Hearts,” presented by Father Bill Kummer, pastor of St. Michael Parish in Plymouth.
• Thursday, March 18 — “Going Forth from Eucharist to Love Our Neighbor as Ourselves,” presented by Bishop Kevin C. Rhoades of the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend.
The morning sessions will be Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday at 9 a.m. in the gathering space in church. These sessions will be presented by Linda Furge, program developer for the Office of Spiritual Development and Evangelization and Natalie Kohrman, director of the diocesan Office of Spiritual Development and Evangelization.

St. Bernard Parish offers Lenten mission
WABASH — St. Bernard Church, corner of Cass and Sinclair streets. in Wabash will host a Lenten parish mission, “Take This Moment,” March 7-10. All evening sessions will begin at 7 p.m. in the church, and include the following themes and speakers:
• Sunday, March 7, “Take This Moment to Pray” presented by Father Tom Shoemaker, pastor of St. Jude in Fort Wayne.
• Monday, March 8, “Take This Moment to Strengthen Our Faith” presented by Father Bill Kummer, pastor of St. Michael Parish in Plymouth.
• Tuesday, March 9, “Take This Moment to Forgive” presented by Bishop Emeritus John M. D’Arcy. The sacrament of Reconciliation will be celebrated this evening.
• Wednesday, March 10, “Take This Moment to Love” presented by Father Glenn Kohrman, pastor of St. Vincent de Paul Parish, Elkhart. Mass will be celebrated.
There will be refreshments served in the school basement of Zahn Hall following each evening’s service except for Tuesday.
“Mornings of Reflection” will be on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday beginning at 9 a.m. at the Knights of Columbus Hall, 595 S. Huntington St. in Wabash. These sessions will be presented by Jennifer Kohrman, associate director of diocesan Office of Spiritual Development and Evangelization.

Bishop D’Arcy and Holy Cross priests to lead Christ the King Parish retreat
SOUTH BEND — The episcopal motto of Bishop John M. D’Arcy, “His steadfast love endures forever,” (Psalm 118 and 136) is the theme for the upcoming parish retreat of Christ the King in South Bend. The retreat will take place in the church on March 14-16, beginning at 7 p.m. each evening.

In choosing this particular Scripture to be his motto, Bishop D’Arcy explains on the diocesan Web site, “‘His steadfast love endures forever’ expresses briefly an ideal, a program of life, the spirit of the one who selects it. It is also a call to the Church and to every person to be reminded of God’s steadfast love even in the midst of pain and sorrow.”
Bishop D’Arcy will further offer his reflections on this cornerstone passage from his episcopacy on Sunday evening. Holy Cross Father Ken Molinaro, assistant provincial of the Congregation of Holy Cross, and Holy Cross Father Peter Jarret, religious superior to Holy Cross priests and brothers on the campus of Notre Dame, will offer reflections on the subsequent evenings.

Prayer and song will precede each reflection. Tuesday evening will also include the sacrament of Reconciliation following Father Jarret’s remarks. In addition, time has been set aside for Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament in conjunction with the retreat. On Sunday, Adoration will take place from 1:30-4:30 p.m. and on Monday and Tuesday, Adoration will immediately follow the 8:30 a.m. Mass lasting until noon.

In preparing for this retreat, Father Molinaro offers, “Our lives can so easily become preoccupied with the cares and concerns of the day that we fail to see or recognize God’s abiding presence. God’s love is steadfast, loving us more than we realize or could ever imagine.”

Father Molinaro goes on to explain, “God is continually inviting us into ever greater awareness, a consciousness of who we are in God’s sight. This awareness is the very essence of prayer. The invitation in this Lenten season is to open ourselves to see more clearly God’s steadfast love in our life and to enter more fully into this loving relationship with God.”

This retreat is open to all. Child care will be available. For more information, please contact the parish office at (574) 272-3113.