Ignite St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Roman Catholic Church

Ignite Applications: Mission Statement Faith Formation Faith Sharing St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Roman Catholic Church

OPENING PRAYER: Heavenly Father, From Ephesians 3:16-19 OPENING PRAYER: Heavenly Father, grant us in accord with the riches of Your glory to be strengthened with power through Your Spirit in the inner self, that Christ may dwell in our hearts through faith; that we, rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the holy ones what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that we may be filled with all the fullness of God.”

Opening Hearts to the Fire of God’s Love. “Heart” in Scripture: Refers to inner self Reveals person’s character 1 Sm 16:7 Where life flows from Pr 4:23 Where we meet God’s love & Spirit Rm 5:5; Gal 4:6 The heart refers to the depths of one’s being, where a person decides for and against God CCC 362-368 The heart reveals a person’s character. 1 Samuel 16:7 “Not as a man sees does God see, because man sees the appearance but God looks into the heart.” Life flows from the heart. Proverbs 4:23 “Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.” The heart is where we meet God’s love & Spirit. Romans 5:5, “Hope does not disappoint, for the love of God has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given us.” Galatians 4:6 “As proof that you are children, God sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying out, Abba, Father!”

Hearts Open to God Some Expressions from Scripture Thirsting for God Ps 63:2 Loving God Lk 10:27 Trusting God Pr 3:5 Directed by God 2 Thes 3:5 Meditating on God Ps 19:14 Giving from heart 2 Cor 9:7 Loving others 1 Pt 2:22 Thirsting for God. Psalm 63:2 “O God, you are my God- for you I long; for you my body yearns, for you my soul thirsts…” Loving God. Luke 10:27 – “You shall love the Lord with all your heart…” Trusting God. Proverbs 3:5 - “Trust in the Lord with all your heart…” Directed by God. 2 Thessalonians 3:5 – “May the Lord direct your hearts to the love of God and to the endurance of Christ” Meditating on God. Psalm 19:14 - “May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer” Giving from the heart. 2 Cor 9:7 – “Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.” Loving others. 1 Peter 2:22- “Since you have purified yourselves by obedience to the truth for sincere mutual love, love one another intensely from a pure heart.”

Hearts Open to God Spiritual disposition for an ever deepening experience of God . We receive the fire of God’s love when our hearts are open to the Spirit of Christ Rev 3:20 With the fire of God’s love in our hearts, we have the grace to open the hearts of others to God The Lord does not impose Himself on us. Revelation 3:20 – “Behold I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, then I will enter his house and dine with him, and he with me.”

..while being guided by the Holy Spirit… Transform our Parish ..while being guided by the Holy Spirit… The Holy Spirit Ushers us into God’s presence Rm 8:9 Ignites God’s love in our hearts Lk 24:32 Transforms us into the likeness of Christ 2 Cor 3:18 Transform our Parish through prayer, worship, service, charity and growth in the knowledge of our faith, while being guided by the Holy Spirit. We invite all people to enrich our community with tolerance and cooperation with all other faiths. The Holy Spirit ushers us into God’s presence. Romans 8:9 – “You are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone do not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ.” The Holy Spirit ignites a burning love of God in our hearts. After the two disciples on the road to Emmaus encountered the risen Lord – “their eyes were opened and they recognized him, but he vanished from their sight. Then they said to each other, “were not our hearts burning within us while he spoke to us on the way and opened the scriptures to us?” (Luke 24:32). The Holy Spirit transforms us into the likeness of Christ. 2 Corinthians 3:18 – “All of us, gazing with unveiled face on the glory of God, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, as from the Lord who is the Spirit.”

Faith Formation To deepen our relationship with Purpose To deepen our relationship with Jesus Christ and to consciously grow into the life of His Spirit through prayer & worship, service and charity, and learning, living & sharing our faith Pillars provide strength and support for our mission. Remove or weaken one of our mission pillars, and the attainment of our mission may be at risk. In addition, pillars provide areas that we can measure for our progress.

Faith Formation Parish Applications In defining Pillar, consider: Situation Goals Content Delivery Methods

Faith Formation Parish Applications Situation: What has been done? For whom? Response Who have participated? Why? Who have not participated? Why? Lessons learned Essential needs assessment by community segment

Faith Formation Parish Applications Goals: Supports USCCB Adult Faith Formation goals Supports Mission Specific for community segments By age group or generations Measures USCCB goals Invite and enable ongoing conversion to Jesus Christ in the holiness of life. Promote and support active membership in the Christian community. Call and prepare adults to act as disciples in mission to the world. (The world for the parish is the larger community it serves)

Faith Formation Parish Applications Content: Should meet essential needs Knowing, following, sharing Jesus Knowing Catholic faith – CCC Introduction to Scripture Growth in Catholic spirituality By age segment, including Youth

Faith Formation Parish Applications Delivery: Teacher-centered – didactic Priests & deacons From St. Paul Inside the Walls Learner-centered – teacher as facilitator or enabler Mentoring by priests & deacons

Faith Formation Parish Applications Media: Homilies Formation recollections Classroom teaching Word Sharing in Ministries Books & DVDs Website, podcasts, bulletin

Faith Formation Individual Applications Daily response to the Lord’s call “Come & See” Jn 1:39 Prayer & Sacraments Bible Study, Mass readings Spiritual books, videos, audios Formation events & courses Parish ministry service Mission outreach to needy Each of us is in the journey of life- a pilgrim on this road. Our journey has its ups and downs, yet through all these, we can continually grow at the heart level. Every situation we face offers opportunities to encounter Christ, to grow in the knowledge of God and in communion with Him and His Church through our parish community. He calls on us to get to know him better in those situations, to come & see (Jn1:39) Can we learn from the progression of movement in the growth in faith and transformation of the apostles? After Come & you will see (John 1:39): Love me John (14:15); Give up all (Luke 14:33); Follow me (John 21:19) Formation engages the mind, the heart and the being. Knowing Jesus starts in the mind with study, but it cannot remain there or else we would know Jesus only in mind. Knowledge must be internalized in the heart, where Jesus dwells and reigns. What we have learned and internalized we then apply in our lives, so that Christ in us becomes our holiness and strength.

Faith Sharing Purpose “To bring the Good News of Jesus Christ into every human situation and seek to convert individuals and society by the divine power of the Gospel itself ..” USCCB National Plan & Strategy for Catholic Evangelization “The aim of all Christian education, moreover, is to train the believer in an adult faith that can make him a "new creation", capable of bearing witness in his surroundings to the Christian hope that inspires him.” Pope Benedict XVI, The Sacrament Of Charity Fr. Raniero Cantalamessa (preacher to the papal household) once said that one can draw a line across the life of a Christian - before Christ in our old life and after Christ in our life as a new creation – and that line represents our life-changing encounter with Christ. 2 Cor 5:17, 20 – “So whoever is in Christ is a new creation; the old things have passed away, behold new things have come. And all this is from God…so we are ambassadors for Christ, as if God were appealing through us.” Each of us has a story to share of the life changing encounter we’ve had with God

Faith Sharing Parish Applications Situation: What is being done currently? Who to? Response? Who by? Participation level? What works well? What needs to improve? Lessons learned Sharers development needs

Faith Sharing Parish Applications Goals: Response to call Who do we want to reach? Active and inactive parishioners Sunday/Christmas/Easter visitors Lapsed Catholics Measures Measures Increased number of active parishioners New parishioners Mass attendance Stewardship Participation in parish ministries and outreaches Catechumens New ministries

Faith Sharing Parish Applications Methods: Liturgy & music Community hospitality/experience Parish evangelization events Word sharing in ministries Mission projects/programs Website and social media

Faith Sharing Parish Applications Simple ways available now: Be a welcoming, helping community Greet them as family, invite back Offer to pray with those who share their problem Respond with ‘I’m blessed’ to “How are you?” question Participate in liturgy; Fellowship after Mass Ask them how they are- listen and respond. Offer to pray with those who share their concerns Not too good: I pray things would be better Not feeling well: I pray now that God’s healing be with you Have problems: I pray for God’s help for you When asked how are you, say “I am blessed” Show caring. Offer help- for example, for those with physical handicap, elderly, little children. Point to Jesus and the Sacraments

Faith Sharing Individual Applications Be an authentic Christian witness Share often with your family and friends how God has blessed you Encourage your family to deepen relationship with Christ by learning their faith & active parish participation Invite your friends to our parish Serve the needy Will those you invite find God in our community? First Christian community- after Christ’s ascension, when the eyewitnesses have died, before the bible was printed- how did they tell people about Christ? Despite persecutions, the Church grew exponentially at that time. Many non-Christians wondered why Christians would rather give up their lives than give up faith in Christ. Who was this Jesus, they asked. To answer that, the first Christians invited them to their community - Come & see. They saw Christ in their community, by the love they have for each other. The Gospel was written in hearts!   In his first letter to the church in Thessalonica, St. Paul writes (1 Thes 2:8 ) – “With much affection for you, we were determined to share with you not only the Gospel of God, but our very selves as well.” May the Lord Jesus Christ grant us the grace to share the Gospel to all that He sends us to at the St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish, and may His Spirit of Love inflame our hearts so that we can give our selves to them as well.