A new year (and semester) has started, so after a break, we are restarting our Fellowship meetings.
In 2009, we are having the meetings on Thursdays at 6pm. Our hope is that more people will be able to join us, since on Saturdays many (grad) students are out of town.
Our first meeting of 2009 is this Thursday, January 22nd. Come prepared to share stories about your favorite saint. Also, if you haven't done that yet, pick a saint for the New Year from the urn near the front desk of the Newman Center (I think it is still out there).
Monday, January 19, 2009
Thursday, December 4, 2008
Communion at Mass
By Jonathan Pinto
No, this is not about receiving Holy Communion at Mass. It is about the communion among the congregants. One of the most beautiful and least discussed aspects of Mass is the connection, togetherness, and community that is formed among the congregants at every Mass. People may not know one another, and may not interact before, after, or during (if the “sign of peace” is skipped, as it sometimes is), but their mere presence at the Eucharist unites them. And of course if they regularly attend the same service, these bonds can become very strong.
As you know, most weekdays I attend the 10 am Mass at the Brompton Oratory in South Kensington, London. Over the weeks, among others, I’ve noticed a somewhat distinguished looking and casually-though-smartly dressed gentleman at the Mass. And I also observed that he never went up to receive Holy Communion. Two weeks ago, I noticed him as I entered and the thought crossed my mind - I wonder why he doesn’t receive Holy Communion, let me pray for him at this Mass. Lo and behold, at Communion time, he walked up to the altar rail and received Communion. Yes, it could be a coincidence, but as I heard Joel Osteen say in one of his segments, “since I became a believer, a lot more ‘coincidences’ began happening”. And this is a gentleman I don’t know from Adams. I don’t his name, his calling, and since they never have a “sign of peace”, I have never shaken his hand or exchanged a friendly greeting or gesture with him. Maybe it was a coincidence, but I believe it was the Holy Spirit at work.
Yesterday, I was at 1 pm Mass at the Imperial College Chaplaincy prayer room. And as the priest and the rest of us entered from the lounge area (where we were lounging) a noticed a young man already seated. Obviously a student, he looked like he could be Indian, long hair tied in pony tail, with the most intense look in his eyes. Since it is a prayer room the seats are ranged along the walls, and I found myself seated close, and at right angles, to him. As Mass began I could just sense his intensity and that there was something stirring deep within him, and I just thought I should pray for him and for whatever is going on with him. This Mass is as informal as the Brompton Oratory Mass is formal, so after his homily, Fr. Geoff asked us if anyone wanted to say something, and for some reason, I curbed my chronic tendency to open my mouth, and thank God I did. After a typical silence that lasted 30 seconds or so, and just when you expected Fr. Geoff to continue with the service, my pony-tailed friend spoke up, his voice charged with emotion, “I want to ask something, which may not be related, ‘does God forgive everything if one repents’?” From that point on, none of the 10 or so of us (including the priest) could have failed to experience this boy’s struggle. Fr. Geoff answered his question and as Mass went on it became clear that the boy probably wasn’t Catholic or even Christian. He might have just been seeking peace by himself in the prayer room, when we trooped in for Mass. He kept observing the rest of us, and mimicking us in terms of kneeling, standing, sitting, hand gestures and the rest. He might have also have received Communion but the boy just to his right folded his arms to receive a blessing and this boy followed suit. That experience resonated with me the rest of the day. I have participated in thousands of Masses and perhaps have not experienced what this lad experienced. Through him I have experienced the Mass like I never have before. I saw him again today on campus. He looked so much at peace, almost radiant with peace. I tried to say hi to him, but he didn’t seem to remember me. Maybe I am reading too much into this incident, but I can’t help but feel that it was the Holy Spirit at work.
No, this is not about receiving Holy Communion at Mass. It is about the communion among the congregants. One of the most beautiful and least discussed aspects of Mass is the connection, togetherness, and community that is formed among the congregants at every Mass. People may not know one another, and may not interact before, after, or during (if the “sign of peace” is skipped, as it sometimes is), but their mere presence at the Eucharist unites them. And of course if they regularly attend the same service, these bonds can become very strong.
As you know, most weekdays I attend the 10 am Mass at the Brompton Oratory in South Kensington, London. Over the weeks, among others, I’ve noticed a somewhat distinguished looking and casually-though-smartly dressed gentleman at the Mass. And I also observed that he never went up to receive Holy Communion. Two weeks ago, I noticed him as I entered and the thought crossed my mind - I wonder why he doesn’t receive Holy Communion, let me pray for him at this Mass. Lo and behold, at Communion time, he walked up to the altar rail and received Communion. Yes, it could be a coincidence, but as I heard Joel Osteen say in one of his segments, “since I became a believer, a lot more ‘coincidences’ began happening”. And this is a gentleman I don’t know from Adams. I don’t his name, his calling, and since they never have a “sign of peace”, I have never shaken his hand or exchanged a friendly greeting or gesture with him. Maybe it was a coincidence, but I believe it was the Holy Spirit at work.
Yesterday, I was at 1 pm Mass at the Imperial College Chaplaincy prayer room. And as the priest and the rest of us entered from the lounge area (where we were lounging) a noticed a young man already seated. Obviously a student, he looked like he could be Indian, long hair tied in pony tail, with the most intense look in his eyes. Since it is a prayer room the seats are ranged along the walls, and I found myself seated close, and at right angles, to him. As Mass began I could just sense his intensity and that there was something stirring deep within him, and I just thought I should pray for him and for whatever is going on with him. This Mass is as informal as the Brompton Oratory Mass is formal, so after his homily, Fr. Geoff asked us if anyone wanted to say something, and for some reason, I curbed my chronic tendency to open my mouth, and thank God I did. After a typical silence that lasted 30 seconds or so, and just when you expected Fr. Geoff to continue with the service, my pony-tailed friend spoke up, his voice charged with emotion, “I want to ask something, which may not be related, ‘does God forgive everything if one repents’?” From that point on, none of the 10 or so of us (including the priest) could have failed to experience this boy’s struggle. Fr. Geoff answered his question and as Mass went on it became clear that the boy probably wasn’t Catholic or even Christian. He might have just been seeking peace by himself in the prayer room, when we trooped in for Mass. He kept observing the rest of us, and mimicking us in terms of kneeling, standing, sitting, hand gestures and the rest. He might have also have received Communion but the boy just to his right folded his arms to receive a blessing and this boy followed suit. That experience resonated with me the rest of the day. I have participated in thousands of Masses and perhaps have not experienced what this lad experienced. Through him I have experienced the Mass like I never have before. I saw him again today on campus. He looked so much at peace, almost radiant with peace. I tried to say hi to him, but he didn’t seem to remember me. Maybe I am reading too much into this incident, but I can’t help but feel that it was the Holy Spirit at work.
Saturday, August 9, 2008
Saturday Meeting (2008/08/09)
On previous weeks the topic of time management has been treated in different contexts, so I'd like to bring it to the forefront.
- How do we use our time every day?
- How can we be able to schedule things better to take care of both our obligations as students/workers and our spiritual life?
- How do we handle distractions or unexpected events?
- How do we find time to pray or attend mass with our often busy schedules? Do you have good strategies?
Join us and share your thoughts on this.
- How do we use our time every day?
- How can we be able to schedule things better to take care of both our obligations as students/workers and our spiritual life?
- How do we handle distractions or unexpected events?
- How do we find time to pray or attend mass with our often busy schedules? Do you have good strategies?
Join us and share your thoughts on this.
Saturday Meeting (2008/08/02)
From our session leader Jonathan:
This is a followup to last Saturday's discussion on the
"peace that passes all understanding".
I did a keyword search for "peace" at Biblegateway.com
and got 247 hits. Peace features consistently across the Bible
starting with Genesis and right on through Revelation.
In the New Testament, Jesus uses the word peace both
as a greeting "Peace be with you" and as a a dismissal
"... your faith has healed you. Go in peace!".
And St. Paul refers to God as the "God of peace" in (Heb 13: 20; Phil 4:9).
The 2 passages that we will discuss are:
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world
gives.
Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. (John 14:27).
And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding,
will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Phil 4:7).
Questions:
1. What is the nature of the peace that Christ gives us?
2. How is different from the peace that the world gives us?
3. Why does this peace transcend all understanding?
4. How do we recognize Christ's peace (a) in the world in general,
(b) in others, (c) in ourselves?
This is a followup to last Saturday's discussion on the
"peace that passes all understanding".
I did a keyword search for "peace" at Biblegateway.com
and got 247 hits. Peace features consistently across the Bible
starting with Genesis and right on through Revelation.
In the New Testament, Jesus uses the word peace both
as a greeting "Peace be with you" and as a a dismissal
"... your faith has healed you. Go in peace!".
And St. Paul refers to God as the "God of peace" in (Heb 13: 20; Phil 4:9).
The 2 passages that we will discuss are:
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world
gives.
Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. (John 14:27).
And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding,
will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Phil 4:7).
Questions:
1. What is the nature of the peace that Christ gives us?
2. How is different from the peace that the world gives us?
3. Why does this peace transcend all understanding?
4. How do we recognize Christ's peace (a) in the world in general,
(b) in others, (c) in ourselves?
August Schedule
This is our schedule for August, send Jose an email to volunteer for leading.
| 2008 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| August | 2nd | Jonathan | Peace |
| 9th | José | Time Management | |
| 16th | TBD | TBD | |
| 23rd | Chad | TBD | |
| 30th | José | TBD | |
Farewell Party for Jon and Jeff
Some pictures from the farewell party we had for our good friends (and Fellowship founders) Jonathan and Jeff, who had now completed their Doctoral Degrees and have taken jobs out of Pittsburgh.
Thanks Alroy for hosting the party and for the pictures!
Saturday Meeting (2008/07/26)
Alroy served as our session leader. The discussion was based on letter 27 of
C.S.Lewis' The Screwtape Letters.
A summary of the letter:
Wormwood is failing, Screwtape feels, because even though the young man's love is distracting him from God, the young man knows it and is beseeching God in prayer to help him deal with the distraction. This is not good. Screwtape suggests Wormwood try to lure the man away from simple, God-directed prayers by making the man doubt whether asking God for things is appropriate at all. Perhaps he can be made to stop praying.
C.S.Lewis' The Screwtape Letters.
A summary of the letter:
Wormwood is failing, Screwtape feels, because even though the young man's love is distracting him from God, the young man knows it and is beseeching God in prayer to help him deal with the distraction. This is not good. Screwtape suggests Wormwood try to lure the man away from simple, God-directed prayers by making the man doubt whether asking God for things is appropriate at all. Perhaps he can be made to stop praying.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)