Closing Message from Bishop Edward Burns
Diocese of Dallas
Daily Prayer and Reflection
Bishop William Wack
Diocese of
Pensacola-Tallahassee
Your Forum Prayer Guide for Friday, December 11, 2020
Arise and Become What You Are
God created us for a specific purpose in this world. It is our calling, our vocation, and our mission. But have we taken the time to discover what that truly is? Pope Francis tells us: “For our life on earth reaches full stature when it becomes an offering… It follows that every form of pastoral activity, formation, and spirituality should be seen in the light of our Christian vocation.” (Christus Vivit 254) When we make the effort to dream, to hope, to commit, and to risk everything, then we can see clearly enough to know what God has in store for us.
Scripture for the Day: Isaiah 48: 17-19
This is the first reading for the celebration of Mass on the Friday of the Second Week of Advent. In this short passage, we hear God speaking directly to and about us: “I, the Lord, your God, teach you what is for your good, and lead you on the way you should go” (Is 48:17). He has laid out a path for us - but are we ready to follow on that vocational journey, even if it makes us uncertain or uncomfortable? We pray for strength to arise and become who and what we are - who God designed us to be in his Kingdom.
Saints and Companions for the Day
St. Teresa of Avila (1515-1582) and St. John of the Cross (1542-1591)
as mentor and student and collaborators, who helped us discover our inner convictions and the development of our souls.
St. Vincent Pallotti (1795-1850)
founder of the Society of the Catholic Apostolate (the Pallottines), who affirmed that all classes and all people - religious, ordained, and lay - each have a calling in the world “for the great glory of God and for one’s own salvation and that of one’s neighbor.”
Bl. Isidore Bakanja (1887-1909)
who became a Christian in the Congo as he entered young adulthood at age 18, but was abused and beaten in the workplace because of his devotion to the Blessed Mother and his public witness for Christ. He forgave his persecutors but eventually died from the infection of his wounds.
Bl. Pier Giorgio Frassati (1901-1925)
the “man of the beatitudes” who as a young adult, became who God made him to be: a person for others, with radical charity for those on the margins of society; a loving son and brother; and a devoted Catholic who sought God in Eucharist, in the poor, in his friends, and “towards the heights” (or in his native Italian, “verso l’alto!”).
And be sure to take time today to pray the Official Prayer for the 2020 Forum. With the intercessions of these holy companions, we pray in solidarity with one another as we “arise and dream.”
What's Next?
The Forum is just a beginning. What comes next is continuing the work of innovating and working collaboratively in the Church to support one another in this pastoral effort. To aid in that journey, the National Advisory Team on Young Adult Ministry recommends the following over the next two months:
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January 13, 2021, 8:00 p.m. ET
Journeying Together Intercultural Gathering #1
(for more info, go to the Journeying Together web page)
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January 21, 2021, 2:00 p.m. ET
Webinar on Ministry with Young Adults (Topic TBD)
(for more info, contact yam@usccb.org)
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January 28-29, 2021, various times
Annual Vigil and March for Life 2021
(for more info, go to the March for Life web page)
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February 6-9, 2021, various times
USCCB Catholic Social Ministries Gathering
(for more info, go to the CSMG web page)
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Mid-February 2021, time TBD
National Dialogue Final Report Launch
(for the latest updates, go to the National Dialogue website)
February 21, 2021: 3:00 p.m. ET
Journeying Together Intercultural Gathering #2
(for more info, go to the Journeying Together web page)
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February 25, 2021: 2:00 p.m. ET
Webinar on Ministry with Young Adults (Topic TBD)
(for more info, contact yam@usccb.org)
We look forward to seeing you at these and other great activities to continue arising and innovating in your ministries with young adults. Thank you for your participation and God bless you on your journey!
The USCCB Secretariat of Laity, Marriage, Family Life and Youth would like to thank the 2020 National Leadership Forum planning team, led by Forum Coordinator, Vicky Hathaway of the Diocese of Gary: Katie Aguilar, Jose Julian Matos Auffant, James Behan, Lauren DeSmit, Alessandro DiSanto, Brittany Garcia, Michal Horace, Paul Jarzembowski, Sarah Jarzembowski, Mary McGeehan, Brian Rhude, and Nick Stein; the administrative support of Grace Gretz and Mary Grace Zwilling; Mike Lewis for the design of the logo; and the organizational support of the USCCB National Advisory Team on Young Adult Ministry, led by Chairperson Diana Hancharenko.
Additional gratitude is given to Archbishop Jose Gomez, President of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), and Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone of San Francisco, Chairman of the USCCB Committee on Laity, Marriage, Family Life and Youth (LMFLY) with Dominic Lombardi, Executive Director of the LMFLY Secretariat Staff.
We further acknowledge the many presenters who gave generously of their time in offering the workshops, keynotes, prayers, and facilitated conversations, along with Armando Cervantes, who provided the bilingual translation for live events. These individuals all provided incredible content for the ministry field that will benefit the Church long beyond this Forum week.
Finally, thanks be to our God, who makes all things possible – who allows each of us to arise anew in Christ’s name and be innovators for the Kingdom of God in our world today.
The 2020 National Leadership Forum on Ministry with Young Adults would not have been the innovative event that it was without you, our participants!
Your willingness to try something new, listen to a new idea, talk to someone new, and be open to the Holy Spirit moving in your life and ministry are signs that hope is alive in our Church. Thank you.
The light that each one of us carries, can look dim on it's own. But when it is joined by the light of a ministry family of over 400 people, all arising to the call to accompany young adults, our light become warm, inviting, and full of so much hope. It carries us along as we take risks, committing to changing our world, and continuing to dream of a Church that accompanies young adults.
Arise now, and become what you are called to be.
Please know of our prayers for you, your young adults, and your communities.
