One of the most enriching parts of my work is when I am out in parishes nourishing each other sharing our faith and our experiences. In the February issue of Intercom I wrote about the importance of the evaluation/feedback sheet and I have been using a lot of feedback to create an adult faith development resource for those involved in any form of ministry in our Church. This resource can be used with anyone who wishes to explore faith, life in communion and the Gospel message that underpins all we are called to do as Catholics, not only in ministry but always on mission.
Ideally all three parts of this resource should be used as a day-long adult faith development experience but the three parts can, of course, be used over 3 evenings if a group is prepared to commit to the time (each part should take approximately 1.5 – 2 hours). In this month’s piece I am detailing Part 1.
You can view the Powerpoint presentation here: Intercom Online – Personal Encounter – Presentation Complete
Items that are needed for the gathering
- You will need a laptop, projector and screen to display the PowerPoint.
- A prayer space – I generally include Life, Light, and the Word (flowers, a candle, the Bible)
- Plenty of pens and paper
- Some gentle instrumental music
Introducing the Process
Like all good adult faith development processes there should be time dedicated to talking and sharing. ‘Living Church for Mission,’ as a process, allows for lots! Beginning with a ‘Welcome,’ ‘Who’s Who’ and a ‘Hopes and Expectations’ segment, this allows everyone to discover the variety of different groups/ministries that are present. It is always amazing to hear how much is actually happening and this creates a positive atmosphere for the rest of the session. I find it is very important to then outline the day/evening and to particularly highlight that this is not a planning session; that we are not here to ‘fix’ everything or plan to fix everything. My slide states: We are going to talk, we are going to listen and we are going to take care of each other. Asking participants for that commitment to speak with good intention and to stay with the purpose of the session, to listen with attention and compassion when someone else is speaking, and to hold in safety all persons – present, talked about or even thought about, while we work together is hugely important so the session is not sent off track, consciously or unconsciously. Once this introductory piece is complete and we all know each other, I believe this is the best moment for prayer together.
Personal Encounter: My relationship with God?
By clicking on the link above you are hopefully looking at some lines from the footprints poem and an image from Share the Good News of a pair of worn sandals resting on the sand. This is the image I use when introducing my personal testimony. The person chosen for this testimony piece is very important. They must be willing and have the courage to share their own faith story with the group in an appropriate and safe manner. I must emphasise that a personal testimony must not be self-indulgent, seek sympathy or attention, nor should it reveal something about persons which may result in defamation, scandal or vulnerability. Looking to the slides, you will see little information about my testimony because it is a spoken testimony, which should only take 5 or 6 minutes. The slides with the images of St Paul on the Road to Damascus and the two on the Road to Emmaus capture whether or not the person sharing their testimony experienced a Damascus moment of conversion or an Emmaus moment (getting to know Jesus again or anew) or, perhaps, both. I have also included some images depicting other moments of personal encounter with God from our Scriptures. I encourage you to seek and find your own images that speak to you as the presenter/facilitator.
The rest of the slides affirm what it is hoped to convey to any gathering: we all grow in different directions, but our roots remain as one; that our faith, as Catholics, is about the encounter with God and no one should think that this invitation is not meant for him or her.[1] At this point, I invite the participants to consider some questions about their own faith stories so my slide includes:
- What have I come to know of God for myself – that is by conviction, in an experiential way and how does this experience shape my approach to life and the lives of others?
- Where or how am I energised/inspired/hope-filled in my efforts to respond to the call to be a disciple of Christ?
- Where or how am I challenged in my efforts to respond to the call to be a disciple of Christ?
For at least 20/30 minutes participants are invited to share in pairs, appropriately and safely, any of the questions they are comfortable to talk about. During the feedback time, which takes another 20/30 minutes, I don’t seek answers to what they shared. Rather, my questions are ‘What are you thinking?’ and ‘What are you feeling?’
I think you might be pleasantly surprised how enriching and enabling the whole process might be!
[1] Deus Caritas Est §1 and Evangelli Gaudium §3