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| Mike Aquilina |
(156) Mike Aquilina: Highlights of the 2018 Diocesan Men’s Day of Renewal
For the ninth consecutive
year, the Diocese of Steubenville is sponsoring the Men's Day of Renewal on Saturday, March 3 from 9 am to 3:30 pm
at St. Stephen’s Church in Caldwell
off of I-77 Exit 25. The patron of the
Conference is St. Joseph, a model of a true man of God, to whose intercession
we count upon for its success.
Prior to the official start of the conference there will be an optional
half hour of private prayer at 8:30 am.
The goal of the Men's Day of Renewal is to focus on the spiritual development of the men of
our diocese. That includes being ready to face the four last things…….Death,
Judgment, Heaven, Hell. Having
spiritually strong men of faith and character translates into more solid
families, more dynamic parishes, and better communities. This is crucial to the
Church and particularly our diocese, now and in the future. It is also critical
for nurturing vocations.
To
complement the Mass presided by Bishop Monforton and Penance Service the
featured speaker is Mike Aquilina, an expert on the early Church,
particularly the Early Church Fathers and martyrs. He will show that the witness of the first
Christians coincides very well with Church teaching today in a remarkable
continuity over the centuries through 267 popes. Aquilina is an author of over 50 books,
particularly on the early Church and how the early Christians lived their
faith. The books have been translated
into many languages and even Braille. He
is a nationally known speaker at many conferences, also appearing frequently on
Relevant Radio and EWTN in which he has hosted ten television series and two
documentaries. He also has talents as a
poet and song writer, even collaborating with Rock and Roll Hall of Fame artist
Dion DiMucci. Aquilina’s extensive
journalism experience includes being a past editor of New Covenant magazine and
the Pittsburgh Catholic (diocesan newspaper).
His morning talk is titled
“The Strength of Heaven”, which will show how the angels were effective
witnesses and can teach us much to apply to our daily lives. In the afternoon, he will show how the
witness of the martyrs of the early Church can teach us to be witnesses today
in secular America. Mike Aquilina will
challenge the men to follow the example of the early Church Fathers and martyrs
and be effective witnesses in their homes, in their parishes, on the job, and
in their communities.
Blessed Pope Paul VI put it
very eloquently: “Modern man listens more willingly
to witnesses than to teachers, and if he does listen to teachers, it is because
they are witnesses. St. Peter expressed this well when he held up the example
of a reverent and chaste life that wins over even without a word those who
refuse to obey the word. It is therefore primarily by her conduct and by her
life that the Church will evangelize the world, in other words, by her living
witness of fidelity to the Lord Jesus- the witness of poverty and detachment,
of freedom in the face of the powers of this world, in short, the witness of
sanctity. (Evangelii Nuntiandi, 41)
Aquilina is the executive vice president and trustee of
the St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology, a Catholic research center, based in
Steubenville. Drawing from his diverse
experience as a journalist, prolific author, conference speaker, and father of
a family of six children, Mr. Aquilina can speak to the needs of the men.
This background puts Mike Aquilina in a
position to speak on the theme of this year’s Diocese of Steubenville Men’s
Conference, “Being a Cloud of Witnesses”.
That is through the power of faith rise up
to be the spiritual leaders of their families, to do their part in renewing
their parishes, be servant leaders in the community, and to make a difference
for Christ by applying the social teachings of the Church to their professions.
The fact, that travel time
may be long and distance may be far for many, gives the conference a pilgrimage
flavor. Lent, of course, is all about
sacrifice and spiritual growth. Since
St. Stephen Church in Caldwell is in the geographic center of our far flung
diocese, the Steering Committee is hopeful that the men of Steubenville in the
north and the men of Ironton and Chesapeake in the south will be able to participate. Regardless of distance, this mini-pilgrimage
is a Lenten sacrifice of early rising and a long trip with great fellowship in
a van or bus as the men pray together, discuss the talks and other events of
the Conference, and deepen friendships.
A bag lunch is provided.
It should be a great day of enjoyable fellowship and
spiritual invigoration. In each of
the last eight years men returned reinvigorated, enthusiastic, and spiritually
refreshed. Expect the same this
year. It is awesome to hear the men lift
up their voices in song and be moved by the beauty and power of the faith. But mostly, through God’s grace, we will have
more good spiritually strong men for the kingdom of God as well as for the
battle against secularism and other evils that plague our society. We will have
more men who put Christ into their professions. We will have men who will
become more knowledgeable in their faith and better prepared for a joyful
Easter and an eternal closeness to God.
The Men's Day of Renewal has grown into an annual event in our diocese,
thus fulfilling a great need.
Promotional Help Needed. Many if not most men will hardly notice the bulletin
announcements, posters, and brochures, although they are indeed important and
helpful. What they can’t miss is the
one-on-one personal selling by their peers, i.e., talking it up. The most effective form of advertising or
promotion is word of mouth. Most
effective is the witness of men who have gone to a previous Conference,
especially the parish representative that we are asking the pastor to appoint
or accept as a volunteer.
Thus one or two men are urgently needed in each parish
to assure the success of this
event. To ease the burden on our pastors, we are depending upon our men to
offer their assistance as parish representatives to mobilize
the men with good one on one personal selling, register them, and organize van
pools. Word-of-mouth advertising is essential to maximize
the promotion of the Men’s Day of Renewal throughout each parish. We ask participants
of past years to tell their friends about this awesome opportunity for
spiritual renewal. If there is no parish
representative in your parish, please consider volunteering by informing your
pastor and by e-mail “Don Coen - Chair Diocesan Men's Day of Renewal”
<donandmargcoen@yahoo.com>.
Equally important, women can be most valuable in
encouraging their husbands, sons (including teens), fathers, brothers,
boyfriends, etc., to attend. This is a very important part of the new
evangelization.”
Father and son can make this day an unforgettable
shared experience in which they become closer to each other. If the pastor accompanies the men, he would
have an opportunity to know the men better and thus solidify the parish. The Men’s Day of Renewal needs confessors.
The local Knights
of Columbus council can be most valuable since the spiritual formation
of their men is part of their mission.
They are asked to mobilize their men to attend and organize a van
pool. Traveling together can build
friendships, solidify the Council, and provide opportunities to tell about the
Knights, thus making the Conference a recruiting tool.
Each prospective parish representative is
asked to make his availability and contact information known to the Chair of the
Steering Committee, Don Coen at (740)264-0155, (740)632-1565, or
donandmargcoen@yahoo.com. Men may
register individually or the parish representative may collect the registration
forms with payment and send them as a package to Roger Huck; %Men’s Day of Renewal, P.O. Box 54; Beverly, OH 45715. This would save considerable time waiting at
the door. Checks for the Registration cost of $25.00 per person
are to be made payable to the Diocese of
Steubenville with “Men's Day of
Renewal” written on the memo line of the check.
Transportation Needs. A carpool, vanpool, or bus saves on fuel costs and
gives an opportunity for fellowship while traveling to and from the
event—especially for those traveling greater distances. Please invite other men
and assist with the organization of transportation for those attending in your
parish.
Donations Needed. It is very expensive to put on a conference of this magnitude and
feature nationally known top speakers.
While the Steering Committee does its best to minimize the cost for each
participant, we are seeking donations from businesses, parish organizations,
the Knights of Columbus, and individuals. Please send donations to Roger Huck
as shown above. Furthermore, we do not charge
men who are unable to pay so that no man is excluded.
Ads in the
Program Brochure. Details on placing the ad for a business or
community organization, or Knights of Columbus Council are in the Conference
Blog or call Roger Huck at 740-984-2234 or 740-336-9128.
More information is available from your pastor, from Don Coen
above, or Paul Sebastian at (740) 245-9404 or paulrsebastian@yahoo.com. The Men's
Conference Blog at http://diosteubmen.blogspot.com
has a wealth of promotional materials for use at the parish level……. Blog #136 – Overview; and
continued with 137) Ad Form; 138) Diocesan Press Release #1; 139) Possible
Short Bulletin Announcements; 140) Promotion Ideas; 141) Functions &
Crucial Importance of the Parish Rep; 142) Sign Up Sheet; 143) Sample Bulletin
Insert; 144) Diocesan Press Release #2; 145) Backing of the Pastor; 146) Role
of the Deacon; 147) Example of an After Mass Talk By a Layman; 148) Possible
Pastor Announcements; 149) Diocesan Press Release #3; 125) Catholic Newspaper
Press Release; 126) Secular Newspaper Press Release; 127) Appeal to the
Diocesan Councils of the Knights of Columbus; 128) Invitation to Parishes in
West Virginia; 129) Invitation to Veterans; 130) Invitation to College
Students; 131) My Ad in the 2017 Program Booklet; 132) Highlights of the 2017
Men's Conference. Numbers 125 to 132 are
from last year, but will be updated soon.
There are also interesting
articles on men’s spirituality, past conference highlights, etc. After the Conference and throughout the year,
articles will be added to help the men keep in good spiritual shape. Clergy, Religious, and knowledgeable layman
are invited to submit articles.
Please submit your registration as soon as possible. Registration will be accepted at the door; however,
doing so in advance makes our planning more efficient and also helps to
minimize waiting at the conference entrance.
SUMMARY OF WHAT THE CONFERENCE CAN DO FOR YOU
Get you into good spiritual shape.
Have a great day of enjoyable fellowship and spiritual invigoration with
fellow parishioners and participants at the conference, resulting in deeper
friendships and parish cohesion.
Develop
ourselves as men of character and spiritual strength as we obtain the
graces to cope with problems and conquer problematic issues that trouble our
society
Be
an effective spiritual leader to your family as a better husband and
father
Prepare
our hearts for the great feast of Easter as we become closer to God
Become
more knowledgeable about our Catholic faith and grow in Christian
maturity
Become a more effective
soldier of Christ, and help strengthen His kingdom on earth
Thanks for the efforts, Paul, and, it was wonderful to meet you at the conference! We thank you for the opportunity to be an exhibitor for Natural Family Planning International in Steubenville. The talks were excellent also!
ReplyDeleteThank you for being an exhibitor and for your great work. We hope that you exhibit at our future conferences. God bless.
ReplyDelete