MERRILLVILLE – Father Declan McNicholas said he was “really excited” and “was really glad to have everyone here” as he welcomed approximately 80 people from around the Diocese of Gary to “Formation Saturdays for Parish Leaders and Volunteers” on Sept. 13 at the Pastoral Center.
Father McNicholas, director of missionary discipleship and evangelization, and director of the Lay Ecclesial Ministry program, explained that those in LEM meet once a month on a Saturday for formation, and he wanted to make those dates open to anyone in ministry within the diocese, especially those in leadership roles.
“We wanted to make it available to leaders from around the diocese so they can come for topical formation and a chance to interact with each other – to do some networking,” he said. “Oftentimes, in our parishes, we can become so isolated. We may feel like we just have to trust the ministry, and we forget that we're not alone in this, that we can rely on each other.”
The Formation Saturday held this month began with the celebration of Mass. During the homily, Father McNicholas shared that sometimes the Lord holds people back in a helpful way, encouraging them to slow down.
“In ministry we can get excited about something, and we want to complete it right now,” Father McNicholas said. “And the Lord today in the Gospel says no. We have to do the work ahead of time on ourselves, in our ministry, so that way we actually bear fruit.”
Using the analogy of a tree, Father McNicholas explained people need to first become the good tree in order to produce the good fruits.
“Today is a great opportunity for us to build that foundation as we take some time away for the next couple of hours this morning, and use it as a retreat, a formation kind of day,” he said.
Father McNicholas also took a moment to encourage those in attendance to engage in conversation with someone who they didn't know previously.
“Build that foundation with each other and with the Lord,” he said. “That way we can leave this space with a firm foundation to bear good fruit.”
Those in attendance were then led through leadership training by Ron Huntley, an international Catholic leadership coach and author, who presented in English, or Javier Castillo, senior coordinator for Hispanic formation ministry in the Archdiocese of Chicago, who delivered his presentation in Spanish.
During Huntley's lecture, he asked those in the room, “What impact does not having enough people to serve in your ministry have on you and your parish?” Attendees paired up into groups of two to discuss their thoughts before sharing some responses outloud with the entire group.
Huntley then went on to talk about the importance of having volunteers who are right for their roles and encouraged finding those in the church who could become trusted apprentices and help continue the ministry.
“What could the ministry look like if it was wildly successful?” asked Huntley, as he proposed the question to illustrate the need for dreaming and creating a plan.
“It's awfully hard to recruit people if you don't have a dream, if you don't have a vision for your ministry that sounds exciting,” he said.
Castillo asked those participating in his lecture to answer the question, “Que significa para mi el service?” or “What does service mean to me?” At each table, groups wrote down their answers on a large sheet of paper.
Castillo described the call to service using the elements of the kerygma and various Bible verses. He also offered the following words to reflect on: “Jesus Christ loves me, gave his life for me and now he lives by my side every day to enlighten me, to strengthen me, to keep me safe.”
Marisela Serrato, a parishioner of St. Joseph the Worker in Gary, is currently enrolled in the LEM program. She explained she wanted to participate in the classes in order to ensure that everything she was sharing about the faith through her work with the church was something she personally learned.
Serrato stated that she believes the Formation Saturdays are a really good opportunity to gather the leaders of the local churches and inspire each other to “keep going and learn how we can do the best for our community.”
Janice Gatons, pastoral associate at St. Michael the Archangel in Schererville, went through the LEM program years ago. When she learned about the Formation Saturdays event, her curiosity led her to register. She was happy the opportunity presented itself, and said she wished more people were open to continuing their faith formation.
“We all feel like we know some of the middle stuff, but sometimes we don't even know all the basics many times,” she said. “We don’t necessarily know everything, especially when you get down to the nitty-gritty about what Christ has done for us and what we believe.”
The next Formation Saturday is scheduled for Oct. 11. The topic will be “Music, the universal language in the universal Church” with speakers Alison Powell, music director at St. Matthias in Crown Point, and Michelle Alexander, a minister of liturgical and Catholic music and a St. Paul parishioner. To register, visit https://dioceseofgary.jotform.com/252504721852151
