I
come from a Catholic family. My mom's mom was a devout Catholic, always praying
for us grandkids and telling us that she loved us and Jesus loves us. My mom
grew up Catholic, attending Catholic school through high school and even got
married in the Catholic Church. Many might not know this (and I certainly don't
remember this) but I was baptized Catholic. My mom’s family is from a small
town in western PA, a mixing pot of many different cultures, but one church.
Hagerstown, Maryland – I was born and raised here, and now I’m happy to serve
this community on Young Life staff.
My
parents left the Catholic Church when I was very young so most of my spiritual
formation came from the Brethren tradition. I grew up going to a small
little church - Longmeadow Church of the Brethren. I felt that going to
Catholic Mass on Christmas and Easter was just part of the family tradition on
my moms side. Most times while attending service on Easter or Christmas it was
standing room only, so my last memory of having my whole mom’s side of the
family together for a Sunday morning Mass was standing in the vestibule at
Saint Ann’s. The only thing I found strange about a Catholic service was the
length and not understanding all the parts of the Mass.
I heard Michael Havercamp
speak at Area Director School in Colorado and I was fired up as he shared his
journey and the many parallels between Young Life and the Catholic Church. I
was excited about a staff person that was both Catholic and on staff with Young
Life. I thought about all the kids and families that I knew or didn’t know that
were raised in the Catholic Church. Now I felt like I had a resource to go
to ask questions and begin to learn the new vocabulary to have dialogue with
people that attended the local Catholic Church.
Not
too long after that I met Fr. Marty, the local Catholic priest, at a meeting of
youth organizations. When he asked me what Young Life was, I tried to be
winsome and relational, sharing with him the mission statement and how I went
about forming intentional relationships with kids in the community. I was
surprised when he expressed an interest in Young Life and humbly acknowledged a
real need for renewal in the youth ministry at his parish. I liked Fr. Marty,
he was a personable guy and I was excited to meet with him outside the group
setting to get to know him and hear his story.
I’ll
never forget when he told me he wasn't just about trying to get kids to come to
Mass or youth group, he wanted kids to really engage in their faith through an
encounter with Jesus. This struck a chord in my life, cuz I just want kids to
know Jesus Christ and have a life long adventure while growing in his likeness.
It seemed like me and Fr. Marty were on the same page from the beginning.
One
coffee meeting led to another (interestingly, I learned that Fr. Marty never
pays for his coffee, there's always a parishioner there that is pleased to
cover the tab), and he and I really started to develop a friendship. I enjoyed
our conversations and he came to value the insights I have in working with
young people. Before I knew it I was being invited to attend a gathering of
Catholics to discuss a recent interview given by Pope Francis. I was excited
about this discussion, but knew I would have to read up on the interview and
familiarize myself with anything I didn’t know or understand. I was glad to be
part of the discussion but was a bit apprehensive because of my lack of
knowledge on the Catholic faith/culture. (I wish I was more versed on Catholic vocabulary/terminology).
I
arrived and was surprised to receive a warm welcome from a few parishioners who
escorted me to the wine and cheese spread at the back of the room. Certainly
not your typical church refreshments! At one point in the seminar, Fr. Marty,
who was leading, took a moment to introduce me and I was humbled to get an
applause. What? Really?
I
even got a chance to share my own thoughts about the pope's interview. I love
what Pope Francis says here, as it relates so much to the work I'm doing in Young Life:
The
thing the church needs most today is the ability to heal wounds and to warm the
hearts of the faithful; it needs nearness, proximity. I see the church as a
field hospital after battle. It is useless to ask a seriously injured person if
he has high cholesterol and about the level of his blood sugars! You have to
heal his wounds. Then we can talk about everything else. Heal the wounds, heal
the wounds.... And you have to start from the ground up.[1]
This
relates to Young life in the most beautiful way. As a Young Life leader, or in
fact anyone that loves the Lord and also professes to love others, we need to
become masters at walking along side others, helping them with their physical,
mental, and emotional needs as well as sharing the love of Christ with them. This
is what we mean when we say that Young Life’s approach is “incarnational.” We don’t
ask kids to come to us, we meet them where they’re at and let the love of
Christ come alive right there.
As
things ended, I was bombarded with people that wanted to speak with me. I
couldn't believe it but I made so many wonderful connections that day. And
everybody was thrilled to hear about what I was doing with kids through Young
Life. It
was great to see such a rich and intentional dialogue develop by showing up to
just one meeting at the Catholic parish. I even got to take some photo opps
with Pope Francis himself (well, a cardboard cut-out at least).
I
have continued to meet with Father Marty and he has become a dear friend. Someone
who I can call, text or email and many times have a meeting with him the same
week. It’s been an honor to be a part of his life and to see how he loves the
Lord and loves the community he is serving. I always look forward to our times
together and the discussions we have. I've grown in my relationship with
the Lord from the Scriptures I have read in preparation for my discussion with
Father Marty, but also with even my prayer life with the Lord to ask for
guidance and wisdom with how to approach different subject matters.
As
far as how this has affected me in doing Young Life I have been far more
sensitive to how I approach kids/parents that I know are Catholic. I think
before I was meeting regularly with Father Marty, I would have been more timid
about how I would talk with or about Catholics. I think now I am more than
happy and even bold to talk with Catholic kids or parents because of my
knowledge of what they believe as well as my relationship with a Catholic
priest Father Marty. I do not take lightly my relationship with Father Marty
and I try to learn as much as I can when I am with him. He enjoys studying to
prepare for his homilies and I feel that
has inspired me to read more and even write this blog post when Michael asked
me to share my story.
I
have been encouraged, challenged and spurred on to grow in my walk with the
Lord through my relationship with Father Marty and the Catholic Church. I am in
awe of the reverence He has for the Lord and even how my approach to
worshipping the Lord has changed with how I am postured. I have even gone to
Catholic Mass and it wasn’t on Christmas or Easter! I have prayed the Rosary
and read multiple prayers while in chapel. I am grateful for my relationship
with Father Marty and look forward to see how the Lord uses it in our
ministries.
[1]
Antonio Spadaro, SJ, “A Big Heart Open to God,” America (September 30, 2013), at http://www.americamagazine.org/pope-interview.
Great article. Warms my heart and gets my blood pumping.
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