MISSIONS
Fr. Frank DeSiano's Missions
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Mission #1:
Evangelizing Mission
This mission has been presented in dozens of parishes with very excellent reception. It revolves around three evangelizing themes:
(1) Personal Faith
(2) Community
(3) Reaching Out
Here is the outline of the three days. The whole evening is about 1 1/4. Don't worry--we keep the stories coming, and the jokes.
DAY ONE
Purpose: to show that discipleship is a constant growth in faith
Welcome:
Opening Song:
Opening Prayer:
Scripture: Matt. 14: 22-33
Song Response:
Talk: Fr. DeSiano
Song Response
Ritual: A large bowl is brought forth, along with several smaller ones. Fr. DeSiano says a prayer over the large bowl and water is then put into smaller ones. Members of the pastoral council or ministry team then hold these bowls as the congregation comes forth. They sign their foreheads with the water, praying: Lord, I believe, help my unbelief.
Closing Prayer: DeSiano
Announcements:
Our Father, Greeting of Peace, Dismissal
Closing Hymn
DAY TWO
Purpose: To show that discipleship is lived and exercised in communion with others
Welcome:
Opening Hymn:
Opening Prayer:
Song Response
Scripture: 1 Cor. 13
Talk: Fr. DeSiano
Song Response
Ritual: People receive cards and pencils. On the card they are invited to reflect on and write two things: 1) one gift that God has given me to give to the community; and 2) one person or segment of the community that I can reach out to. They bring up cards and put them into a large basket.
Closing Prayer over basket: DeSiano
Announcements:
Our Father, Greeting of Peace, Dismissal
Closing Hymn
DAY THREE
Purpose: To reveal how God sends all of us forth
Welcome:
Opening Hymn:
Scripture: Luke 10: 1-10
Song Response
Talk: Fr. DeSiano
Song Response
Ritual: The congregation is invited to come forth as representatives from the parish (parish council, ministers, etc.) form a line of six people across the sanctuary. People come forth and receive the imposition of hands from these ministers. If possible, people enter the sanctuary and remain there as they listen to a commissioning prayer from Fr. DeSiano
Closing Prayer: DeSiano
Announcements and Thanks
Our Father, Greeting of Peace, Solemn Blessing, Dismissal
Closing Hymn
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MISSION #2
Being a Disciple Today
This mission explores the bases of discipleship for Catholics: how we express our relationship with God through prayer and worship; how we grow in that relationship by opening ourselves to God's Word, and how discipleship leads us to others in community and service.
Day 1
Theme: Disciples express their relationship with God through prayer
Opening Song:
Welcome: Pastor or other pastoral leader
Opening Prayer: Fr. Frank
Reading: Matthew 6:7-14
Sung Response:
Talk: Fr. Frank
Song:
Response: Benediction of Blessed Sacrament
Announcements (Fr. Frank)
Closing Song:
Day 2
Theme: Disciples live and grow in the Word of God
Opening Song:
Welcome: Pastor or pastoral leader
Opening Prayer: Fr. Frank
Reading: Matthew 5:1-12
Sung Response:
Talk: Fr. Frank
Song:
Response: congregation is invited to share God’s Word with each other, followed by veneration of the Gospels.
Our Father, Greeting of Peace, Announcements (Fr. Frank)
Closing Song:
Day 3
Theme: We express our discipleship through service
Opening Song:
Welcome: Pastor or other pastoral leader
Opening Prayer: Fr. Frank
Reading: John 13:1-11
Sung Response:
Talk: Fr. Frank
Song:
Response: Laying on hands as a sign of being commissioned as disciples.C
Our Father, Greeting of Peace, Announcements (Fr. Frank)
Closing Song:
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Mission #3
The last three days in the life of St. Paul. A dramatic presentation.
Paul is in a Roman Prison. The Christians of the community in Rome are visiting him. He reminisces on his life as a missionary, a former of communities and as a mystic. Each is 45 minutes long. This can be done as a one-day event or as part of a mission.
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Mission on the Eucharist
To provide a means for parishioners to grow in their understanding of the
Eucharist and ways the Eucharist invites them to deeper Discipleship.
DAY ONE
CALLED
AIM: To help parishioners see that the celebration of the Word of God calls them to be active followers of Jesus and to underscore basic elements of the Word: revelation, covenant, and mercy.
1) Welcome (Pastor and mission preacher)
2) Opening Hymn
3) Opening Prayer (mission preacher and congregation:
Lord, God of infinite love, you sent your Son Jesus to enter our lives, save us, and transform us through the Holy Spirit. Your Son gave us the Eucharist to continue touching and transforming our lives. At Mass we celebrate God’s Word; at Mass we unite ourselves with Jesus, our Priest, who gives you unending praise. At Mass, the Holy Spirit comes upon us to make us Christ’s living Mystical Body. We pray that our desire to deepen our understanding of the great gift of the Eucharist might help us grow as disciples, see Christ’s presence in our families and our parish, and empower us to bring Christ Jesus everyday into the world. We pray this in Jesus’ name.
Amen.
4) Reading: Isaiah 6:
Chapter 6: 1-10
In the year King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a high and lofty throne, with the train of his garment filling the temple. Seraphim were stationed above; each of them had six wings: with two they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they hovered. One cried out to the other:
“Holy, holy, holy[c] is the Lord of hosts!
All the earth is filled with his glory!”
At the sound of that cry, the frame of the door shook and the house was filled with smoke. Then I said, “Woe is me, I am doomed! For I am a man of unclean lips, living among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!” Then one of the seraphim flew to me, holding an ember which he had taken with tongs from the altar. He touched my mouth with it. “See,” he said, “now that this has touched your lips, your wickedness is removed, your sin purged.”
Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? Who will go for us?” “Here I am,” I said; “send me!” And he replied: Go and say to this people:
Listen carefully, but do not understand! Look intently, but do not perceive!
Make the heart of this people sluggish, dull their ears and close their eyes;
Lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and their heart understand, and they turn and be healed.
5) Hymn Response
6) Talk (mission preacher)
7) Hymn Response
8) Ritual:
A procession begins in the back of the Church with the mission preacher carrying a large lectionary of the Gospels, flanked by two candle-bearers. The mission preacher invites the congregation to come forward one by one and show veneration to the Book of Gospels in an appropriate way (e.g., bow, touching the book, etc.). (Background Music)
9) Announcements, Final Blessing (mission preacher)
10) Closing Hymn
DAY TWO:
ENCOUNTERED
In the Eucharist Jesus encounters us in the most intimate way,
and invites us to deepen our encounter with him and each other.
1) Welcome (Pastor and mission Preacher
2) Opening Hymn
3) Opening Prayer (mission preacher and congregation:
Lord, God of infinite love, you sent your Son Jesus to enter our lives, save us, and transform us through the Holy Spirit. Your Son gave us the Eucharist to continue touching and transforming our lives. At Mass we celebrate God’s Word; at Mass we unite ourselves with Jesus, our Priest, who gives you unending praise. At Mass, the Holy Spirit comes upon us to make us Christ’s living Mystical Body. We pray that our desire to deepen our understanding of the great gift of the Eucharist might help us grow as disciples, see Christ’s presence in our families and our parish, and empower us to bring Christ Jesus everyday into the world. We pray this in Jesus’ name. Amen.
4) Reading
John 15: 1-9
“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vine grower. He takes away every branch in me that does not bear fruit, and every one that does he prunes so that it bears more fruit. You are already pruned because of the word that I spoke to you. Remain in me, as I remain in you. Just as a branch cannot bear fruit on its own unless it remains on the vine, so neither can you unless you remain in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit, because without me you can do nothing. Anyone who does not remain in me will be thrown out like a branch and wither; people will gather them and throw them into a fire and they will be burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask for whatever you want and it will be done for you. By this is my Father glorified, that you bear much fruit and become my disciples. As the Father loves me, so I also love you. Remain in my love.
5) Hymn Response
6) Talk (mission preacher)
7) Hymn Response
8) Ritual
The altar will be prepared for Benediction; the Eucharist will be exposed and there will be a guided meditation by the mission preacher after which will be the actual benediction, Divine Praises, and closing hymn. (O Salutaris, and Tantum Ergo).
9) Announcements; Final Blessing (mission preacher)
10) Closing Hymn: Holy God We Praise Thy Name
DAY THREE:
SENT
Being called and encountered by God, we are empowered
to go forth as disciples serving the Kingdom of God
1) Welcome (Pastor and mission Preacher
2) Opening Hymn
3) Opening Prayer (mission preacher and congregation:
Lord, God of infinite love, you sent your Son Jesus to enter our lives, save us, and transform us through the Holy Spirit. Your Son gave us the Eucharist to continue touching and transforming our lives. At Mass we celebrate God’s Word; at Mass we unite ourselves with Jesus, our Priest, who gives you unending praise. At Mass, the Holy Spirit comes upon us to make us Christ’s living Mystical Body. We pray that our desire to deepen our understanding of the great gift of the Eucharist might help us grow as disciples, see Christ’s presence in our families and our parish, and empower us to bring Christ Jesus everyday into the world. We pray this in Jesus’ name. Amen.
4) Reading:
John 20: 19-23
On the evening of that first day of the week, when the doors were locked, where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, “Peace be with you.” When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained.”
5) Hymn Response
6) Talk (mission preacher)
7) Hymn Response
8) Ritual
A small cruet of oil is placed on a table with some small glass bowls. The mission preacher prays over the oil and pours it into several small bowls. Assistants are invited to come forth (Pastor, some one staff, etc.) and people come forward in two’s before each bowl. Each parishioner is invited to amount the palms of the other parishioner and vice versa. Those holding the bowl say to each twosome: “May the Spirit empower us to serve as Jesus did.” (Background Music)
9) Announcements: Final Blessing, Mission Blessing (mission preacher)
10) Closing Hymn
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Mission #5
HOLY SPIRIT -- Father Hecker Mission
Event # 1
Life Today Shows our Need for the Holy Spirit
Object: to help people see that the difficult issues of modern life can dispose us to greater openness to God, in trust, through the Holy Spirit. (JG) What are the difficult issues and what would make people think the Holy Spirit is important when God is not a part of their lives?
Opening Welcome
Opening Hymn
Opening Prayer
Scripture: Acts 9 (Conversion of St. Paul)
Thematic:
>We keep thinking that we have life under control
>We keep thinking we are OK where we are
>how is this working in our own lives
>how is this working in our modern world
>Paul thought he had it all worked out
>Paul realizes there’s a whole world he run away from
>Paul realizes there’s another way to relate to God
>Paul experiences Jesus liberating him
>This is so much a part of American life
>in our novels
>in our movies
>in every brand of politics
>Isaac Hecker, an American who also realized his need for the Spirit
>his life at a standstill
>but he dares to do something
>How is the Spirit seeking to break through into our lives today
>there’s an Ananias waiting for us
>there are scales waiting to drop
Hymn
Ritual: people are invited to write petitions about their lives, or the lives of others they know are stuck; these are brought forth and placed in a basket in front of some Icon of the Spirit
Closing Prayer
Closing Hymn
Event # 2
The Spirit Guides Us
Object: to help people see that the Spirit not only comes to us from Christ,
but that the Spirit continues to guide us as we grow in faith
Opening Welcome
Opening Hymn
Opening Prayer
Scripture: Acts 2 (Pentecost)
Thematic
>How often dreams get stunted because people lose faith, they feel they cannot follow-through
>Contrast people who made discoveries with those who didn’t
>Artists that created and those who only dreamed
>We can feel in our own lives that we don’t know the next step to take
>How did the disciples feel after Jesus rose from the dead and ascended into heaven?
>the vision of Jesus was so compelling
>his death and resurrection was so shattering, so stunning
>what were they supposed to do now?
>The Spirit comes to guide the followers of Jesus into a future
>A dynamic future
>A world-inclusive future
>A future filled with hope (which is different than cockiness)
>A future that seemed guided by God
>Isaac Hecker had dreams
>as a child, he knew he had a destiny
>as a young man, he knew he had to be different
>as a Convert, he knew he had to serve in a special way
>as a missionary, he knew his mission would be different
The Spirit was present in his life as providential power
>In our own lives, this same Spirit is present to us
>we know this because where Jesus is, the Spirit also is
>that we are willing to follow Jesus means we are open to his Spirit
>but we all hold something back, thinking we’re being safe
>but we’re really being afraid
>Jesus sends the Spirit on us as he did on his disciples
>where is our dynamism, our ever-wider scope, our confidence?
Hymn
Ritual
Participants are given sheets of paper and invited to create a timeline; what were the key events they saw? The retreat leader can use an easel board or projector. A line is drawn across the middle of the sheet; people are invited to draw a line as well. Invite them to write at various points of the line chronologically major events in their lives. What was their faith life like at those points? Can they identify progress and directions. Can they see the Spirit’s guidance in their lives? They might write a short prayer at the bottom of the paper. These might be brought forth into a basket as well.
Closing Prayer
Closing Hymn
Event Three
The Spirit Brings us Union
Objective: The Spirit Jesus sends to us unites us intimately with God and with each other,
bringing a unity of love, faith, and life
Opening Welcome
Opening Hymn
Opening Prayer
Scripture: I will send an Advocate (John 16: 7-15)
Thematic:
The more we connect the more we are disconnected
>Social Media, social confusion
>Communications world-wide, the terrible visions we see
>Communications, the greater our divisions socially, politically
>Economics, but inequality keeps getting greater
>God has a vision for the unity of humankind
>the vision began with the creation of Adam
>the vision was reaffirmed with Abraham
>the vision grew through Jewish history
>the vision comes to fullness in Jesus, the New Adam
>Jesus’ resurrection: he can be present in all space and time
>he is present in his sacraments
>he is present in his Spirit
>The Spirit accomplishes the dream of Jesus, the vision of the father
>humankind united as one family, sharing the same life
>humankind united in the one life of God
>a mystical union of love and grace
>I am who I am because I am connected to God and to others
>Isaac Hecker thrived because of this union
>he felt the Spirit’s presence
>he taught that all of spiritual life was opening ourselves to the Spirit
>he knew that his new-found Catholic faith would unite him
--with the workers and the poor of the world
--with intimate experience of the Spirit’s dwelling in his soul
>This kind of union is open to us too
>maybe if we believed in the Spirit we’d be less divided as a people, even as a Church
>every sacrament is a celebration of mystical union
>every step in our lives can lead us further into union with the Spirit
>every encounter with another can be touched by the Spirit
>how is the Spirit inviting us to overcome the divisions (classism, egoism, sexism, racism, etc.) among us?
Hymn
Ritual
Four or six people are chosen to lay hands on heads; they do not need a lot of preparation. At the end, the congregation comes forward in rows as hands are laid on their heads. The minister says “Remember the Power of the Holy Spirit” and lays hands on for at least 5 seconds. They gather in the sanctuary after being blessed. The retreat master leads a prayer of unity in the Holy Spirit. People join hands as Veni Creator Spiritus is sung (in English). They spend several moments in silence contemplating the presence of the spirit within them and among them. They join hands and sing the Our Father. Greeting of Peace
Closing Prayer
Closing Hymn
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