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The Autumn Diocesan Gathering will be held Oct. 22 at LaSalle Institute in Troy. David Amico, director of the diocesan Office of Ministry Formation, describes the annual event as "a cross between a retreat day and a workshop day."

Spring Enrichment, he explained, has an element of education for catechists, youth ministers and others working toward certification in their respective ministries. The Autumn Diocesan Gathering is simply geared toward learning and enriching every participant's faith.

The event is co-sponsored by the Albany Diocese and the Franciscan Center for Catholic Studies at Siena College in Loudonville. This year's gathering will include a keynote address by Brother F. Edward Coughlin, OFM, president of Siena, on the fifth Beatitude: "Blessed are they who show mercy; mercy shall be theirs."

Other parts of the gathering also refer to the Year of Mercy being celebrated by the Catholic Church through the end of November: sessions on using one's gifts to "live mercy," on how mercy is portrayed in Scripture and on practical advice for parishes around the works of mercy.

Ministries expo
There will also be a "parish ministries expo." A new feature of the gathering, the expo will include booths by many parishes to show off a ministry of which they are especially proud.

St. Michael the Archangel parish in Troy, for example, will have a booth about social justice, while Our Lady of Fatima in Delanson will discuss its parish Mardi Gras celebration. A booth by parishioners of St. Augustine's in Troy will talk about evangelization efforts.

"Parishes often do ministry fairs to remind the community, 'This is what we are doing and the things you can get involved in,'" Mr. Amico said. "This is kind of a diocesan twist. It's sharing the best practices."

The expo will highlight the ministries that are working at different parishes -- hopefully inspiring other parish leaders to start similar efforts at their own parishes.

The Autumn Diocesan Gathering is "a day for every Catholic and every parish minister," Mr. Amico said. "It's a day for people throughout the Diocese to gather, to pray together, to learn together, to share together. It's meant to be a day of spiritual renewal."

Special sessions
In addition to the keynote and expo, the gathering will have workshop sessions on topics from spiritual healing for people with post-traumatic stress disorder to parish outreach to young parents at the time when their children are baptized.

One session that excites Mr. Amico will be led by Dr. Peter Avvento, director of faith formation at St. Edward the Confessor parish in Clifton Park. Dr. Avvento will speak on Pope Francis' "Amoris Laetitia" and what it teaches about love in the family and "moral and pastoral perspectives for disciples."

The talk will be offered in the morning and afternoon. "That will certainly be a draw for people," Mr. Amico told The Evangelist. "People love Pope Francis. Peter Avvento has become a well-known and well respected presenter in the Diocese."

Another workshop the director cited was on "Social Media Essentials for Disciples Today," to be led by Mary DeTurris Poust, director of communications for the Diocese. Covering the effects of social media, the workshop will include a panel of young adults.

Bishops' offerings
Bishop Edward B. Scharfenberger and Bishop Emeritus Howard J. Hubbard are both leading sessions at the Autumn Diocesan Gathering, and both will focus on mercy.

Bishop Scharfenberger's session, "The Family: Where Mercy Begins," is meant "to draw a connection between the Summit on the Family and the gathering," said Mr. Amico. The Bishop will discuss "family life as a place where we learn to pray, to love and to show mercy."

Bishop Emeritus Hubbard, for his part, will reflect on his 53 years of service as a priest and then Bishop of Albany in a talk titled, "Local Heroes of Mercy: Inspiration for Disciples Today." He will be recalling different people he has looked up to or encountered over the years.

"If you're not actively involved in any ministry at the moment, you'll still get something out of this day," Mr. Amico concluded.[[In-content Ad]]

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