DIOCESAN DAY OF PRAYER

Saying the time is right “to gather together as a diocesan community — to pray, to celebrate, and to recommit ourselves to being the missionary disciples God so urgently needs us to be,” Bishop Edward B. Scharfenberger is inviting everyone in the Diocese of Albany to a Diocesan Day of Prayer and Celebration next month.

The free, diocesan-wide event — with the theme of “Come Holy Spirit! Renew Our Strength! Reaffirm Our Hope!” — will take place on Saturday, Sept. 25, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at St. Edward the Confessor Church in Clifton Park.

The Bishop added in his letter to the faithful on Aug. 10 that “as we continue to live in these challenging and uncertain times, we can all feel a bit weary. At the same time, we can be absolutely confident that our Faithful God continues to reach out to us in love with his gifts of strength and hope. These are not gifts for ourselves alone. These are gifts that must be shared. More than ever, I believe God is calling each and every one of us — missionary disciples of Jesus — to be instruments of his peace and witnesses to his abiding love!”

The day will begin with a special prayer for God’s strength and an uplifting message from Father Bob Longobucco, vicar general and moderator of the Curia. After the morning prayer, there will be time to reflect more deeply on the gift of God’s hope, led by Bob McCarty, a well-known national presenter and former director of the National Federation for Catholic Youth Ministry. Finally, the event will conclude with a Holy Hour and a recommitment to go announce the Gospel of the Lord!”

David Amico, the diocesan director for the Office of Lay Ministry & Parish Faith Formation, said that they have “often hosted some sort of an event in the fall — whether for catechetical and youth ministry leaders, catechists, or for all the people in the Diocese.

“As we were praying and discerning about what to do this year, we were also pondering the theme for Catechetical Sunday (Sept. 19) — “Say the Word, and My Soul Shall be Healed.” The more we prayed, the more we began to sense that God was leading us to something that gathered everyone in the Diocese together to give them a real spiritual boost — a revitalization. When Father Bob wholeheartedly agreed, we took that as a confirmation from the Holy Spirit! And so the day, and its title, came to be!”

Amico added living through a global pandemic has made this day even more spiritually necessary.

“By the time we gather in September, we will have been living in the midst of the pandemic for 18 months. In one way or another, the pandemic has affected all of us. More than ever, we need to be strengthened as a community by praying for God’s healing love to envelop us. We need to reaffirm our hope that we are held in God’s love by which everything is possible,” Amico said. “Indeed, that was the message the Angel Gabriel gave to Mary at the Annunciation! And, like Angel Gabriel — whose name means ‘God is my strength’ — we must bring this message by the witness of our lives to everyone we encounter.

“As Pope Francis reminds us so often, by virtue of our Baptism, we are all missionary disciples — no matter our age or our state of life. If we have encountered the love of God in Jesus Christ, how can we not but share it? Pope Francis says it quite plainly: ‘So what are we waiting for?’ (Joy of the Gospel, 120).”

The Bishop added in his letter: “I hope, and I especially pray, that many of you will set aside Sept. 25 for what will be, I am sure, a grace-filled experience. Jesus needs you! We need Jesus, and one another!”

Registration deadline is Sept. 15 and the Diocese will follow whatever health and safety protocols that may be required at that time. You can register at: https://webapps.rcda.org/ParishFaithFormation or call The Office of Lay Ministry & Parish Faith Formation at (518) 453-6670.