Dear Friends,
The theme of our annual conference which will be held the weekend of September 20th to the 22nd, 2024, at the beautiful San Damiano Retreat Center in Danville, California, is Secular Consecration: Falling in Love Again.
What does falling in love suggest to us? The engagement of the heart and the mind in the direction of a beloved object. Most of us have experienced falling in love. What happens to us? We are absorbed with, we think about, meditate upon the object of our desire. And then we look to please. And this is what the Church is emphasizing in its three- year Eucharistic Revival: our falling in love again or more intensely with the Source of all love – Jesus Christ, present in body, blood, soul and divinity in the small piece of bread known as the Eucharist and carrying that in mission every day to everyone we meet.
A culmination of this was the National Eucharistic Congress which took place July 17th through 21st in Indianapolis. The USCSI had a booth with several members in attendance, led by Jessica Swedzinski and Kathy Tierney. (More on that later in this newsletter.) While not able to attend the conference I took part in the Elizabeth Seton route here in Manhattan as we accompanied Jesus through the skyscrapers to the Brooklyn Bridge.
As the purpose of the Eucharistic pilgrimage and congress was to stir the fires of love within each of our hearts, so the theme of our confer- ence at San Damiano is reflecting on our own Secular Consecration: Falling in Love Again. Presentations will be led by our Vice President, Fr. John O’Neill and former president and councilor Fr. George Hazler. In attendance as well will be our Episcopal Moderator, Bishop Mark Rivituso.
The opportunity to be together in San Damiano and to pray together at this annual conference in September is a gift which we give to each other. Surely the Holy Spirit will be there to fan the fires of fervor in each of us in our unique call to serve the Lord in the state of conse- crated secularity. And thus inspired to carry our mission forward. Sign up now if you haven’t already!
In Christ and His mother,
Sue
